Computerised Accounting System Take the case of a club, for example, where the number of transactions and their variety is relatively small, a Personal Computer with standardised software may be sufficient. However, for a large business organisation with a number of geographically scattered factories and offices, more powerful computer systems supported by sophisticated networks are required to handle the voluminous data and the complex reporting requirements. In order to handle such requirements, multi-user operating systems such as UNIX, Linux, etc. are used.
Modern computerised accounting systems are based on the concept of database. A database is implemented using a database management system, which is define by a set of computer programmes (or software) that manage and organise data effectively and provide access to the stored data by the application programmes. The accounting database is well-organised with active interface that uses accounting application programs and reporting system. Every computerised accounting system has two basic requirements; • Accounting Framework : It consists a set of principles, coding and grouping structure of accounting.
• Operating Procedure : It is a well-defined operating procedure blended suitably with the operating environment of the organisation. The use of computers in any database oriented application has four basic requirements as mentioned below ; • Front-end Interface : It is an interactive link or a dialog between the user and database-oriented software through which the user communicates to the back-end database. For example, a transaction relating to purchase of goods may be dealt with the accounting system through a purchase voucher, which appears on the computer’s monitor of data entry operator and when entered into the system is stored in the database. The same data may be queried through reporting system say purchase analysis software programme.
• Back-end Database : It is the data storage system that is hidden from the user and responds to the requirement of the user to the extent the user is authorised to access. • Data Processing : It is a sequence of actions that are taken to transform the data into decision useful information. • Reporting System: It is an integrated set of objects that constitute the report. The computerised accounting is also one of the database-oriented applications wherein the transaction data is stored in well-organised database.
The user operates on such database using the required and desired interface and also takes the desired reports by suitable transformations of stored data into information. Therefore, the fundamentals of computerised accounting © NCERT not to be republished