I think this dispute has more to do with how we begin to learn about
transactions in double entry bookkeeping and that gnucash (and yes, most
equivalent "direct entry into the ledger" alternatives) begins with a
SIMPLIFIED entry that makes it quick/easy to enter the overwhelming
majority of transactions.
Let's go back to the way double entry was done, first entering
transactions into a "journal" and then later posting these to the
ledger. We can then define a transaction as:
a date, optionally a check number or transaction number
one OR MORE lines of debits, each with the account being debited and the
amount
one OR MORE lines of credits, each with the account being credited and
the amount
and optional description of this transaction
< with the condition that the total of the debit amounts and the total
of credit amounts must be the same>
This would then get posted to the ledger, each of those debit or credit
lines being a line in that ledger account.
Now in gnucash (and yes, in most alternatives) the journal is virtual.
You begin entering directly in ANY of the affected accounts. Since MOST
transactions have only one other account being affected, the entry
process allows you to specify that on the same line. IF (for some
reason) you wanted to see the journal, there is a report you can run <<
aside: in the old days, transcription errors while manually posting were
the bulk of the the errors that had to be painstakingly found -- there
were a number of "tricks" you had to learn to help you find the error >>
Because THIS (beginning with the simplest possible transaction form) is
how we begin entering with gnucash (and equivalents) we have a PROCESS
to switch to the more general form of transaction where there is more
than one debit, more than one credit, or both. That is called SPLIT.
When you hit the split button, it brings up a view of what the JOURNAL
entry would look like. All we are splitting is the view of a transaction
form one where see a single line (with one debit and one credit) to a
form where each debit and each credit appears on its own line.
The alternative software might call this process something else (say
"switch to journal view" instead of "split" but is doing the same thing.
In other words, this is a "work flow" matter. The developers (correctly)
decided to make it quick and easy to enter the overwhelming majority of
transactions instead of always requiring the process needed for the
rarer general case transaction.
Michael D Novack
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