Since the Antiquity, the countable activity (within the meaning of " deduct valeurs") did not limit itself only to the fact of recording commercial acts. The ancestors of the accountants met already in old the Civilization S, in the commercial rich person and at the Banquier S. They then fulfilled the functions of intendants. These intendants dealt with the Comptabilité of the house. They was often Esclave S scholars. They were the ancestors of the accountants in company.

The invention of interactive computing lettering in 1965, made it possible to erase the caricatural image of the accountant in companies. The computerization of the Comptabilité in the large companies which allows the presentation of the monthly results 5 days after the end of the month drove out the image of the accountant " round-of-cuir".

With regard to the ancestors of the liberal accountants, one finds of them traces rather clear within the framework of the Public office, i.e. in the Administration where they played in this field an average part according to page 15 of " History of the profession comptable" (liberal) appeared, following the 47ème congress about the Certified public accountants in October 1993. They first of all made their appearance in the military administration. They were charged to report the military adventures but also to hold the inventory of the goods subjected to the fluctuations of the Consommation by the troops and the accumulation of the spoils with the wire of the victories. The military chiefs knew thus how long could still last the present campaign. As good managers, they were to take in account the food products which owed necessarily beings found on the spot. They were moreover to know the output of the war undertaken, and consequently to evaluate balances it that the troop could perceive after the State and the lords of war shared the most remarkable richnesses. As the Monnaie was a long time unknown, the Impôt was paid in kind, the scribes realized in addition to work of land surveying to be able to fix the amount of the tax to be paid. This range of functions fulfilled by the scribes causes several remarks. First of all it is logical to thus see the occupations of accountant and geometrician to merge. For the two activities, it was a question of using the figures of arithmetic elementary, the calculation of the areas as tax base which was based on exploited space. The studies which led to these professions long and expensive, were partly aligned on those which led to the priesthood. Often in the old companies the figures were crowned. They were often related to calculations Astronomique S to know when certain natural phenomena would occur and to calculate the return of the seasons and also to measure the Temps. The Culture S advanced and even most primitive used and use always numerical systems which were maintained until our days. The cycle of the studies of a Expert-comptable is comparable in duration with that of a surgeon.

Countable systems

Before the invention of conversational accountancy by data-processing lettering, the organization of accountancy knew five countable systems apart from this last:

• accountancy with Italian,
• the American newspaper,
• the Obbo system,
• the accountancy mechanized on countable positioners with front feed,
• the data-processing accountancy according to standard CdC of the manufacturers of computer material,
• conversational accountancy by data-processing letterings which revolutionized at the same time the management of the large companies and the world of the Ordinateur S. what large units could suddenly make, the mini computers without use since 1952 could do it in the place workshops of accounting machines, all obsolete of the day at the following day.

Accountancy with Italian

Presentation

It was until in the Années 1950 the system practiced in large companies, as well as the academic system of teaching of the universally adopted Comptabilité. The didactic one of the method was limited to the seizure of the writings to the single newspaper. In practice, the newspapers were created and used by nature, purchases, Banque S, customer S etc the scientific management required in more than they were subdivided in newspapers " pairs" days; and " impairs" days;. The newspapers were held by the assistant-accountants. In working end-of-day, they were given to the accountant " Content of Livres". Five auxiliary newspapers were held by accounting department. It was with them that it fell to feed the five Grand book S, namely: - The large book of the " General accounts " - The large book of the individual accounts " Suppliers ". - The large book of the individual accounts " Customers " - The large book of the " Banks " - The large book of the " Overheads "

