For many years, I worked in a small typewriter shop. We sold new and used typewriters and other office equipment, and the owner and one or two technicians serviced office equipment across a third of the state. I manned the store, answered the phone, scheduled repair appointments, learned how to program and use the new electronic typewriters, and taught our customers how to use the ones they purchased. I maintained the accounts receivable by hand using a ledger book with carbon paper, and a file of account cards, one for each customer. At the end of each page, I was able to determine if there had been any errors, and then balanced the accounts receivable one last time at the end of the month. The owner was responsible for accounts payable, because in those days it was understood that keeping the two separate was critical to prevent embezzlement. Nowadays, there are news stories about embezzlement by the bookkeeping staff practically every day of the week and the perpetrators have usually being getting away with it for years.