Q.What is a Computerised Accounting System?

A Computerised Accounting System replaces manual bookkeeping with a computer and dedicated accounting software that records and processes transactions.

A Computerised Accounting System (CAS) is the use of a computer, together with a dedicated accounting software package, to carry out the entire accounting process — recording each transaction through a voucher, posting it automatically to every ledger account it affects, and generating reports such as the trial balance, ledger accounts, Profit and Loss Account and Balance Sheet on demand.

It is important to note what CAS changes and what it does not. The fundamental principles of accounting, including the double-entry rule and the classification of accounts, remain unchanged; what CAS changes is only the process by which those principles are applied — replacing manual writing, posting and calculation with data entry and automatic computer processing. This is why a CAS is best described as a modern way of doing accounting, not a different system of accounting.

Students sometimes describe CAS as a 'new method of accounting' with different rules; the correct point is that the accounting principles stay the same and only the process/tools change.