Re: [Fsfe-uk] Re: Accountants

[Oliver Elphick]

On Thu, 2002-02-28 at 19:51, Richard Ibbotson wrote:
> Oh ... Oliver :)  I've not heard anything from you for at least a 
> year.   Hope you are well.

Yes, thank you!

> Having had a look through the entire rack full of MS killer apps and 
> the entire rack of GNU/Linux killer apps I know that the one true and 
> certain way of getting the attention of the international financial 
> community is by providing them with accountancy software that fits in 
> with standards in the local area and international standards as well. 
>  So,  the .RPM and .DEB packages lend themselves to this very well.  
> You can add or subtract a package to increase functionality or 
> decrease it in the way that you might want.  Good way to do things ?

Yes.

Obviously it must be designed in a modular way to start with, but there
are a certain set of standard modules that must always exist, whatever
they are called in different countries.  The tricky bit is dealing with
special per-country rules in a convenient and aesthetic way, taking care
not to obstruct the future implementation of the completely different
rules of a country you have never heard of!

> In our case in the UK Governement PKI standards come to mind as an 
> obvious issue.  This is what stopped Jalia from becoming a success.

I've missed them! (Probably because they only involved MicroSoft trash?)
Where is the spec?

> My own pet accountant is completely hopeless with computers but even 
> his own perception of GNU/Linux firewalls and Samba servers is that 
> they are much better than anything else that he has seen. So, he'd 
> like to see more of them.  Or, better still, move to GNU/Linux on his 
> desktop.  Which he can't due to the lack of an accounting package.

The very first software I ever wrote was an "incomplete records"
accounting suite, in BASIC on a Jacquard (anyone else ever heard of
them?).  That was when I was still employed as an accountant. 
"Accountancy was my life until I discovered Smirnoff^Wcomputers"
 
> I think specifying a standard for an office package for financial use 
> is probably something of a severe test of somones or anyones 
> organisational abilities ?

Get a good modular design and let it flow out of that, a bit at a time.

I'll do it anyway, one day, but if there's anyone around to provide some
money, I'll do it sooner.

-- 
Oliver Elphick                                address@hidden
Isle of Wight                              http://www.lfix.co.uk/oliver
GPG: 1024D/3E1D0C1C: CA12 09E0 E8D5 8870 5839  932A 614D 4C34 3E1D 0C1C

     "These things have I written unto you that believe on 
      the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye 
      have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name
      of the Son of God."        I John 5:13