Forum Discussion

DCBanks's avatar
DCBanks
Copper Contributor
Nov 17, 2019

INDEX, SMALL, COUNTIF

I am using INDEX, SMALL, COUNTIF to extract records from a list with 10 columns and averages 200 rows. There's is a 2 text analysis code and a 3 text budget code, examples are AD, EQ, ST for analysis...
Excel
  • SergeiBaklan's avatar
    SergeiBaklan
    Nov 17, 2019

    DCBanks 

    If to extract by formulas records from list based on few criteria, I'd use AGGREGATE to avoid array formulas.

    In this case

    formula could be like

    =IFERROR(
   INDEX(A$5:A$38,
      AGGREGATE(
         15,
         6,
         1/(**bleep**=$O$10)/(Budget=$P$10)/(ProjectCode=$Q$10)*
            (ROW($A$5:$A$38)-ROW($A$4)),
         (ROW()-ROW($O$10))
      )
   ),
"")

    and in 1/()/().. part you may add as many criteria as needed.

Riny_van_Eekelen's avatar
Riny_van_Eekelen
Platinum Contributor
Nov 17, 2019

DCBanks 

It's an amazingly complicated formula. What exactly are you trying to achieve?

 

Have you considered putting a filter on your column headers? It seems you can get the same extract by just ticking the relevant check boxes in the column filters. E.g., you can select three Analysis codes, a Budget code and a Project code and then it will display all rows that match that filter. That's roughly what your formula is doing now for only one Analysis code.

  • DCBanks's avatar
    DCBanks
    Copper Contributor
    Nov 17, 2019

    Riny_van_Eekelen 

    I agree I can do that and have tried it out on the users who have knowledge of Excel ranging from nothing to nought! The users numbering 40 plus ring me up and tell me they are missing transactions and I ask them they can see little arrows at the top of the columns and they ask me 'what is a column'! Entering 3 cells is about all they can manage.

  • DCBanks's avatar
    DCBanks
    Copper Contributor
    Nov 17, 2019

    Riny_van_Eekelen 

    Re question 'what am I trying to achieve'. There are a number of projects of which each user is assigned a 'manager'. When they see how much their projects are costing they want to identify where and what they have spent the money on rather than trawling through hundreds of rows, 90% which they are not interested in. They want to input their project(s) and the type of purchase and get a list. I am going to add a column to the 'report' for each line as a percentage of the total budget so that they can immediately see where all the money has gone.

    • Riny_van_Eekelen's avatar
      Riny_van_Eekelen
      Platinum Contributor
      Nov 17, 2019

      DCBanks 

      Have quite some experience with users who don't know much about Excel. Prefer to teach them some basics on how to use a fairly simple sheet, rather than designing a sheet that becomes complex and that would have to be fool-proof so that users can't screw it up. But that's your choice.