Looking for for excel gripes and suggestions

**sbadame** · 01-19-2012, 05:38 PM

Hello excelers,

Hopefully this is the right place for this kind of thing if not please let me know what a better venue would be.

I'm currently doing research to see what can be developed to make Excel a better tool for getting your work done. In order to better understand what should be done I'm looking to hear some of your stories about what it's like to work with spreadsheets.

I am looking for repetitive operations or error prone operations that lend themselves to automation. Specifically, operations that change the content of existing cells in spreadsheets. Examples of operations that I've had in mind include: Adding a new column to a table by pulling out a value from an already existing column. Even something as simple as automatically adding dollar signs to your cell references is something worth mentioning.

Here are some questions that I'm looking to get answers to:
What are some things that you really dread to do in Excel?
What are some things that you have to do all of the time that are tedious?
What are some things that you do all the time that are easy?
What are things that you do that are particularly error prone?

I'm surveying the excel landscape so please lets hear it!

Thank you!

**shg** · 01-19-2012, 05:52 PM

Moved to the Water Cooler

**tigeravatar** · 01-19-2012, 06:23 PM

I think we already have a thread similar in nature to this one (probably many threads), here's a link:
http://www.excelforum.com/the-water-...-you-like.html

**sbadame** · 01-19-2012, 07:16 PM

Originally Posted by tigeravatar

I think we already have a thread similar in nature to this one (probably many threads), here's a link:
http://www.excelforum.com/the-water-...-you-like.html

Ah that's a cool thread. I was thinking more along the lines of common cell operations. Although seeing what functions people are begging for is pretty intriguing.

**pike** · 01-20-2012, 12:56 AM

Its all good

**sbadame** · 02-20-2012, 10:06 PM

I hate to raise the dead but I've made a youtube video that should better describe that stuff that I'm talking about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGIu6Muvd8I

**martindwilson** · 02-21-2012, 10:15 AM

hmm summing is easilly done with the sigma tool. so no real avantage there. i suppose the others functions cold be handy but it starts to get that thereare more tools to learn when just using your brain with whats already there is easier

**Whizbang** · 03-02-2012, 10:49 AM

Originally Posted by sbadame

Even something as simple as automatically adding dollar signs to your cell references is something worth mentioning.

Pressing F4 while your cursor is on the reference will cycle through the reference types.

**ChemistB** · 03-05-2012, 08:37 AM

What are some things that you really dread to do in Excel?

I dread moving data to new tabs using some criteria but removing blanks. Something like

{=IF(COLUMN()-COLUMN(Sheet1!$C2:$V2)+1>COLUMNS(Sheet1!$C$2:$V$2)-COUNTBLANK(Sheet1!$C2:$V2),"",INDIRECT("SHEET1!"&ADDRESS(1,SMALL((IF(Sheet1!$C2:$V2<>"",COLUMN(Sheet1!$C2:$V2),COLUMN()+COLUMNS(Sheet1!$C2:$V2))),COLUMN()-COLUMN(Sheet1!$C$2:$V$2)+1),4)))}

What are some things that you have to do all of the time that are tedious?

I'd like a random sort option. Select column, select "randomize".

**Domski** · 03-05-2012, 11:01 AM

I think this thread was started more to try and get you to watch the video and gain interest for the tool that they're developing more than actually out of interest in any real gripes you've got. I don't see much use for what they've done so far so they might really need help though.

Dom