The Large Book

This specific éponyme term to this register of the centralizing countable system to Italian does not correspond any more for this same large book still used nowadays. This term possibly came to him owing to the fact that for a writing passed to the newspaper, it was necessary to pass two from them to the large book, that is to say one with the Débit and the other with the Crédit, which multiplied its volume compared to the newspaper. Like other side, one was to pass an independent article. The individual account with the large book took already the form of one T. the writing recorded at the left side of the account T caused a writing at the right-sided on another account… To the wording of the writing of the flow one recalled the date of the newspaper and the page or was the credit of the corresponding writing, one recalled the same ones to the credit. This technique characterized its stipulation of double-entry book-keeping. The large book was used in the form of bindings of sheets of accounts under hard-bound covers; the reinforced back of zinc sheet trimmings. It is possible that the denomination came to him because of its dimension from 50cm on 40cm, they could reach the sizeable weight from 10 to 15 kg. The large book presented two accounts per page. The carryforwards of the newspapers to the Large Books were to be done the following day so that every morning ago of the newspapers deferred of available. Except epidemic or effect of major force, there was no absent in these services at that time. In general, the accountant who held the large book of the general accounts was best paid apart from the Chief of the accounting department. He capped his other colleagues. It was him which held in more the centralizing accounts of other auxiliary accountancies Clients, Fournisseurs and of the Current Liability Debtors, Banques and Overheads. It was him which drew up the various balances of decrees of end of quarterly periods and inventory at the end of the exercises.

The newspapers by nature were presented in the form of registers connected, whose pages were paginated and initialed by the clerk's office of the bankruptcy court. The writings of the newspapers by nature were accurately deferred to the large corresponding books. The work stations of the accountants were presented in the form of desks with inclined plates placed at breast height. Thus, the large book rested tilted to facilitate the writing, blocked by a stop not to fall from the desk. The accountant was held upright or sitted on a high bar stool to pass the writings. The large books were to comprise neither erasures, neither overloads, nor vacuums. In the event of carryforward, the lines not used on a side or other of T, were to be barred of a tangent connected by a small horizontal feature in top and in bottom with the framework reserved for the zone of make out writings. The Germans had found a denomination mnemonic with these features of protection against the writing by naming this obligatory figure " Buchhalternase " , nose of the accountant. Qualities first required of the professional attached to this system were the Calligraphie and the aptitude for fast calculation. Also these two matters appeared in the academic programs and of the training institutes accountant. The mention, zero in fast calculation with the examinations of CAPE and book keeper was eliminatory. The calculating machines, although they existed on the market, did not have established among at the time of the glorification of manual and mental work. This prohibition was to last until the Années 1950 of the 20th century in the accounting departments of the private sector.

Effective

The manpower of a General ledger in large companies comprised on average about fifteen people. It was distributed approximately in the following way:

The chief account and his assistant.

1 Accountant who was in charge of the auxiliary group of the general accounts. It dealt with the classes; 1-2-3 of the chart of accounts. It passed the writings of monthly centralizations of the other groups of auxiliary accountancies. The management of DcD of class 4 also fell on to him. It was him which presented the general balances before assessment. It passed also the considered writings of the cost accounting. 1 Book keeper in charge of group 6 of the chart of accounts. It held the newspaper and the large book of the auxiliary group of the overheads. The delicate management of the voyages and missions was of its spring. 1 accountant in charge of the behavior of the account of the banks and the postal account running. 4 to 5 people in charge of the auxiliary group of the suppliers.

5 to 6 people in charge of the management of the auxiliary group of the customers.

Auxiliary accountancies of class 4 of the PCG (Chart of accounts)

The accounts of class 4 (Third) were subdivided by divisional accounts. Obligatorily for a rational management and according to the chart of accounts the divisional account 0 specifies that they are Suppliers 40. In same optics account 1 of subdivision characterizes the Clients' accounts 41. The divisional accounts 3 to 9 supplement class 4 whereas only accounts 46 are entitled Receivable and Liability current. The series of the accounts and the subsidiary accounts of class 4 monopolize 80% of the entries in Large companies. This explains it why function in groups of these auxiliary accountancies. This considerable quantity of input documents, explains finally it why incapacity of the Large companies to put up itself to make accountancy with the mode with the Liberal Accountants.

To know that the amount of the purchases of the size of the SACM, Industrial company of transformation to monthly CA of 100.000 KF accounted for on average 40% of the Turnover, gives already an idea of volume in invoices, payments, revivals and accounts that the auxiliary group of the suppliers was to generate.

manpower

Tasks with the auxiliary Groups of the Thirds

On average, 4 employees ensured the operation of the group of the auxiliary Comptabilité of the suppliers. They shared work in the following way:

