CSV rules files can now be read directly, eg you have the option of
writing `hledger -f foo.csv.rules CMD`. By default this will read data
from foo.csv in the same directory. But you can also specify a
different data file with a new `source FILE` rule. This has some
convenience features:
- If the data file does not exist, it is treated as empty, not an
error.
- If FILE is a relative path, it is relative to the rules file's
directory. If it is just a file name with no path, it is relative
to ~/Downloads/.
- If FILE is a glob pattern, the most recently modified matched file
is used.
This helps remove some of the busywork of managing CSV downloads.
Most of your financial institutions's default CSV filenames are
different and can be recognised by a glob pattern. So you can put a
rule like `source Checking1*.csv` in foo-checking.csv.rules,
periodically download CSV from Foo's website accepting your browser's
defaults, and then run `hledger import checking.csv.rules` to import
any new transactions. The next time, if you have done no cleanup, your
browser will probably save it as something like Checking1-2.csv, and
hledger will still see that because of the * wild card. You can choose
whether to delete CSVs after import, or keep them for a while as
temporary backups, or archive them somewhere.
Inner empty lines were not being skipped automatically, contrary to
docs. Now all empty lines are skipped automatically, and the `skip`
rule is needed only for non-empty lines, as intended.
This may be a breaking change: it's possible that the `skip` count
might need to be adjusted in some CSV rules files.
Breaking change: previously timeclock descriptions could contain
semicolons. Now a semicolon in the description will end it and
start a comment (which may contain tags).
I found at least one user for whom this would be a breaking change
(they generate forecast txns, and have auto posting rules, but don't
want the latter applied to the former). I guess it's better to keep
things as they were for now: if you need auto postings on your
forecast txns you must use two flags, --forecast --auto.
Boolean queries are now prefixed with an 'expr:' prefix, making them
completely separable from old queries and making the addition of them a
little more migration proof.
The tests are updated accordingly, changes made to the tests previously
are removed and extra cautious documentation is also removed.
You can now write both @/@@ costs and corresponding equity conversion postings
in a transaction at any time, not just when using --infer-costs or --infer-equity.
hledger will recognise the redundancy and ignore it.
One thing has become more strict: hledger now requires conversion postings
to occur in adjacent pairs; an odd number of them is not allowed.
(Conversion postings are postings to accounts of type `V`/`Conversion`,
or named `equity:conversion`, `equity:trade`, `equity:trading`,
or subaccounts of these.)
And, --infer-costs now works in transactions with an implicit amount
(inferring costs from equity now happens after transaction balancing,
not before).
Previously, the accounts passed to account directives would be stripped
of their surrounding brackets, but the required behaviour is to have
account directives plain reject bracketed accounts. This change ensures
that accounts in account directives may not start with a bracket
character.
Currently an account name like "a:(aa)" will not have (aa) unbracketed.
However, this seems reasonable since the full name is unbracketed and
thus will not be confused with virtual or virtual-balanced posting.
"" is equivalent to writing no symbol.
But it's now possible to declare market prices for the no-symbol
commodity, which occurs eg with timedot data.
P 2022-01-01 "" $100
