Ploofle

(backdated as this is super old and incomplete to boot)

After a few days of hitting machines, cramped thumbs (thanks, eraser nubs), and general irritation, I’ve slogged through learning to use these accounting softwares. Disclaimer: this is only attempting to be somewhat methodical. YMMV.

Take into account that my only semi-real accounting experience has been in entering in the register for Quicken where someone else set up the categories for expenses/income and that I’m looking at this from a small business/web development company standpoint. Also, I’m looking for something that could ideally work in a mixed systems environment – Mac and Windows, at least – and super ideally something that could be accessed remotely – perhaps with a VPN connection – if anyone is doing billable time on the road. The way I’m testing this is literally as if I were planning to adopt the software as the real deal – I tried entering in sales and purchase data for both and printing out invoices, customizing features, and what-not.

This review will be organized by the general feature I’m looking at, the results with either software package or both, and which I consider to be better in that aspect. Continue past the break if your eyes haven’t glazed over yet…
Continue reading “User comparison of MYOB BusinessEssentials Pro and Simply Accounting Pro”

Tags: DIY, praxis

…or at least, the biggest and only brioche I’ve ever made. Here’s the pics:

It’s as big as my head, in case the small liquor bottle doesn’t do it justice. The recipe in theory makes 24(!) small ones, but I got tired and just made one big one. Sadly, after these pics were taken, it went back into the oven with foil on top – it’s cooked about 80% through, but that last 20%…damn.

Very tasty with butter. I think I’ll have it with jam for breakfast.

Just what *is* brioche anyway? I was just inspired cuz it looked neat at the grocery store…

Tags: praxis

While my universe has shrunk to a very small 5-mile radius, primarily encompassing school and apartment (I wouldn’t call it a home per se), things have gotten rather scary. Thus, I’ve been derelict in the follow-up department.

I had orientation yesterday, and classes start tomorrow. So now, I suppose, is the day of comtemplation and introspection about exactly what the hell I’ve gotten myself into and why the hell am I here by myself (currently at least).

I’m off to a decently good start – I didn’t fall asleep during orientation, though I yawned a bit, and I didn’t really talk to anyone – too many people, I guess, and mostly female, which means pretty much ick. Not that I don’t like girls, but I guess I have a predisposition to surliness, especially if everyone is decently fashionably dressed. I’m excited in a few ways – the “scary” course is apparently biostatistics, but from my Advisor (who is super awesome) I heard that that’s in part due to many of the students having had previous degrees in the social sciences or never having taken stats, neither of which are about me. On the other hand, I’m a bit leery of Epidemiology – it kinda reminds me of comp sci design classes, as it’s apparently about how to frame public health or disease issues and evaluate what the hell is going on. It’s a different type of thinking, and I hope I can get the hang of it.

I’m also apparently one of the few students from the Southeast, and the only one from NC, so I guess I better lay on the accent double-thick, develop a mullet, and be generally bible-thumping. But I suppose it’s not worth the effort.

I still need to call my family, call Nicole, and generally come back into the world of the living, but since Bonnie left, I’ve pretty much stayed at home and eaten odd things, like yogurt and granola followed by beef jerky.

Tags: seattle

So before bonnie left, I made lots of food and put it in tupperware in the freezer for “quick” eating later. I rather recently realized, as a result, just how useful microwaves are, though nowhere near as amusing as creative attempts to thaw soup bricks. First, I soaked the container in a bowl of hot water for a few seconds, then popped it out Jello-like into the saucepan. I’ve been heating it for the past half hour or so at low heat to get it to a less, erm, solid, consistency.

For some reason, it’s been terribly fun trying to figure out how to eat it. Though now that I’ve bought a set of bowls and spoons, it’s not quite the adventure it could have been. Ah, well.

This is prolly a sign that I should hurry up already and go to school/work.

So, the big comedown…I am now officially moved in out here in Seattle and Bonnie-less. I dropped her off at about 5:30am this morning, turned the rental car in, walked a while to the bus stop (to skip the transfer), and now here I am.

Sigh.