The team leader, an experienced accountant. He was in charge of the control of the Fournisseurs payments. The many conditions of payments in force complicated this operation considerably. The general terms which relate to the cash payments spread out and spread out always and still like payments by accounts - checks with discounts of 3% pennies 8 days, 2% pennies 15 days and with 1% pennies 3 weeks. In this case, the initiative of the payment fell to the suppliers group. Before the establishment of the check and transmitting it to its team leader for control, the Book keeper in charge of the preparation with the payments, was to write the accounting record concerning the amount of the financial product to realize. According to the situation of Treasury of the company, this type of payment could change the frequency of the treatments as well as the result of the financial products. Not without reason, commercial calculations and financial mathematics appear only in the programs of the examinations of accountancy. They require a certain logic to include/understand the major interest of it. For example a discount of 2% in fifteen days corresponds to Teg of 48%. There does not exist better placement to regulate its suppliers the cash. In any case the discount represents an element of price of return, then leaves with launching a debenture to 3,5% of the amount of the monthly purchases and to us the financial products.

Accounts - issued checks end of the month, Net of any discount, balanced in Affaire all Paiement the cash. Except the public state enterprises and sowing, in 1962 the other suppliers accepted all our payments cash that the catch of the initiative of the payments facilitated to us to practice on large scales. The payments by CPC were based on the principle of the check except that it was necessary to use the document imposed by the postal administration.

The use of the draft is the most frequent mode of payments. It is also that which in a large company is capable to raise the most difficulties. In this case of payment, the initiative of the payment comes on behalf of the suppliers who send the monthly extracts of the invoices accompanied by the drafts to acceptance. Those can be to 30,60,90 and even at 120 days, the 5 or the 10 end of ego according to. The 120 days deadline is practically not used, it loses the faculty of the rediscount of the wallet of the titles on behalf of Banque de France. In a large company, this method of payment is capable to pose serious problems. A statement of invoices accompanied by its bill of exchange often comprises several invoices. The acceptance of the bill implies the claw " approval of payment " on the invoices on behalf of the recipient of the goods. For reasons like; quantities of parts nonin conformity, parts refused with control, error on invoices, strikes of all kinds, make that the invoices composing a statement do not arrive at accountancy within the deadlines. In this case the accountant, not to block the payment must correct the amount of the draft which comprises legal requirements to observe without hoping the payment after always delicate litigations to conclude.

- 1 book keeper in charge of the attribution of N° of accounting records, N° of the accounts suppliers, the classification of the invoices by expiries and suppliers, of the fastening of the invoices with the statement corresponding supplier. - 1 book keeper in charge of the behavior of the newspaper of the purchases to the French suppliers. It held also the large book corresponding to its suppliers. It dealt with the lettering of the paid invoices, of the determination of the balances as of the establishment of the balance of the amounts and the balances. Filing.

- 1 book keeper which dealt with same with regard to the foreign suppliers. The delicate problems caused by the custom charges, licenses and conversions of the currencies into national currency were of its spring.

auxiliary Group customers

- Three accountants were attached on average to the group of the ordinary accounts. They were occupied respectively, one of the management of the French customers, the other of the foreign customers and the third, the chief of the group, dealt with the behavior of the Large book of the ordinary accounts, of the follow-up of the accounts and the correspondence with the customers. - Two other accountants were in charge of the follow-up of the registered orders. Under this denomination means the follow-up of the orders of complete machines or large orders placed with terms of special payments and delivery including/understanding the payments of advances and of the follow-ups of payments to terms. Each one was to pass its writings to the large book. They dealt all with the monitoring of the credits by the manual emission of the " statements mensuels" unpaid Invoice S.

The System of the American Newspaper

This system had its place with the program of countable technical education. This newspaper comprised a big number, approximately a dozen columns flows appropriations. Because of its technique of very practical use, this newspaper found its place for the administration of the small shops as in the artisanal small companies noninterested in the contractual mode with respect to the tax department. This type of accountancy was often ensured by countable students or assistances to round the ends of the month.

Its capacity to act at the same time of Newspaper and Grand Book had an appreciable advantage. For its good performance, it was equipped with the columns dates and made out, the last of the twelve columns flows appropriations was reserved for the regrouping of various accounts for which the user did not judge useful to reserve an individual column.

The columns were added to change page and to provide the amounts of the intermediate balances. The carryforwards with new on new pages of newspapers provided the sequences for the monthly decrees that this type of accountancy facilitated to practice. Of periodic decree in periodic decree, this system, automatically led to the writings of inventory and the end of the exercise.

