Day: August 28, 2019

When Lotus 1-2-3 was the only game in town, you could enter a backslash followed by any character and Lotus would repeat that character throughout a cell. If the cell width grew larger or smaller, so did the character. In Excel, this feature is handled by the function REPT. It’s not quite as efficient because […]

The RAND function is really simple and traditionally used for statistical analysis, cryptography, gaming, gambling, and probability theory, among dozens of other things. In Excel, the RAND function generates a random number between 0 and 1. Note; however, that every time you enter new data and press the Enter key, the list of random numbers […]

Use the MIN function to find the smallest number in a range of values, and the MAX function to find the highest. The syntax for these functions are: =MIN(range); =MAX(range) where range equals the list of numbers you’re calculating. Common uses of this function are; for example, find the highest/lowest grade in a classroom; the […]

Use the COUNT function to count the number of numeric values in a range of cells; for example: C4:C15 contains the quantity of garden tools Mr. McGregor needs to order for his shop. Note that the answer is 10 (out of 12), because the COUNT function does not include blank cells. However, if you enter […]

Most everyone knows that an average is determined by adding all the values in a list, then dividing by the number of values listed; e.g., 4+5+3=12/3=4, which is the average. You can use the SUM function and add the division all in one formula, or you can just use the AVERAGE function. The syntax is: […]

Most everyone knows that an average is determined by adding all the values in a list, then dividing by the number of values listed; e.g., 4+5+3=12/3=4, which is the average. You can use the SUM function and add the division all in one formula, or you can just use the AVERAGE function. The syntax is: […]

The IF function (also more commonly called IF statements) work like this: IF, then, else. Basically, that means if a condition is true, then do one thing, else/otherwise do something else. For example, if the puppy is a Labrador, then buy a blue collar, otherwise/else, buy a red collar. The syntax (the way the commands […]

This function removes extra (or padded) spaces that infect your data as a result of user error, downloading data from an external source such as the Internet, or importing data from another computer system. And you don’t have to “tell Excel” where the spaces are located in the string of text in each cell; it […]

AND and OR are common functions in the programmers’ environment, also referred to as Boolean operators (along with NOT). AND means that all conditions in the query must be true; OR means that at least one condition must be true. For example, looking for an applicant with MS Word AND MS Excel experience means the […]

The functions CONCAT and CONCATENATE do the same thing: They both combine multiple cells, ranges, or strings of data into one cell. The most common use of this function is to combine first and last name into one cell or join the city, state, and ZIP code into one cell. NOTE: CONCAT replaced CONCATENATE in […]