Multi-User Lesson 4--
Sharing Mac & Windows

Goldenseal multi-user accounting software allows you to mix Macintosh and Windows machines on your network. It doesn’t matter what type of machine you use for a server. It also doesn’t matter what type of machines you use as clients.

Goldenseal files are ‘binary compatible’ between Macintosh and Windows. That means that you can move a file from a Macintosh machine to a Windows machine (or vice-versa), and still open it.

There are a few quirks that you’ll need to consider when using both Macs and Windows on a network:

Icons and Graphics

Because we use QuickTime for the Windows version, Windows machines can show graphics or account icons created on the Macintosh, but Macintosh machines can’t show some types of graphics created in Windows.

If you ’ll be working cross-platform, create your logo and other graphics on the Macintosh.

Speed

There is a very slight speed penalty when you are a client that is a different platfom from the server, since Goldenseal needs to swap some of the bits and bytes in each record to account for the way data is stored in Macs and Windows. You may not even notice the difference.

Database Report

The Database Report shows the raw data in your company file. If you are viewing a record that is currently stored on the other platform, some data in the record may appear to be reversed.

Text

Some less common text characters are different between Mac and Windows— including “curly quotes” and accented characters. Avoid their use if you’ll be using Goldenseal on both Macs and Windows machines.

Swapping Files from Mac to Windows

If you have a Goldenseal accounting file that you created on the Macintosh, and want to use it on a Windows machine, follow these steps:

1. On the Macintosh, rename the file so it has .glds at the end of the file name. If the file name contains a period elsewhere in the name, remove it.
2. Move the file from the Mac to the Windows machine. You can use a zip disk, a floppy disk, or burn a CD or DVD. If you have a cross-platform file-sharing utility, you can also use that to move the file over the network.
3. The Windows version of Goldenseal will be able to open the Mac file (it uses the .glds file suffix to recognize it as a Goldenseal file).

Click the link for more about the swap from Mac to Windows.

Swapping Files from Windows to Mac

To move a file from a Windows machine to a Macintosh, you can use a zip disk, a floppy disk, or burn a CD or DVD. If you have a cross-platform file-sharing utility, you can also use that to move the file over the network.

Click the link for more about the swap from Windows to Mac.

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