The Obbo system or accountancy by transfer

The Obbo House, “Organization of office and office of organization “slogan which is reproduced on the Standard Chart of accounts of the Fifties. It has its Head office in Strasbourg and a branch in Mulhouse. Obbo marketed an astute countable system by transfer. It allowed the book-keeping by the centralizing system as well as allowed the accounting machines. The Obbo system made conspicuous manual centralizing system by the fact that the accounts of the large book consisted of loose leves. This countable system was of the family of the centralizing System with auxiliary accountancies. These last included/understood the newspaper and the individual accounts of the Suppliers, the Customers, the Banks, the Overheads and the Généraux accounts. This countable system functioned using a mechanism which was used to fix the newspaper, paper-carbon as well as the individual account put at contribution to pass the writings. The superposition of the account in alignment of the first line available on the newspaper with its equivalent of the account made it possible to obtain by transfer the copy of the writings to constitute at the same time the individual account as well as the newspaper. The seizure of the writings by transfer avoided the carryforwards with the large book. This method gave whole satisfaction to the craftsmen, to the tradesmen, to SME as at SME. This system excluded any error of posting from the writings differently always possible. This innovating system, invented by M.Scherrer and marketed by the co. Obbo, did not make any improvement as for the development of the statements of monthly revivals. The writings had passed to the hand in the various groups of auxiliary accountancies of the centralizing countable system. For the time, it was remarkable to note that this system functioned containing a chart of accounts of Obbo type.

Centralizing Countable system mechanized on countable positioners with double front feed

Presentation

The American W. Bourroughs attached his name to the first accounting machine which saw the day in 1885. It already engaged accountancy in new ways…

Starting from the Years 1950 until the beginning of the Years 1980 of the passed century, in spite of the Punched-card establishment of the treatments S in the large companies and the administrations, the General ledger was exclusively assured by accounting machines with front feed this type. They were more known under the term of countable positioners at double entry. The first even with triple had entered. It was necessary to introduce paper-carbon before the marketing of the device of the double inking ribbons.

This qualifier of multiple entries, they owed it with the special design of the carriage. These multiple front feeds first of all let predict complications, only by the versatility of which they were affublées. For them also checked the saying; who too embraces étreint badly.

The treatment of the General ledger in large companies was thus only reserved for the countable positioners with front feeds, which evolved/moved, it should well be said, in the shade Mécanographie initially, and Ordinateur S then.

There was in 1965, five old NCR with the SACM of Mulhouse. Despite everything it although one could say, they had the heavy handicap to present until the last day of their startups of the accounts which were far from providing an immediately exploitable situation in the field of the management of the thirds. The details of the balance remained to manually extrapolate mass of the writings recorded chronologically by the accountant to obtain the abstract of accounts of the credits due or to be received. They remained, all the duration of their application a means of management very heavy and very expensive.

They were designed to print at the same time the newspapers and the individual accounts of various auxiliary accountancies. In this intention, they were equipped with large carriages which could receive at the same time the newspaper, paper-carbon as well as the individual account. The making of the writings took place in the following way: The operator initially introduced paper-carbon and the auxiliary newspaper to treat for the duration of the seizure of the nature of the prepared writings. He took then the package of the individual accounts matched with the accounting records corresponding prepared and codified in advance. During each change of account, it was necessary to loosen the account treated to leave it the machine before introducing the following while preserving the newspaper in place.

Thus, there was often overprinting of writings. This defect was prejudicial at the time of the operation of the lettering and consequently with the reading of the account at the time of the statement of the writings not well-read women.

Role allotted to these machines

These accounting machines mechanized simply the centralizing system with Italian as well as the Obbo system. The advantage of these machines compared to the Italian system was only in the order of the things to be waited of a simple mechanization. They avoided the manual carryforward of the newspaper to the large book as well as the always possible errors of posting. This simple step ahead also put an end to the era fast calculation in the Large companies. They brought in more calculation of the flows amounts, appropriations and balances by accounts and the totals for the newspapers that allowed them to produce at the end of the seizure the 120 electromechanical meters with which they were equipped.

