We test the new accounting software by using it for our own daily business. Sooner or later, a bug pops up: that’s the whole point of testing. If the fix takes too long, we need to go back to just using Goldenseal, instead of both in parallel. That cycle has happened dozens of times in the past year. Each time it gets a little further.
Earlier this week we got printed forms looking good, but they didn’t have a company logo. Time to fix that.
Goldenseal uses a Mac data format called PICT. It’s long gone. These days graphics are handled with files rather than blobs of binary data. It’s a whole ‘nother way of doing things that needs brand-new code.
The new accounting app still doesn’t have a way to add new items to custom layouts. So that was this week’s project: start with the simple things and work up to logos and graphics.
First were squares, ovals, rounded rectangles and lines. Next, text captions. Those need a dialog for the text. Then new fields and buttons. One step more complicated, since you choose from a list of possible items. It needs a fancier dialog.
Finally, the stage was set for graphics. That was easier than expected. Add a file chooser dialog and a few lines of code, and it worked.
Right now, the app keeps files at their original location: Pictures, Documents, Downloads or wherever. Change the image, and it changes what shows up on printed forms. However, if you move, rename or delete the file, then the app can’t find it.
There are places we can hide image files. Those are harder to break, but not invincible. Install the app and company file on a new machine and they’ll be left behind.
The current Goldenseal stores images inside the database. No way to lose them, but that also has problems. Your company file can get huge, and reading/writing is awkward. We have to make a temporary file from the data, then delete it.
Graphics still need some design thought. There’s no perfect solution.
Dennis Kolva
Programming Director
TurtleSoft.com
