I'm the rare old timer accountant with some programming background
I definitely agree with you though my approach to analyzing activity/preparing detailed reports/etc. is to, at a first step, convert all credits to negative numbers and retain all debits as positive
Further, most charts of accounts are designed in some sane way that you can easily tell what type of account it is (asset/liability/capital/P&L)
The challenge isn't usually managing/interpreting these things but making sure you are interpreting contracts and guidance properly/consistently so you don't upset ownership or your auditors with unanticipated changes/revisions...
I definitely agree with you though my approach to analyzing activity/preparing detailed reports/etc. is to, at a first step, convert all credits to negative numbers and retain all debits as positive
Further, most charts of accounts are designed in some sane way that you can easily tell what type of account it is (asset/liability/capital/P&L)
The challenge isn't usually managing/interpreting these things but making sure you are interpreting contracts and guidance properly/consistently so you don't upset ownership or your auditors with unanticipated changes/revisions...