Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Expense Tracker |
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Simple Joe's Expense Tracker - quick and easy expense management and budgeting - simple PC software. |
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can I import and/or export information? Back To Questions Expense Tracker does not import information from any other software. It can export information in comma separated value (CSV) format. Does Expense Tracker also track income? Back To Questions It can. Although not designed to track income, you can set up income categories and enter amounts as positive or negative numbers. Note: If income amounts are entered as positive numbers, the totals at the bottom of the reports will be incorrect because you are totalling both expenses and income for that time period. Does Expense Tracker download credit card or bank account information from the Internet? Back To Questions No. In order to keep Expense Tracker as simple to use as possible and to avoid the problems with changing web sites and data standards, Expense Tracker does not interface with any online accounts. Simple Joe has no plans to make it do so in the future. Does Expense Tracker keep running totals for each expense category? Back To Questions No. Expense Tracker only shows time period totals on reports. Budgeted and entered amounts do not carry forward into future time periods. Reports can be printed for any time period, but only show the total of the expenses for that period (and detail if selected), not any balances carried forward. Can Expense Tracker help me track my debts? Back To Questions Yes. Each time you entere an expense, such as a credit card, loan or mortgage payment, you can also enter in the balance owed. Then print an Outstanding Debts report to see the total owed, date of last payment and some pay off estimates. It's very handy for getting a birds-eye-view of your debts and what you owe. How do I split an expense into two accounts? Back To Questions Determine the amount of the expense that belongs in the first account and enter just that amount. Then create another expense and enter the remaining amount of the expense into the second (or third, etc.) account. What is the difference between Payment Type and Payment #? Back To Questions Payment Type/# is used to identify the check, credit card, or other method of payment that was used to pay the expense. For example, Joe has two checking accounts and two credit cards. He uses one checking account to pay bills and the other to pay for his model train hobby. (He didn't have Simple Joe's Expense Tracker program to make it easy for him). When he buys groceries he enters a Payment Type of "BankOne" and enters the check number "543" into the Payment # box. When he buys a new locomotive he enters "OtherBank" in the Payment Type box and "345" into the Payment # box. The next time Joe buys groceries, as he types "B" into the Payment Type box the rest of the value "BankOne" will be automatically entered (just press the ENTER key to continue). Also the next sequential check number, "544", will be automatically enterd into the Payment # box. When Joe enters expenses he paid for using one of his credit cards, he enters the card name (e.g., "Visa", "Amex", etc.) into the Payment Type box and leaves the Payment # box blank. What is the Amount Still Owed box used for? Back To Questions The Amount Still Owed box is used to record the amount that is still owed to a Payee. For example, Joe purchased a new couch from his local furniture store. He paid some money down and is making monthly payments to pay off the rest. Each month he enters the amount he paid to the furniture store and also enters the balance (or amount) he still owes. Joe can now use the Outstanding Debts report to see a list of all of his debts and how much he still owes. How can I set the default date for new expenses? Back To Questions You can change the default date for new expenses by going to the Settings & Tools window and selecting from the options of Last Entry (which defaults the date as the last date you entered), Today, or Yesterday. Not all of my expenses are in the Expense entry window list. Where are they? Back To Questions The list in the Expense Entry window only shows the last 150 expenses by date. This keeps the list from becoming too long and slowing down your computer. To view expenses that are older than the 150 you can view, select the List button at the bottom-middle of the window. In the list window you can find the expense you are looking for and select the Edit button to view/edit it in the Expense Entry window. What is the Account Type box (in the Accounts window) used for? Back To Questions Account Type is used to aggregate or combine several accounts into one title for display on the reports. For example, if you have accounts for Car Insurance, Health Insurance, Life Insurance, Disability Insurance and Homeowners Insurance, you can enter "Insurance" as each account's Type value. Then select the By Type check box when printing a report to combine all the insurance accounts into one account named "Insurance." What is the Budget Amount box used for? Back To Questions Budget Amount is the monthly amount you anticipate spending in the account category. By entering a budget amount you can track your spending when you print the Budget Summary report. The Budget Summary report (when printed for dates within the same month) shows the budgeted amount for each account and shows what percentage of that amount has been used by the expenses you have entered. Can I delete an account? Back To Questions Yes. But if you have entered expenses for that account, you should merge the account to be deleted with an existing account. This will move the expenses entered into the account to be deleted into an account that will remain and you will not have to reassign the account for all the expenses that were in the deleted account. (See next question for instructions on merging accounts.) Can I merge two accounts that I have entered expenses into? Back To Questions Yes. If you decide that you want to lump your Car Insurance expenses into your Homeowners Insurance account, Simple Joe provides a simple tool to help you. Just select the Merge Accounts button in the Account window. Can I split one account into two? Back To Questions No. At this time there is not a tool that would split expenses between two new accounts. Can I rename an account? Back To Questions Yes. You can rename an account anytime using the Account window. How do I put my name on the reports? Back To Questions Select the Settings/Tools button from the Menu and enter your name in the box labeled Budget For:. What is the By Type box for in the Reports window? Back To Questions The By Type box allows you to print reports that group similar accounts together. (See question What is the Account Type box (in the Accounts window) used for? for more information.) What does the This Month button in the Reports window do? Back To Questions The This Month button in the Reports window will enter the first and last dates of the current month into the From and To boxes. This is useful when you are printing monthly reports. How do I delete old expenses? Back To Questions It's a good idea to delete old expenses after the information is no longer needed. This keeps your data files small, saves room on your disk drive, and keeps the program operating quickly. To delete old expenses, use the Purge (delete)... tool in the Settings & Tools window. Just enter in the date up to which you would like old expenses to be deleted, then select the Purge button. How can I move my data files to another directory? Back To Questions Use the Move Data Files tool located in the Settings & Tools window. How can I move or copy my data files onto another computer? Back To Questions After Expense Tracker is installed on the new comptuer, copy your data files to a floppy disk or through the network to your new computer and into the program folder ("C:\Program Files\expense-tracker" by default). To determine where your data files are located and where the program files are located click on the product logo in the Menu window. This will open the About window, which shows you the version date of the program as well as it's location and the location of your data files. To move your data files you will need to move all of the files with a "CDX", "DBF", or "FPT" extension to your new location. (If you cannot see the file extensions (e.g., FILE.EXT), in Explorer, select View | Folder Options | View tab, and uncheck the "Hide file extensions for known file types" option; about the 8th line in the box.) If you want to keep your data files in a location other than the program folder (expense-tracker), first place them in the program folder and then run Expense Tracker and use the Move Data Files tool in the Settings & Tools window. This way Expense Tracker will know where to find them. Can I install this program on my desktop and laptop computer? Back To Questions Yes! Simple Joe's Software Use Agreement allows you to use the software on more than one computer so long as you are the only user of the software on each computer. We don't squeeze you for extra licensing fees by limiting software use to one "user" or one "computer." See the Software Use Agreement for more information about who can use the software and how it may be installed. So if you have a desktop and a laptop, feel free to install Simple Joe software on both machines. Just remember the data files are separate and the data in them may be different on each machine. Something strange is happening. Can I reinstall this program without losing my data files? Back To Questions Yes. The installation routine checks for current data files and will not overwrite them if they already exist. To reinstall completely, either run the Uninstall program from your Start menu or delete all the files in the program folder ("C:\Program Files\expense-tracker" by default). |
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| Page Title: | Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Expense Tracker |
| Keywords: | expense tracker budget tracking budgeting report pc software simple joe easy quicken money alternative |
| Summary: | Simple Joe's Expense Tracker - quick and easy expense management and budgeting - simple PC software. |