Can I conqur the Excel fear

arthurdick

But if they came to you and said that they are comfortable with pivot tables, slicers, vlookup, hlookup, charts, pivot table charts, hidden rows , sumif, countif functions, date serial numbers, grouped pivot table reports, adding timelines to pivot tables, without them mentioning DVD'S, would you still think that they were !!!!!!....

marvin

enjoyyourshoes wrote: »

Hi
I was not attempting directly or indirectly to mock you, much the opposite.
One of the fundamental rules in maths is BODMAS and this is critical to Excel when you are adding in formulae.
If you are given this sum:-


2+5 X 6 = ?


You could give the answer as 60..
However the answer is 32 due to BODMAS
It a maths rule that identifies the priority of certain terms in any sum (Brackets first, then Division then multiplication then additional and finally subtraction) o is thrown in so as you can pronounce it.


so your sum should read in Excel =2 + (5 x 6).


If you don't know how to use ad implement BODMAS into an equation in Excel you will not get the result you wanted !

You could give the answer 60 but that would be wrong as 2 +5 =7 and 7 x 6 = 42

But what if the answer you want is 2 + 5 x 6?, which as we discovered was 42 not 60 and is most certainly not 32.

I think the assumption that every sum however presented is BODMAS confusing. I would always read a sum the way it is written and if they want it split up the way you have Bodmas working then I would expect it to be written the second way 2 + (5x6) in any sum. If I don't see it written this way I would presume, like a bookmaker and calculator would it is 2+5 = 7 x 6 (42).

I am not educated left formal schooling at 12 or so by failure to attend on a regular basis. Everything I know is self taught by making mistakes.

OP download a copy of excel for dummies and work through that. The more complicated stuff will only come through regular use start with the basics and work from there but allow 4 -5 years not 4 -5 days

jobbingmusician

You DON'T have to know BODMAS if you know how to use brackets. So as long as you know what you want Excel to do (multiply those two cells together and THEN times it by that third cell, for example) you should be able to cope.

marvin wrote: »

But what if the answer you want is 2 + 5 x 6?, which as we discovered was 42 not 60 and is most certainly not 32.

It's (2+5)*6

(* in Excel formulas is the multiplication sign). Excel does brackets first. If you then want to multiply this result by another value such as the contents of cell c2, it's ((2+5)*6))*c2

Yes, experienced Excel users, I know the second set of brackets is uneccessary. But they are logical, and they work.

(God, the grammar of those 2 sentences is tortured! The subject of the second phrase is 'the second set of brackets'. The implied subject of the final sentence is 'brackets' )



I love Excel to bits and have never had any training. I've encountered pivot tables but can't remember what they are :eek: but can usually do anything I want to by googling it, or by asking a friend! (I feel confident enough to play with their code.)

getmore4less

jobbingmusician wrote: »

You DON'T have to know BODMAS if you know how to use brackets. So as long as you know what you want Excel to do (multiply those two cells together and THEN times it by that third cell, for example) you should be able to cope.



It's (2+5)*6

(* in Excel formulas is the multiplication sign). Excel does brackets first. If you then want to multiply this result by another value such as the contents of cell c2, it's ((2+5)*6))*c2

Yes, experienced Excel users, I know the second set of brackets is uneccessary. But they are logical, and they work.

(God, the grammar of those 2 sentences is tortured! The subject of the second phrase is 'the second set of brackets'. The implied subject of the final sentence is 'brackets' )



I love Excel to bits and have never had any training. I've encountered pivot tables but can't remember what they are :eek: but can usually do anything I want to by googling it, or by asking a friend! (I feel confident enough to play with their code.)

try again..........

marvin

jobbingmusician wrote: »

You DON'T have to know BODMAS if you know how to use brackets. So as long as you know what you want Excel to do (multiply those two cells together and THEN times it by that third cell, for example) you should be able to cope.



It's (2+5)*6

(* in Excel formulas is the multiplication sign). Excel does brackets first. If you then want to multiply this result by another value such as the contents of cell c2, it's ((2+5)*6))*c2

Yes, experienced Excel users, I know the second set of brackets is uneccessary. But they are logical, and they work.

(God, the grammar of those 2 sentences is tortured! The subject of the second phrase is 'the second set of brackets'. The implied subject of the final sentence is 'brackets' )



I love Excel to bits and have never had any training. I've encountered pivot tables but can't remember what they are :eek: but can usually do anything I want to by googling it, or by asking a friend! (I feel confident enough to play with their code.)

I see my point went straight over your head.....

It was more a poke at those who assume it is 2 + (5*6) when they see it written as 2 + 5 * 6 which is where I think they are wrong to think that way and calculators agree with me I will always see that as + then times and only with the use of equation brackets will I see it as a BODMAS.

The rest of it I know I use excel on a daily basis at work and even have to develop some quite complicated spreadsheets to analyse lots of data.

arthurdick

Deleted%20User wrote: »

Hi


I've been allowed to leave current job early and think I must uterlize the next 4 days (before I start the new job) learning excel - guess the best thing I can do is go and buy one of these self help book(s) I am lucky that I still have a few computers I can access it on


I did try years ago to book a course on it at the FE college (around 2010) in the basics of Excel but this got cancelled and refunded as not enough to run course


I know google 'how to' is an option but I think time has come to get over the phobia

How did you get on at the new job?, did you manage to learn enough excel that you needed?.....
you can get a free online course with ALISON, that is in Excel 2010, if you still need to learn more......... it teaches quite a bit from basics to more advanced ..

Hope you did ok?, good luck for the future.

gettingready

marvin wrote: »

I see my point went straight over your head.....

It was more a poke at those who assume it is 2 + (5*6) when they see it written as 2 + 5 * 6

Ermmm it is not an assumption, it is a fact.

they are wrong to think that way and calculators agree with me

Really?

Please type the following into a simple calculator exactly as it is 2+3*3
Then type exactly the same into a scientific calculator again exactly as it is 2+3*3

I assume you know how to change from simple to scientific with your computer calculator?

*****************


I used to train on the whole MS Office before moving on to clinical systems.

Anyone that thinks they can get on wit Excel without good numeracy/maths skills is going to be very surprised as those ARE needed to use Excel.

You may know how to apply formula but you will not be able to see if the result looks wrong and carry on a mistake for several sheets.

BUT - OP, for data entry all you need is typing skills to be honest so no need to worry.

CrowCrow

TELLIT01 wrote: »

Excel is an extremely complex application and you won't be able to learn anything other than the absolute basics in the next 4 days. Did you claim to know Excel in order to get the job? If so, you are going to be found out very quickly indeed.

Nonsense. You can't learn VBA in 4 days, but you can learn all the front end stuff in 4 days, easy. Excel is far more about knowing what it can do rather than how to do it. Google tells you how to do it.

jc808

arthurdick wrote: »

But if they came to you and said that they are comfortable with pivot tables, slicers, vlookup, hlookup, charts, pivot table charts, hidden rows , sumif, countif functions, date serial numbers, grouped pivot table reports, adding timelines to pivot tables, without them mentioning DVD'S, would you still think that they were !!!!!!....

If someone came to me and demonstrated they had recreated a full size replica of the Sistine chapel but with My Little Ponies instead of people, I wouldnt give them the job.

Do you sort of see where im coming from?

marvin

gettingready wrote: »

Ermmm it is not an assumption, it is a fact.

I give up you can't talk to some people!