The next step in setting up master files for The Application is to provide The Application with the account codes to set up a General Ledger. Most likely, your company already has a Chart of Accounts from which these codes can be transcribed. In fact, depending on the accounting system from which you are migrating, it may be possible to upload the Chart of Accounts into the Application's database. If Data Entrée was able to transfer the data electronically, then you can skip this step and go to the next section.

Otherwise, you will need to open the Ledger Code Maintenance form (Figure 15) by selecting it from File Maintenance Ledger Code File.

Before we look at the Ledger Code Maintenance form in detail, we need to discuss the difference between Header records and Detail records. You can create categories of G/L accounts identifying certain accounts as Header records in the Record Type field, and then assign other G/L accounts to those header records using the Category field. No activity is coded to G/L accounts which have a Record Type of Header, only G/L accounts with a Record Type of Detail will have activity. The header accounts exist only for purposes of creating categories which display on the printed financial statements with category subtotals.

The Ledger Code Maintenance form contains six textboxes for data entry:

• G/L Code - Enter the G/L code you would like to create. After you enter the new G/L code and go to exit the G/L Code textbox (by pressing Tab or clicking on another textbox), The Application will pop up a dialog box telling you the G/L code you entered does not exist and asking if you want to create a new one. Because the Ledger Code Maintenance form is used both to enter new G/L codes and modify existing G/L codes, The Application wants to verify that it is your intention to create a whole new account code before it goes any further. Since you are, in fact, adding a new G/L code, you will want to click Yes on the dialog box to continue.
• Description - Enter the description for this G/L Code.
• Category - In this optional field you can enter the G/L code of a header record to define a category for this account. See the discussion above.
• Record Type - For reporting purposes, as discussed above, choose whether you want this G/L code to be a Detail record or a Header record. Any G/L code to which you plan to code any activity should be defined as a Detail record. Only choose Header if you want to define a category with this G/L code so that other G/L codes can be assigned to the category using the Category field.
• G/L Type - This textbox has a drop-down list which allows you to choose from ten standard G/L account types. Choosing the correct account type is important for proper printing of financial statements.
• Beginning Balance - If the account is a balance-sheet account, you may want to enter an opening balance here.

The 1099 Required checkbox is used to distinguish those expense accounts for which payments to a vendor might require a 1099 at the end of the year (i.e., services). As we will see later, there is a similar checkbox on the Vendor File Maintenance form which allows us to identify those vendors which might require a 1099. These two flags allow us to print the 1099 Report and ultimately the 1099s themselves.

Once you have entered all the required data, you can click on the Save button to save the new G/L code to the database (Or press the Alt key and S key simultaneously). Once the G/L code has been saved, you can modify it using the Ledger Code Maintenance form. Whenever you enter an existing G/L code into the G/L Code textbox, the Ledger Code Maintenance form brings up the current data on that code and allows you to modify it.

If, while entering data into the Ledger Code Maintenance form, you change your mind and do not wish to save the record, simply click on the Cancel button. The Application will pop up another dialog box asking you if you want to cancel without saving, to which you can answer appropriately.

The complete Chart of Accounts should be entered into the Application's database before continuing with subsequent setup steps. Many of the other master files require account codes already be in place before they can be properly completed.

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