Cross-platform accounting app offers special features for German users
Six years ago, German developer Jochen Staerk began coding GnuAccounting as a proof-of-concept of a magazine article on embedding OpenOffice.org. Today the Java-based accounting and bookkeeping application comes integrated with OpenOffice.org, and supports Homebanking Computer Interface (HBCI) chipcard online banking for German users. Of course it also lets you create invoices and credit memos and book incoming invoices.
In GnuAccounting you can import your bank statement (via HBCI or from Moneyplex or Starmoney export files) and select the VAT rate and the corresponding contra accounts. Because GnuAccounting uses double-entry bookkeeping, this import pushes the correct values to all related accounts. “This is more than 90% of the work in my (very small) company,” Staerk says, and more efficient than the usual approach of booking invoices and then crosschecking them against your bank statement.
Staerk chose to write GnuAccounting in Java for its portability, and uses the Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT) for its straightforward design. He promotes the application via the Web (“I’m very proud that the ultimate SWT tutorial, which brought me to SWT, links to GnuAccounting”), with articles such as one in a German open source magazine, and with talks like the one at last year’s Linux-Tag conference in Berlin. He hosts the code at SourceForge.net (“THE central open source repository, the first site to visit when I look for open source products – and its infrastructure (Subversion, wikis, project pages, mailing lists, bug tracker, you name it) is a great help”) and announces every new release via freshmeat, pro-linux.de, osnews.com, and elsewhere.
The project is still in beta. Staerk wants to enhance its stability, and has some bugfixes on his agenda: the template designer window, for instance, can crash if you select different transaction types too quickly. He’s considering adding some rudimentary fiscal year management, and moving to an Eclipse/Rich Client Platform version. He also wants to provide a manual and online help.
Staerk welcomes help from developers, testers, and translators. You can send Staerk e-mail, or join the project’s developer mailing list.
Articles | Administrator | 
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 12:01 am
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