These positioners had their advantages and their disadvantages. Initially they were redundant as of their origin in the companies or the organizations equipped in data processing. They made their appearances in France in the Forties of the xxe century. Compared to the Obbo system, in the beginning, these machines had especially the disadvantage of having no reference mark which made it possible to locate well the first free line of the account above the line of the newspaper, which remained to him permanently committed.

But the accountancy of dad as announced it the promoters of these machines was far from to have made his time. It had changed neither in the form nor in the content. This mechanization of had not improved anything rate nor the deadlines of presentations the results (Profit and loss account and assessments). As at the time of the accountancy of dad (Accounts Department to Italian) the half-yearly results always fell to, j+45. The individual accounts had become floating, classified in cases. The profit of handiness and null progress in times compared to the fixed accounts of the large book was paid very expensive in material and a personnel.

Moreover, they, like all simple mechanization of manual duties of nothing improved clearness of the behavior accounts neither the countable performances in the field of the periodicity of the presentation of the intermediate results nor of the results of ends of exercises.

Disadvantages of the system

The reproach that the impotent decision makers could formulate towards these expensive machines was that not to have contributed; neither with the improvement of the countable management of the companies and of not to have modernized anything the follow-up nor monitoring accounts of third. As for all the systems analyzed above, the use of these machines despite everything the improvements which they had undergone, even arrived at the level of computers of accountancy, they were not able to leave the statement the details of the preceding balance. As at the quiet and discrete good old day of the large manually held book, the accountants had themselves in the ambient noise of the workshop of the accounting machines, like before, to manually peel, account by account writings not well-read women to conclude with the same difficulties the operations of follow-up of the monthly credits. Innumerable were the manufacturers of these accounting machines throughout the world. At end to justify the matter, it is interesting to quote some in manner nonexhaustive: - Addo; - Adler; - Triumph; - Burroughs; - CSM, torpedo with electric introduction; - Facit; - Hermè-Ribald; - Hewlet-Packard; Honeywell-Bull; - IBM; - Kienzle; - LogAbax; - NCR, with a programmable positioner; - Nixdorf; - Olivetti; - Olympia; - Philips; - Remington-Rand; - Ruff; - Wang; - Rank-Xerox.

Manpower.

The introduction of these machines of did not improve anything manpower of the accounting departments, on the contrary. The accountants of the auxiliary groups of the general accounts, banks and the overheads were to follow training courses of operators on accounting machines, if they wanted to keep their employment. The auxiliary groups customers and suppliers could not do without a full-time operator attached to the accounting machine allotted to the group.

Technical evolution of the accounting machines.

The manufacturers of these machines were not unaware of that the punched-card services of treatments and the computers thereafter, could do everything except accountancy in the Large companies. Null threat did not plane on the existence and the future of the industrialization of the accounting machines. They could quietly continue their evolution in the shade of the computers. Very primitive at the origin, they did not even give the outline of what was struck by the operator. The trade required champions of the keyboard. The appearance of the second generation mitigated largely this lack of user-friendliness. As progress is not stopped, they were thereafter equipped card readers or punched tapes to become profitable users of under products of the statistics of sales, purchases, etc, worked out out of computer or by invoicing machines provided with paper tape punches. To ensure perenniality of it, they accurately followed the technical evolution of data processing. Finally, they were provided cassette players, hard drives and screens of consoles. Before disappearing they had the appearance of accounting computers by keeping the disadvantages of the countable positioners with double introduction which they had never ceased being. The development of the accounts with magnetic band who allowed the mechanical introduction as well as the electric positioning of the next virgin line of the account to be used, mitigated at the time of the decline, not only with the lack of precision during the introduction of the account, but still it kept in memory the last balance, which avoided its manual recovery by the operator. A lapse of memory engraves would be to neglect the appreciation of the cost of a workshop of accounting machines. Its installation in large company was composed of 5 machines at least. It was necessary to count 400.000 FF the unit, value 1965.

Disadvantages in management of the use of the accounting machines

The use of the countable positioners with front feed by personnel especially formed, was the only machine on the market which made it possible to publish traditional individual accounts of the thirds of general ledger. They were to comprise the company name of the company and the elements required by the code of the trade. These indications made it possible the accounts to present the form of the accounts of third without bringing the bottom automatically of it. Because of chronological recording of the countable events by individual accounts, these accounts had the advantage of revealing the new balance uninterrupted of it, without the details which composed it being highlighted automatically.

