Resurrecting anMoney - or not!

[Rick Jones]

I've seen one or two comments back on the G+ group asking if anyone could get the source code of the app. I've already tried - here's the full story.

When Tom indicated he was abandoning it I tried to contact him several times to see if he would release the code. As a developer myself (now retired) I would have happily taken it on, but I got no response.

I've also tried de-compiling it, there are tools that will do this. Although you end up with something that looks like Java source code, it's not re-compilable, and impossible to understand.

However, there is a further reason why Tom may have given up. The app uses several independent software libraries, which would have simplified the original development. They're all listed in the Credits & Legal section under Information & Help in the menu. A quick search for these on the web shows that most have also been abandoned, with no further development beyond Android 5 or 6.

It would be a lot of work to substitute different libraries, or replicate the functionality, so I can understand why Tom didn't want to continue. If he hadn't done such a good job in the first place, no-one would be worried!

I'm still tempted to try to build a replacement, but a complex app from scratch is a lot of work, and I have very little experience of coding for the Android environment. Maybe one day when I've nothing better to do ... 🙂

[Ed Parr]

It will die once and for all when Android goes full 64 bit.

Maybe I'll keep one final device offline as my "banking app device" ... If I'm lucky, it'll outlast me 😂

[Andrew Vevers]

I'd appreciate a list of "closest" alternatives to aM. Bluecoins doesn't match it enough for me. What are others looking at?

[Rick Jones]

The problem is there don't seem to be any close alternatives!

I'd prefer to use an app with up to date support and ongoing development, but there just doesn't seem to be anything with comparable features. It's why so many of us are still clinging on to an unsupported app.

Prior to anMoney I used Pocket Money, which served me well, but work on that stalled some years ago. There were unresolved bugs that no-one was looking at, so I switched, and found anMoney - which turned out to be much better.

Pocket Money was bought out by another developer in 2017, and a new version for iPhone was released about a year ago, but it doesn't look like much has happened to it since. You can get the previous version free on Android, but there's no sign of the new one appearing. So again, I fear it's hit the buffers. But give it a try, it might suit you.

All these money managers are derivatives of inuit's Quicken, which originated as a PC-DOS app (and gave rise to the QIF archive format). Microsoft Money was a copy. Quicken itself is no more, Inuit now only sell Quick Books, which is for small business accounting, not personal money.

I too am interested in anyone's experience of other apps.

[Andrew Vevers]

Thanks Rick, helpful as ever. I'm concerned we're experiencing a ticking timebomb here (without wanting to sound too dramatic), but I feel time is not on our side. As I've previously mentioned, I've experienced some UI bugs which concern me with each upgrade of Android. And it's still the single most important app on Android (IMHO). I moved from Acemoney (PC) years ago and aM has been *superb*, meeting all my current needs. Need to keep looking for a suitable alternative for when the inevitable happens. Don't want to be unprepared...

[Michael Cooke]

I have been enjoying aM for 9 years and a fabulous money management app it is. I have transactions (previously from Psion money) going back to 1995. My Galaxy note 9 has just updated to Android 9 (Pie?) and aM is crashing when I try 'Go to' and move to all the transactions in the category I am looking at. I guess instability is bound to happen sooner or later, so I am listening to this group if there is any close replacement. It seems not so far?

[Andrew Vevers]

Yes "go to" crashes on my Android 9 device also, which is why I started to look around for alternatives. There are also other UI issues now, which are making me a bit nervous!

You can still search for items Michael and then multi select that way.

Currently after some exhaustive searching, My Budget Book is the closest for my needs. Bluecoins is good (and slicker than MBB) but functionality always wins out and MBB does more for me. But there's still nothing as good as anM.

[Octavio Sampaio,]

I agree with you all, but now I'm trying MoneyWis 3. I've managed to export my account in Gif format, and some transactions were doubled, but after a little work I think I can try it for a longer time and see what happens. Unfortunately it does not split transactions, which is mostly a problem. I'll keep posting my impressions here.

[Michael Cooke]

Thanks Andrew about the search tip to compensate for the Goto crashes. I can live a little longer, but nervous is the right word! 

I will also watch with interest everyone's research on alternatives, which is very time consuming, but much appreciated. aM's Reports give me every permutation, so that is something I will focus on.

[Andrew Vevers]

Well right now it's Bluecoins for me, having overtaken My Budget Book. Both need tweaking to get close to anM's functionality and I shudder to think of the major surgery on my CSV export to fit Bluecoin's format (but there's a good looking guide here).

#m a bit concerned that you can't export out of BC in CSV or Qif format, but I suppose I'll cross that bridge if I get to it and if I move to BC in the first place...

[Petr Tajovsky]

You can export to CSV from Bluecoins, but not whole "book" like in anMoney. Just one account by one is possible. Open list of transactions and click the printer icon in top right corner. It will offer export to PDF, CSV or HTML. I don"t know how transaction between accounts would be exported this way. But some kind of CSV export exists.

