Hi All,
A small improvement in the columnar generator

What is new?

1. Feature to add the parent grouping in the columnar extract
2. Color Coding in the heading and the total to make it more readable
3. Uses DUCK DB for faster processing over pandas for faster processing

Download Code (Download and unzip the zip file below into a folder)

How to Run the Tool

Welcome! This guide will help you run the tool on your computer. Whether you are a Python developer or have never written a line of code in your life, follow the steps below to get started.

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🚀 Quick Start (For Developers)

If you already have Python installed and are comfortable with the command line, here is the TL;DR:

1. Requirements:codeText

PyQt5
pandas
duckdb
xlsxwriter
openpyxl
xlrd

2. Install Dependencies:

pip install PyQt5 pandas duckdb xlsxwriter openpyxl xlrd

3. Run the Application: – Preferably using IDLE

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🔰 Step-by-Step Guide (For Beginners)

If you have never used Python before, don’t worry. It is a simple 3-step process: Install Python → Install Libraries → Run the App.

Step 1: Install Python

Python is the “engine” required to run this program.

1. Go to the official Python website.
2. Click the big yellow Download Python button (it will detect your operating system automatically).
3. ⚠️ IMPORTANT: When the installer opens, you MUST check the box that says “Add Python to PATH” at the bottom of the window before clicking “Install Now”.
   • If you miss this step, the computer won’t know where to find Python commands.

Step 2: Save the Code

1. Create a new folder on your Desktop or any other place which you feel is good.
2. Open Notepad (Windows) or TextEdit (Mac).
3. Copy the full Python code provided for the application.
4. Paste it into your text editor.
5. Save the file into your JournalTool folder with the name: app.py.
   • Note: Make sure “Save as type” is set to “All Files”, not “Text Document”.

Step 3: Install the Requirements

This program relies on powerful external libraries (like DuckDB for speed and PyQt5 for the visual interface). We need to download them once.

1. Open the Command Prompt/Terminal:
   • Windows: Press the Windows Key, type cmd, and press Enter.
   • Mac: Press Cmd + Space, type Terminal, and press Enter.
2. Navigate to your folder:
   Type the following command and press Enter (replace username with your actual user name):
3. Install the libraries:
   Copy and paste this line into the terminal and press Enter:
4. pip install PyQt5 pandas duckdb xlsxwriter openpyxl xlrd
5. You will see text scrolling by as it downloads the necessary files. Wait for it to finish.

Step 4: Run the Application

Now that everything is set up, you can launch the tool.

1. Open IDLE,
2. Open this app and run

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❓ Troubleshooting

Error: “‘python’ is not recognized as an internal or external command…”

• Cause: You likely forgot to check “Add Python to PATH” during installation.
• Fix: Uninstall Python, then reinstall it and make sure to check that box.

Error: “ModuleNotFoundError: No module named ‘pandas’ (or duckdb, pyqt5…)”

• Cause: The installation in Step 3 didn’t finish or wasn’t run.
• Fix: Run the pip install … command again and check for red error text.

The window opens but looks blurry (Windows 10/11)

• Fix: This is a common Windows scaling issue. Right-click the python.exe file (or your terminal), go to Properties > Compatibility > Change high DPI settings, and override scaling behavior to “System”.