Difficulties of the monthly statements The determination of the detail of the new balances to be treated as monthly statements fell to the accountants. The knowledge of these details resulted from the statement of the writings not balanced to extract from the volume of the flying files which composed the account in its entirety. The balanced writings were recognized with the alphabetical pointing carried out by writing using the payments used for the extraction of the accounts animated to reposition out of machine.

Countable lettering.

In the tread, the accountant raised the writings not well-read women who finally constituted the details of the monthly statements of the accounts open in the file of the flying accounts. The drafts thus written remained to be typed by the accountants or secretaries. Even because of all the made efforts, this system presented the disadvantage of not making it possible to monthly start again the totality of the accounts and this in spite of the subdivision of the work applied in this direction. Whereas the accountants of auxiliary accountancies, in charge of the behavior of the general accounts, the accounts of overheads and the banks held at the same time the role of preparers and operators on accounting machines, those of accountancies of third, dealt only with the management of the accounts. When the volume of the businesses required it, the seizure of the writings was done by affected operators in a permanent way to the handling of an accounting machine. They did not exert whereas this function. Decree 73374 of the 28.03.1973 was applied for the attribution of a premium of technicality to the operators on accounting machines. This shows well the extent of this function and the force of the corporation.

Recipients: Affected agents in a permanent way to the handling of an accounting machine, and really exerting these functions.

Description of the account: Paper paperboard of 180 gr. Recto-back 40 line of writings by face.

Heavinesses of the account in the system. As long as there remained a writing recto or back not balanced by account, this last could not be filed. For this reason, the details of the balance of an account could be spread out over ten charts for a whole of 3.000 accounts for example. For this reason, it was practically impossible to start again the totality of the accounts monthly. One noted the last account started again to take again the continuation of it the next month and thus to ensure of it the bearing, month by month. Finally, the same account was as well as possible started again twice a year, in a batch of 3.000 accounts. It is clear that in spite of the use of these expensive machines, the management of the accounts of third left much to be desired.

What precedes highlight well complexity by the management of the accounts of third by accounting machines in the Large companies. Also these difficulties largely justify the will thus that the efforts made in the field of research on machines with perforated cards to find a computerized solution able to release the accountants of the sempiternal exploration of an immense file opened with the hunting of the writings not well-read women. This systematic research preliminary to the striking of the statements of the accounts was made just to answer the mode. The absence of expiries from which the recordings suffered did not make it possible to draw another use from it. This Herculean task cut down in total absence of follow-up and without method was finally only one enormous waste right good with the ventilation and the ventilation of the flying accounts.

Data-processing Accounts Department in Large companies according to CdC of the Manufacturer

Afterwards many failures recorded in data processing and a long lull in the field which worries us, there was a new wave of countable proposals for applications caused by the appearance on the market of a new generation of computers. In 1964 IBM launched to France the generation of the computers of the series of the 360, it was clear that for this type of machine, with a pedigree which referred to perfection, with the 360° of the circle, that it owed of knowing to do everything. Accordingly, IBM was to find the means to them of also making accountancy in order to show the veracity of its brand image. Indeed the engineers had developed standard CdC that they adapted to answer minutiae according to the particular problems posed by the customer. All became possible thanks to the memories in which the things would occur on one 360/40 for example. In spite of this considerable advanced technique the gaps of CdC elaborate and presented, these marvellous machines had not released the decision makers of the Large companies conscious of the deficiency of the system, of the yoke which connected them with the accounting machines with front feed. Compared to all the systems of accountancy deepened above, this one was distinguished singularly from the others by the complete absence of accounts during the principal treatment. In addition, it did not hide any, on the contrary. As of the first page, CdC (See documents in appendix) announced this detail in the chapter of the States, by laconic:

1°) By account: Difficulty in preserving the current presentation. This capital defect in management of the Class of the Thirds was minimized by what the alternative will allow on Disques. It allowed on request: To justify the balance of each account. Of being able to reconstitute the history of it.

