Would it be possible to set as default 1, for quantity field so that it forces all line items to display quantity. The form looks unprofessional if some entries show a quantity and others don’t. I have tried using form defaults for this, but it only sets the quantity for the first line and not subsequent lines. I very often only sell a quantity of one item. So I would like to be able to set a default quantity of one for quotes and invoices.
Isn’t this the same as you requested in the thread Sales Quotes not taking initial quantity as 1?
Not quite. That post is about an issue where inventory was not using a default value of 1 when copying from quotes to invoices. So that was a bug in the program.
The program defaults to 1 for inventory items, but that is behind the scenes as far as calculating inventory movement. When you look at a quote or sales invoice, the layout is a bit haphazard when some line items show a quantity and others don’t - which is usually a result of some line items being more than 1, so the user inputs the quantity, whereas for items that only have a quantity of 1, it’s not showing as 1 on the view form by default. So I am talking about presentation of the quote/invoice.
When you don’t put a quantity in, the view form does not show the unit price - it is only shown in the Total Column. I prefer the unit price column to display an amount as well, especially when other line items display an amount.
I see nothing wrong with the current layout practices. If you want a unit price, show the number of units. But some line items are not adequately represented by a quantity. Such things might include services. In those cases, the absence of a quantity and the absence of the unit price go together. Showing only the final amount is appropriate. This was actually a compromise worked out some years ago to satisfy competing desires raised by different types of businesses.
Fair enough. But I can’t see why an option can’t be added to form defaults to always show unit price for people who always want it to show and leave it un-ticked for people don’t want unit price.
Two reasons why that is not feasible:
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Form defaults do not allow options. They replicate an actual transaction, except for sequential reference numbering. You cannot, for example, specify that you always want unit price left off. You would have to enter actual line items without quantities as you want them to appear on every transaction of that type. And if you add more line items to a default form, they are subject to the same display protocols as any manually entered line item. While you can choose available options, such as tax-inclusive pricing or appearance of the Description column, that will apply to the entire transaction.
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People often mix and match items with and without quantities.