Handspring Visor Handheld Platinum User Guide

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Expense
Expense enables you to record the date, expense type, and the amount 
that you spent. A record in Expense is called an “item.” You can sort 
your Expense items into categories or add other information that you 
want to associate with the item.
To create an Expense item:
1. Tap the Applications icon  .
2. Tap the Expense icon  .
3. Tap New.
Tip:You can also create a new Expense item by writing on the 
number side of the Graffiti writing area while in the 
Expense list screen. The first number you write begins 
your new Expense item.
4. Enter the amount of the expense. 
5. Tap the Expense type pick list and select a type from the list.
Note:As soon as you select an expense type, your handheld saves 
the entry. If you don’t select an expense type, it doesn’t save 
the entry.
Tap New Cursor 
of new 
item
Tap here 
						

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Tip:A quick way to create a new Expense item is to make sure that 
no Expense item is selected in the Expense list, write the first 
letter(s) of the expense type, and then write the numerical 
amount. This technique takes advantage of the automatic fill 
feature. See “Options menu” later in this chapter for details.
Changing the date of an Expense item
Initially, Expense items appear with the date you enter them. You can 
use Expense to change the date associated with any Expense item.
To change the date of an Expense item:
1. Tap the Expense item you want to change.
2. Tap the date of the selected item. 
3. Tap the new date.
Entering receipt details
Expense provides a variety of options that you can associate with an 
item. These options appear in the Receipt Details dialog box.
To open the Receipt Details dialog box:
1. Tap the Expense item to which you want to assign details.
2. Tap Details.
Tap date 
						

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3. Select any of the following options:
4. Tap OK.Category
See “Categorizing records” in Chapter 5.
Type
Opens a pick list of expense types. 
Payment
Lets you choose the payment method used to 
pay the Expense item. If the item is prepaid 
(such as airline tickets supplied by your 
company), you can choose Prepaid to place 
your expense in the appropriate company-
paid cell of your printed expense report 
spreadsheet. See “Transferring your data to 
Microsoft Excel” later in this chapter for more 
information.
Currency
Enables you to choose the type of currency 
used to pay the Expense item. The default 
currency unit is defined in the Preferences 
dialog (see “Options menu” later in this 
chapter). You can also display up to four other 
common types of currency. See “Customizing 
the Currency pick list” later in this chapter for 
more information.
Vendor and City
Lets you record the name of the vendor 
(usually a company) associated with the 
expense and the city where the expense was 
incurred. For example, a business lunch might 
be at Rosies Cafe (Vendor) in San Francisco 
(City).
Attendees
See “Using Phone Lookup” in Chapter 5. 
						

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Customizing the Currency pick list
You can select the currencies and symbols that appear in the Currency 
pick list.
To customize the Currency pick list:
1. Tap the Currency pick list in the Receipt Details dialog box, and 
then select Edit currencies.
2. Tap each Currency pick list and select the country whose currency 
you want to display on that line.
3. Tap OK to close the Select Currencies dialog box.
4. Tap OK.
Defining a custom currency symbol
If the currency you want to use is not in the list of countries, you can 
create your own custom country and currency symbol. 
To define a custom currency symbol:
1. Tap the Menu icon  .
2. Tap Options, and then tap Custom Currencies.
3. Tap one of the four Country boxes.
4. Enter the name of the country and symbol to appear in Expense.
Tap Edit 
currencies
Tap a Country 
box 
						

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5. Tap OK to close the Currency Properties dialog box.
6. Tap OK.
Note:If you want to use your custom currency symbol as the default 
for all Expense items, select the symbol in the Preferences 
dialog box. If you want to use your custom currency symbol 
only for a particular Expense item, select the symbol in the 
Receipt Details dialog box associated with that item.
Show Options
Show Options define the sort order and other settings that relate to 
your Expense items.
To open the Show Options dialog box:
1. In the Expense list, tap Show.
2. Select any of the options.
3. Tap OK.Sort by
Enables you to sort expense items by date or type.
Distance
Enables you to display Mileage entries in miles or 
kilometers.
Show 
currencyShows or hides the currency symbol in the 
Expense list.
Tap Show 
						

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Transferring your data to Microsoft Excel
After you enter your expenses into the Expense application on your 
handheld, Palm Desktop software enables you to view and print the 
data with your computer.
Note:You need Microsoft Excel version 5.0 (or later) to view and 
print your Expense data using one of the provided templates. 
Microsoft Excel is not included with the Visor handheld 
package. The procedures in this section also assume that you 
have installed Palm Desktop software. See “Connecting the 
cradle” in Chapter 1 for more information.
Creating or printing an expense report
Palm Desktop software makes it quick and easy to view and print 
your Expense data in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. 
To create or print an expense report:
1. Perform a HotSync operation to transfer your latest Expense data 
to your computer. 
2. Click Expense in Palm Desktop software to open Microsoft Excel 
and the Expense Report configuration dialog box. 
Note:If you launch Expense from the Start menu instead of 
Palm Desktop software, you must first choose your 
handheld user name.
3. Click the expense category that you want. 
Tip:You can press Ctrl+click to select multiple categories. To 
print the expenses associated with all of your Expense 
categories, select All in the Categories group.
Click to select 
Categories 
						

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4. If you want to define an end date for the expense report, enter the 
date in the End Date box.
Note:If you do not specify an end date, all expense entries for 
the selected categories appear — up to the date of the last 
HotSync operation.
5. Do one of the following:
Click Print to display the expense report in the Print Preview 
window, and then click Print in the Microsoft Excel window to 
print your expense report.
Click Create to display a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet contain-
ing your expense data. Your data appears in Microsoft Excel 
spreadsheet form. You can enter information, make formatting 
changes, and save and print the file in the normal manner.
Using expense report templates
Palm Desktop software includes several expense report templates. 
When you use one of these templates, you can edit your expense data 
in Microsoft Excel. 
The templates have the extension .xlt and are stored in the template 
folder in the Palm Desktop software directory on your computer. To 
see what a template looks like before you use it, open the template in 
Microsoft Excel. For example, the template Sample2.xlt looks like this: 
						

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If you want to streamline or customize your expense reports, you can 
change these templates. For example, you can add your company 
name to a template. See Appendix C for information on changing 
templates. 
						

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To view your expense data using a Microsoft Excel template:
1. Display your expense data in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet as 
described in the previous procedure.
2. Click Options.
3. Enter name, department, and other information as necessary for 
your expense report.
4. Click the Templates menu; then select an expense template.
Note:If you want to create your own custom expense template 
and have it appear in the Templates menu, see Appendix 
C for more information.
5. Click OK.
Choose expense 
template
Enter name and 
other information 
						

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Expense menus
Expense menus are shown here for your reference, and Expense 
features that are not explained elsewhere in this guide are described 
here.
See “Using menus” in Chapter 1 for information about choosing menu 
commands.
Record menu
Options menu
Preferences
nUse automatic fill. Lets you select an expense 
type by writing the first letter of an expense 
type in the Graffiti writing area. For example, 
if you write the letter “T,” it enters the “Taxi” 
expense type. Writing “T” and then “E” enters 
“Telephone” which is the first expense type 
beginning with the letters “TE.” 
nDefault currency. Sets the default currency 
symbol for Expense. 
About Expense
Shows version information for Expense.