Page 2 of CdC absolutely revolting does not provide an advantage of stimulants to the address of countable an apostle project manager trained by Mr. Pouchot and equipped with a serious conscientiousness to start for its company such a nonsense. It offered: (Repetition for the clearness of the use)

2°) periodic Impression: (period to be defined)

Abstract of accounts old balance (amount) movements new balance Examined more closely, this possibility did not offer any element valid for manage accounts of Third. On the contrary, as from the moment when these data are found in the form of recordings on discs, they became inaccessible by the accountant. Nothing enabled him any more to reach the data to determine the unpaid elements in more it lost the ability painfully being able to reconstitute on request the balance of accounts than the perforated cards offered to him before.

This countable system more or less approached the accountancy practiced by the Liberal professions. The difference wanted that what was negligible at the latter became priority in Large companies. On this level, the consultants were conscious that they could not be allowed to make the dead end not to offer to the Large companies a solution as for the management of the accounts of third. The proposal of the recourse to the Shirts or the files for the management of these accounts, as could propose it the Liberal Accountants with their customers, was not here with the day order. The consultants were confronted with thousands of clients' accounts and suppliers who always generate 80% of the thousands of invoices, accounting records, payments and cards of cases by the way of which it was impossible to circumvent to propose a probable total method of management by computer. The disadvantages of the old systems which chronologically piled up the writings through a large manual book or by Ateliers of accounting machines on flying accounts were known by the users chief accounts. These treatments had at least the advantage of generating accounts. But alas, of the so heavy accounts to exploit, a so bulky to interpret and so prompt nature to generate new accounts without the old ones being balanced, that null did not cling to preserve it. For this reason, it fell under the direction which the consultants did not have too many sorrows to make pass " carefully; the difficulty in data processing of not being able to preserve the actuelle" presentation; of these accounts. In the absence of the possibility of presenting accounts of third, the system proposed compromises negotiated with the chief accounts to leave itself this handicap. The consultants made gleam succedaneous data-processing techniques based on computing memories, files in the form of perforated cards which constituted dazzling histories which left in the shade the details of the ambush towards which auxiliary accountancies thus mechanized were directed. Notwithstanding all the capacity of conviction supported by the presentation of a flourishing bouquet of new technologies, proposals made with a Project manager with double caps, could not according to what was proposed, that to lead to the abandonment of all accountancies of third and consequently to involve its accountancy in a dead end.

What in this system, approached more to one pretense of account was not actually as we will further see it, that the monthly statement of the invoices. This state, disturbed by the complement of some former accounting records, which could always trail in a completely disorganized system, did not have any difficulty in give to no matter whom, the illusion of an extract of the details of the balance of an account. The absence of account, to make pass the pill, the system suggested cured it by loopholes that only the countable lack of deontology on behalf of the consulting Engineers will excuse who proposed this kind of CdC. In spite of the electromechanical power of the punched-card accounting departments on the one hand and on the other hand the recourse to the transistors, with the memories with ferrites and magnetic, the virtual memories on hard drives and with the random access memories per hundreds of KB and the magnetic bands, the large whole of computers were not able to carry out another type of accountancy, because the problem was elsewhere. However, it is in data processing that this system still offered the most " convivialité" , because the data remained in the form of perforated cards with the range of the accountants. Some companies which had been let convince, had given in the panel and persisted with their detriment in this management style. It universally known state, which it was very difficult to retrogress.

Operation of the system by file with perforated cards

For the duration of the exercise, after the recovery again, the entries of the months former were amalgamated of with the movements of the month to form an enormous mass memory which constituted the history file. Except class 4 of the chart of accounts, no other requires the periodic description of the details of the preceding balance. Because of this need, the history file was divided into two. Namely: On the one hand the file of the thirds which remained at the same time at the disposal of the accountants as to that of the data processing specialists for the particular management of the accounts of third. In addition, CdC envisaged obtaining a periodic summary chart which summarized the flows amounts and appropriations as well as the balances by accounts of the previous months. These summary charts were useful: - To draw the monthly balances. - To carry out the carryforwards again or to serve as old balances for the treatments of the new period.

