Thread: I need a macro to do this ...

Originally Posted by Domski

Sometimes you'll get rep for the simplest answer and then spend half an hour coding something to get no rep but almost always the appreciation of the OP which at the end of the day is more than enough.

... I would also accept cash

I like the rep system even though, as people have mentioned, you get at maximum the same rep for a one line no-brainer as for a couple of hours work. But I think it would also be good if the reps were split by "received as responder" and "received as OP".

I will give reps to OPs who put effort into the solution. I am not so bothered about their skill level, especially if they are trying something new, but more their willingness to get their hands dirty, to explain things properly etc. In this the rep could work well (maybe mods could have the ability to post a -ve rep.
All being publically visible this I would have thought would encourage a more professional attitude amongst OPs.

Tony, the majority of OPs are one time wonders. They have a question, they ask it, they receive a reply that satisfies them and then they move on. The next time they have an Excel question, they may not even remember that they have a user account here and end up at some other web place.

Trying to educate new OPs who scoff at having to read the rules to come up with a proper thread title, but expect ppl to put in their free time to produce a solution, is rather unsatisfying.

The few who come here regularly are clearly exceptions.

Originally Posted by parrynz

"what part of the manual are you looking at and I will try and help you".

Isn't that have the problem. When I started everything came with a manual. Now it isn't even an optional extra ... because everything is available on the internet.

I don't think there is any substitute to having a manual which you can leaf through. Partly because as you look one thing up you often happen on something else useful.

Originally Posted by tony h

I don't think there is any substitute to having a manual which you can leaf through. Partly because as you look one thing up you often happen on something else useful.

I couldn't agree more - that's why I keep reading Excel books: there's almost always a little gem (or a reminder of one, if you're as forgetful as me) somewhere in there!

Hi all, I'm new to this forum and have just discovered the Water Cooler. It may be old news to you, but this takes the biscuit ... LOL

Originally Posted by royUK

I seen this tendency for years & refuse to offer code when Excel doesn't need it.

This username is an Excel consultant!

I think you all do a splended job and this site, which wasn't my first to go to, has helped me in uncountable ways. Furthermore, I like the way regular joes like myself can try to help others without being scoffed at, at least not on the forum. If advice is wrong, then one of you pros correct it without so much as a boo. I do get bothered though (and this happened just today) when someone like myself is helped, but am degraded as amateur and not analyzing code very well when a function that works is used. Why is that? I'm not one to get rattled very easy by people but to get upset at me because I used code that is not "cool" or widely accepted, even though it works for my application, seems....I don't know, pompus?! I understand that everyone will have an opinion about what code to use for what but when it comes down to functionality, why should it matter. Argg. Sorry about the rant but one of the members struck a nerve on me and this is how I'm going to let it go. I feel better already

Me

Post a link to the post

see post 13

http://www.excelforum.com/excel-prog...statement.html

mordred - as time goes on you like all of us will learn to treat some posts as gospel and others less so.

I would just add to the post in question that in 15 years of coding its fair to say I've written plenty of bad code and to this day still do.

I'd say that holds true for most people - anyone who infers otherwise probably does not spend enough time around boards like this to know what really good code looks like

I don't think it was personal, Andrew is stating his opinion.

I guess that comes down to interpretation...

Regardless of the supposed slight - making unequivocal assertions is generally ill advised IMO.
Such statements are, as most of us have found to our peril at one time or another on these boards, generally asking for trouble [red rag bull etc...]

As a rule I think most of us tend to allow for a margin of error in our advice because we know the rompers & popemeisters of this world often know otherwise and can as a result make us look rather foolish

Originally Posted by Mordred

when someone like myself is helped, but am degraded as amateur and not analyzing code very well when a function that works is used.

I don't think the comment was aimed at you so much as at the use of Goto in general. I see it used too much, usually completely unnecessarily.

Why is that? I'm not one to get rattled very easy by people but to get upset at me because I used code that is not "cool" or widely accepted, even though it works for my application, seems....I don't know, pompus?!

Again, I suspect Andrew was merely trying to give you good advice. Goto can quickly turn your code into spaghetti and make it very hard to debug or alter. I have to confess that when I see questions that use Goto a lot, I tend to ignore them unless I have a lot of spare time to figure out the purpose.

I understand that everyone will have an opinion about what code to use for what but when it comes down to functionality, why should it matter.

Probably the single most important thing I have learned is that maintainability is at least as important as functionality. If you can't read the code in 6 months when you need to tweak it, it's badly written an your life becomes much more difficult.

As DO said though, all posts are the poster's opinion and there is almost never one true way of doing things. Won't stop most of us from expressing our personal biases though. At the end of the day, you have to live with it, so the choice of who to listen to and how to do things is entirely yours.

[QUOTE=romperstomper;2363107]
Probably the single most important thing I have learned is that maintainability is at least as important as functionality. If you can't read the code in 6 months when you need to tweak it, it's badly written an your life becomes much more difficult.9/quote]

Deciphering some of the code posted here is good practice for this! Some OPs have never heard of commenting code

I interpreted the comment to be at me because I made the thread and "you" and "your" was used. I have made my points to Andrew personally and hope that this is settled. Believe me, I don't want sloppy code and I know that code requires maintenance, I try to keep that and other things in mind like reusability of methods. Also, when my skills are much better, I plan on fully automating right from our sources. In saying that, I hope to write code that will be more generic and intigratable when full automation happens. Do I still need to post a link or can we call this settled?

Do I still need to post a link or can we call this settled?

Is really up to you. Nobody here is going to do anything per se.

I enjoyed where you have taken this thread (off-topic - lol)

It reminded me of a couple of things:
http://www.excelforum.com/excel-prog...naming-it.html
I was unnecessarily terse here, but Dave was very gracious, that made me mellow out and become much more constructive. This goes to show how anyone can steer something away from ugly just by being polite - perhaps shows how your conversation with Andrew might have gone?

I also remember a couple of run-ins with Roy and DO (both to my discredit). One where I basically insisted good standard practice was bad because I didn't do it that way, and the other where I got uppity for no good reason at all...

Which brings me to my point (eventually). There's a thread on the forum about 'thanks for all the help', for me, 'all the help' represents the character development I've gained by contributing regularly here, and, occasionally, having my knowledge totally trounced and/or ridiculed by somebody; and at least as often, having things I thought were great gently improved by people who clearly could have torn strips off me, but didn't feel the need to (shg is good at this).

I don't really need the Excel for my job, but the humility you get from being around these zeppelin-sized-brains is a very valuable asset for me. I don't doubt it has helped me in my career.

My 2p.