[Andrew Vevers]

Good point Petr - forgot that the print button exports to CSV. 

I've no idea how transfer are linked between between different csvs (I've yet to have that fun), unless you could merge multiple csvs into one and declare the transfer within the single CSV?

[a1har...@gmail.com]

I've just joined this group, having used AM for years. I've purchased Bluecoins under pressure, but have yet to successfully import data, and I see others have had problems.
The simplicity of AnMoney is its appeal. Unfortunately its failed in my main handset with an error 'Operation Failed' when trying to open any account. Luckily I can still export the data, so it's residing on a lower spec handset, but working. If anyone knows what the fix is I'd be grateful. I've tried uninstalling, restarting, everything but resetting the phone.
Bluecoins is a rather over-complex app, but still needs work. In AM I use the widget which allows me to view my main bank account and see the forecast. That feature is simple yet accurate, and I see it as THE most important one. If Bluecoins could do that in a configurable widget, and project my finances as am does, I'd be happy with Bluecoins.
The developers are out in the Philippines, and they are very helpful indeed, but they're not listening on the financial forecast suggestion, and I haven't suggested the widget yet.
WHO doesn't want to see the financial projection for their account? I would have thought that was of paramount importance!

[a1har...@gmail.com]

#1 on my wish list is financial forecasting ~ I'm going to pressure Bluecoins with that request

[William Boyd]

You know, BlueCoins does financial forecasting on it's calendar and on the projections tab. Just go to settings and set to enable. 

[Octavio Sampaio]

What is your phone brand and operational system?

Octavio
Enviada do meu celular

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[William Boyd]

Galaxy Note 8. Android

[a1har...@gmail.com]

My phone is Some XZ Premium running latest Android. AnMoney just stopped one morning with this "Operation Failed" message every time I tried to open any account, either within the App or with the AnMoney Quick Entry widget(s). I've tried uninstalling, clearing Google play and everything else I can think of. I can still backup/archive or export data, and open recurring bills. I have AnMoney running on another Sony handset without problems, using the same database taken from the none-working handset.
The only thing I haven't done is factory reset the phone, which I can't do S the phone holds a lot of business info, and restoring it from zreo would be a big task.

[a1har...@gmail.com]

Thanks, I'll give that a try!

[Octavio Sampaio]

Thank you William, but I was asking to a1harrogate, to try to help him.

Octavio
Enviada do meu celular

Em dom, 28 de abr de 2019 2:46 AM, William Boyd <wdb...@gmail.com> escreveu:

Galaxy Note 8. Android

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[MARK L]

Further to my problem with anMoney failing, I have now found the root cause.
I created another user on my Sony XZ Premium, in order to use different social media accounts easily. Everything ran perfectly for weeks, but anMoney suddenly failed constantly. I think the catalyst was an android update. Out of desperation, I eventually deleted the newer user account, and that fixed it immediately.
I've decided to export my account data into Bluecoins, it looks relatively easy to export/import, and the developers are constantly improving Bluecoins. They listen to suggestions and respond to questions and suggestions, so the future is bright for Bluecoins.
Because the developers are located in the Philippines, I believe Bluecoins has a great future. They've just passed the 1/2 million app sales, so they're highly delighted. If you're making money in the Philippines, you just work hard to maintain your market share. Bluecoins is an ever-developing mature product, so if you're looking for an alternative to anMoney, this has to be your first choice.

[Hector Osorio De La Cruz]

I completetly agree with you. Actually I have been using Bluecoins for more than 4 months now, and I am really happy with it.

[Gary Reger]

Hi,

 

I have 2 instances that I need some help on.

 

I have had 2 accounts (bonds) that I have transferred the entire amount to a  different account when the bond matured.  

 

Ex:

A to B and C to D

 

I have noticed that when I transfer the funds to the other account it simply shows as money transferred when I simply leave the old account (transferred from) active (not closed)

 

When I close the accounts that I have emptied it shows the amounts that was transferred as income. When I re-open the closed account it goes back to simply transferred and not shown as income.

 

This does not change the bottom line but I want to keep the empty accounts closed.

 

Any advice or explanation on what is happening ?

 

Thank you

[Jordan Lee Wagner]

Blue coins looks good at 1st period but it is filled with bugs that make it very difficult to use. The biggest one is that it does not handle transfers properly so you cannot properly reconcile your account statements. Both habs of a transfer are either reconciled or cleared or not. So if your credit card statement is reconciled but your bank statement is not, or vice versa, then attempting to reconcile either statement will screw up any attempt to reconcile the other. This is just 1 of many serious defects that become apparent only if you try to do serious bookkeeping for a couple of months.

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[Andrew Vevers]

Might be worth logging these bugs with the devs as they've seemed responsive to me. Worth getting this product ship shape for the inevitable day when we have to move!