According to CdC, the periodic impression of the abstract of accountses presented: old balance (the total of the summary chart.) movements of the period new balance The inventories and the countable utility of such a state are left with the appreciation of the expert…

In addition the movements of the other classes of the chart of accounts were after obtaining the summary chart by accounts, amalgamated to form the history file of the exercise. The summary charts remained movements of the following period on standby. The summary card punching of the previous period via the drilling machines connected to computers 604 or the computers avoided during the treatments carried out in batch (by batches) to give on line the history file which progressively of the office plurality of monthly work took monstrous volumes and consequently times of machine run very expensive and prejudicial to the availability of the computers. Time CPU. On this level, it is important to know that the traditional equipment had only electromechanical volatile memories (meters) and of punch cards like only peripheral memories. The data seized consequently formed enormous mass memories arranged in card trays stored in special pieces of furniture. It is capital of knowing that of computer accounting, after the seizure of the invoices customers, suppliers and of the payments, it proved to be essential to carry out the purification of the writings balanced in order to keep the details of the balance by account at any useful end. The Project managers, who had tested, had not found the means of operating punched-card purification. Manual purification preached on the other hand proved for reasons of unrealizable reliability in time. This extraction was for the majority entrusted to small hands, because found rightly rejecting by the accountants. The complexity of the obvious countable techniques for the professional it more for was not initiated. What was more serious still, 10% of the recorded payments did not correspond to any invoice to eject. In certain cases, they were advances on invoices in other cases, payments which took account of litigations on invoices or discounts for payment cash, which excluded the extraction from the writings while requiring the maintenance of the litigious payment in the file. Moreover, often was carried out to extractions which did not correspond to the paid invoice, case of the invoices with repetitive amounts in the case of conveying for example. There always arrived in these cases what was to arrive, at the conclusion of a few months of this treatment, it remained only tumbles of often erroneous accounts which made any bringing together impossible.

The arrival of the computers on the market returned hope to some bold, they last déchanter quickly. The bottom of the problem, i.e., the automatic extraction of the recordings in memories corresponding to the payments was not solved. The availability of memories on drums, hard drives, magnetic bands and other peripherals would have allowed the immediate filing of the perforated cards, reduced in this case the use of simple supports of input. In spite of the presence of the computers, it was necessary to keep the files of perforated cards. They remained essential to the users in spite of the negation by the system preached by the manufacturers.

Contrary to the hopes, the tape recordings became frankly inaccessible to the accountants as with the data processing specialist. There existed many buttons on certain computers which made it possible to change data into memory. This handling was valid in scientific computation where it was possible to change a parameter in a memory and to continue calculations of iteration for example. Such a handling was to be excluded of accountancy because of the number of writings to be treated. To drop files from punch cards? Yes, it should it be said on the condition of preserving at side the accounting machines, solution that wisest of the Chief accounts preserved of their own initiative.

Because of this confused situation, the Accountants in companies operating on accounting machines as well as the Manufacturers of these machines could sleep quiet. It will not be tomorrow the day before which these frightening machines would endanger the job security of the Operators on accounting machines in particular and that of the accountants in general. Such was at the time, not without reason the frame of mind of the majority of the administrative staff confronted with this data processing which did any good better, and especially much more quickly than the man.

Consequently, the manufacturers of informed computer materials of the vexations of the users could while waiting better, to only put out of silencing device if not at the pilori very new inclinations to want to face the limits fixed at the computer material on the market, while affirming to provide to solve problems of accountancy to the cases or the customers insisted. Manurhin, the other Mulhousian Large company, after having examined the proposals of CdC, finally did not apply it. She chose the restoration of her machine stock accountants of Nationale mark.

Although CdC let gleam the behavior of the files in memories of the computers, in practice the users of this system could not do without the history file in the form of perforated cards for the class of the thirds. Thanks to this file, the accountant kept at least a pretense of independence. In the event of litigation or of request for specific extract of account, it kept the physical possibility to recompose it by extraction of the details of a balance of account. However, the accountant was not at the end of his sorrows. For matérialisation of its abstract of accounts, it was to be presented to the manager of the computer which according to its workload carried out required pulling. According to the capacity of the project manager of the application, the accountant was to be satisfied with a list of analysis of credit arranged by his care with the typewriter for the circumstance. (See low a case of this kind)

Series of documents in support of the negative side of the system. XXX with scanner

The first data-processing accountancy in Large company

See mechanism and first application under " The first lettering informatique" of this heading.

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