The Security Editor is used to create and edit commodities that are used by mutual fund and stock
type accounts. It also shows the details of National Currencies that are used by GnuCash.
To show the details for National Currencies click the Show National Currencies check-box at the bottom of the screen.
Each entry in the editor shows the details used by the security/currency:
Full name: The full name of the commodity is a recognizable name such as US Dollars or IBM Common Stock.
Symbol/abbreviation: Indicates the symbol or abbreviation for the commodity. This is usually the ticker symbol (for stocks) or other unique abbreviation for the commodity. If the commodity is traded on any public exchange, it is important to use the same identifier used on that exchange. For national currencies the symbol is the ISO-4217 currency code.
Display symbol: This optional field allows the user to specify a symbol to use in the GUI display. It's primarily there to allow users to override the hard-coded symbol for currencies but it might also be useful for displaying a different symbol from the one used to retrieve price quotes.
Namespace: An optional
field to allow you to create categories for your
securities. You may use any string you like
except Currency
and Template: Those are
reserved for GnuCash's use.
ISIN, CUSIP, or other code: This optional entry may be any informative code for the commodity. If present it is used only for display. An ISIN or International Security Identification Number is associated with every stock, bond or mutual fund, and most kinds of traded options, futures and commodities. CUSIP (Commitee on Uniform Securies Identification Procedures) is a similar code used in the North America. Other regions have similar codes, for example Germany's WKN (Wertpapierkennnummer).
Fraction traded: This
is the smallest traded unit of the commodity, expressed as a
fraction of a single nominal unit. GnuCash rounds entered and
calculated amounts and values to this fraction.
To add a new commodity (stock, or mutual fund), click on Add, and enter the details of the commodity into the New Security dialog box. To edit an existing commodity, select the commodity from the Commodities list, click the button, and edit the Edit Security dialog box. To remove a commodity, select the commodity and click the button.
The fields in the New/Edit Security screens are the same as defined for the Security Editor Section 8.7, “Security Editor”. Below these fields are the options for Online Quotes.
To support on-line quotations for a particular stock or mutual fund account, you must first enable on-line price quoting and select a price source in the Security Editor. Online currency quotes require only that the check-box for Online quotes and the timezone be selected, and that the “Get Quotes” box be checked in the Security Editor.
Detailed instructions are in the section on Creating New Accounts. Section 5.4.2, “Steps to enable Online Quotes updating”