Most businesses except the very smallest use computerised bookkeeping in some fonn. Sage sells a range of products but is by no means the only company in the market. As an altemative to buying a standard package, a business may have the in-house expertise to write its own software or simply to use a spreadsheet such as Microsoft Excel. This chapter explains the principles of computerised bookkeeping, concentrating on Sage, QuickBooks and Excel. The topics covered are as follows:

• The advantages of computerised bookkeeping
• How to match paper records to computer data
• Precautions in Accounting Bookkeeping Softwares
• Inputting data
• Production of reports 
• Bookkeeping with spreadsheets