http://www.computerworld.com/action/art ... Id=9134237

I was a Money user from about 1999 to 2006 (with a few month trial with Quicken in between) before switching over to GnuCash, and finally now KMyMoney. I think this could be a great opportunity to get more people using KMyMoney once a Windows version is working.

As a developer once said (unfortunately I don't remember his name):

Porting open source applications to Windows only stops Windows user to switch to Linux.

wolfemi1 wrote:I think this could be a great opportunity to get more people using KMyMoney once a Windows version is working.

I think most of us here have already made the break from Windows, I don't want to go back (shudder).

Another way of looking at this - KMyMoney will provide an incentive for people to move away from Windows to KDE on Linux.

wolfemi1 wrote:http://www.computerworld.com/action/art ... Id=9134237

Ouch!, that gives me one more reason, now the only one I need , to cut my dependence to MS Money.

It seems many people have already switched to KMM or other linux variants. May I ask, how people have handled transferring investment accounts to KMM? It's my current battle with KMM. However I hate to have to create accounts and investments manually, it seems only after that, I am allowed to import transactions.

Here's a suggestion to MicroSoft. Instead of throwing MS Money program away, how about open-sourcing it?

JantarMantar wrote:...

It seems many people have already switched to KMM or other linux variants. May I ask, how people have handled transferring investment accounts to KMM? It's my current battle with KMM. However I hate to have to create accounts and investments manually, it seems only after that, I am allowed to import transactions.
...

That shouldn't need to be the case. It's a while since I've done this in earnest, but I've just checked with a large file including investments and numerous other accounts. The investments were imported without any manual intervention. I have to say the result is not, to me, as clear as I would like, but everything is there. For me, there were numerous unwanted accounts, which I had to delete. It may depend on how complex your particular file is.

It's important that your file imports the account details before the transactions though. My file starts off with a
!Type:Cat record, followed by the category list. Then there comes
!Option:AutoSwitch
!Account followed by the account list, then
!Clear:AutoSwitch
!Type:Security followed by the security list including each symbol, then
!Option:AutoSwitch
!Account
followed by the accounts with their transactions, then lots of
!Type:Prices records.

If your file is not in that order, then it's not likely to import fully. If you have those lists in multiple files, then import them in the right order. That should work for you.

aga

I understand the argument that the more people using Linux/KDE the better, but I truly believe that most people are not willing to switch OSes for the sake of a single or a few programs. I think the best way to go about it is to give people excellent free software to use (like KMyMoney, Firefox, etc.) that is available cross-platform, so that when they eventually are ready to switch to a new OS, they don't have to re-learn all their tools.

I think that for every person who would switch to Linux from Windows for KMyMoney, there are ten who will just go buy Quicken. *shudder*

Rettich wrote:Porting open source applications to Windows only stops Windows user to switch to Linux.

It depends on your goal. As a FreeBSD user I have little interest in getting people to use Linux, but would love to see a wider adoption of KDE apps.

Going a bit further the issue is open standards; 30 years ago Gary Kildall created an operating system (CP/M) that was independent of the hardware and the main CP/M software was interoperable; then MS took everyone backwards with vertical integration and no interoperability; it has taken Linux and open standards to give us back hardware independence and interoperability. But it is our data that is important and our ability to use it on whatever platform happens to be available to us. KDE4 takes us towards that goal and I hope that KMyMoney will soon be part of that.

Brandybuck wrote:

Rettich wrote:Porting open source applications to Windows only stops Windows user to switch to Linux.

It depends on your goal. As a FreeBSD user I have little interest in getting people to use Linux, but would love to see a wider adoption of KDE apps.

I agree here too. Plus, I have used Quicken before, and I have to say that before the evil of Intuit, even Microsoft pales in comparison. They are VERY bad about not letting user data escape their clutches and keeping people on the upgrade treadmill, and I would hate to see people herded into Quicken for lack of access to the Best Personal Finance Software In Existence (tm).

As a developer, I will be glad to help people switch to an open format, whether it is KMyMoney, Skrooge, or something else. As I said before, I will not help with Windows development, but I will help former Windows users who want to switch to a free desktop.

I think users have to be willing to take the extra step of learning new ways, and then we can help them. We cannot force freedom into people, since they will be disappointed when the first little nag gets in their way.

aga wrote:It's important that your file imports the account details before the transactions though. My file starts off with a
!Type:Cat record, followed by the category list. Then there comes
!Option:AutoSwitch
!Account followed by the account list, then
!Clear:AutoSwitch
!Type:Security followed by the security list including each symbol, then
!Option:AutoSwitch
!Account
followed by the accounts with their transactions, then lots of
!Type:Prices records.

If your file is not in that order, then it's not likely to import fully. If you have those lists in multiple files, then import them in the right order. That should work for you.

aga

Thanks for the tip. I tested with a small amount of data after including !Type:Security information and it seems to have worked. I wonder why my MS Money export didn't have that information.

Thanks again.

Hei Ku wrote:As a developer, I will be glad to help people switch to an open format, whether it is KMyMoney, Skrooge, or something else. As I said before, I will not help with Windows development, but I will help former Windows users who want to switch to a free desktop.

I think users have to be willing to take the extra step of learning new ways, and then we can help them. We cannot force freedom into people, since they will be disappointed when the first little nag gets in their way.

One advantage of a windows port I see is an opportunity to pair up with TaxCut. I, personally have moved to web based tax software, so I don't care, but still there are a large number of users who'll be forced to use TurboTax + Quicken, now that TaxCut has been orphaned. Pairing with TaxCut could be a huge boost to KMM (or Skrooge or Money Dance or GNU Cash).

With MS Money gone, now is an opportunity for other programs to have their presence felt and establish common file format/data storage/cloud and offer better interoperability standards than what the hegemony of MicroSoft and Intuit dictated, for example QIF.

TaxCut is a privative software, I don't think they will be very interested on integration with free software. Of course, I might be wildly wrong.

Anyway, any developer is free to work on a Windows-version once we finish the KDE4 version. Myself, I don't have a Windows license, nor have any plans to buy one.