Book Image

Exploring Microsoft Excel’s Hidden Treasures

By : David Ringstrom
Book Image

Exploring Microsoft Excel’s Hidden Treasures

By: David Ringstrom

Overview of this book

David Ringstrom coined the phrase “Either you work Excel, or it works you!” after observing how many users carry out tasks inefficiently. In this book, you’ll learn how to get more done with less effort. This book will enable you to create resilient spreadsheets that are easy for others to use as well, while incorporating spreadsheet disaster preparedness techniques. The time-saving techniques covered in the book include creating custom shortcuts and icons to streamline repetitive tasks, as well as automating them with features such as Tables and Custom Views. You’ll see how Conditional Formatting enables you to apply colors, Cell icons, and other formatting on-demand as your data changes. You’ll be empowered to protect the integrity of spreadsheets and increase usability by implementing internal controls, and understand how to solve problems with What-If Analysis features. In addition, you’ll master new features and functions such as XLOOKUP, Dynamic Array functions, LET and LAMBDA, and Power Query, while learning how to leverage shortcuts and nuances in Excel. By the end of this book, you’ll have a broader awareness of how to avoid pitfalls in Excel. You’ll be empowered to work more effectively in Excel, having gained a deeper understanding of the frustrating oddities that can arise daily in Excel.
Table of Contents (18 chapters)
1
Part 1: Improving Accessibility
6
Part 2:Spreadsheet Interactivity and Automation
12
Part 3: Data Analysis

The MATCH function

The =MATCH(G3,B3:B12,0) formula in cell H3 of the MATCH and INDEX worksheet in Figure 10.2 returns 2 because it found Long Beach in the second row of the B3:B12 range:

Figure 10.2 – The MATCH function

The MATCH function has three arguments:

  • Lookup_value – What to look for, which, in the case of cell H3, is the contents of cell G3.
  • Lookup_array – This can be a row, column, or array to search; in the case of cell H3, it is the B3:B12 range.
  • Match_type – This optional argument offers three choices:
    • -1 – Find the closest match that is equal to or less than lookup_value.
    • 0 – Find an exact match with lookup_value, which I specified in cell H3.
    • 1 – Find the closest match that is equal to or greater than lookup_value. This is the default value for MATCH if you don’t specify the third argument.

The =MATCH(G8,B3:B12,0) formula in cell H8 of Figure 10.2 returns #N/A because...