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Please help with Excel formula problem!

  1. #1
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Please help with Excel formula problem!

    I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no luck. I'd
    be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.

    You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of funding.
    You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to give them.

    However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say, $1,655,502.
    You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.

    1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.

    So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all the grants
    total up to $1,500,000.

    No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet in a
    few seconds. But here's the twist:

    You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the smallest
    request will always get the highest percentage of its request, and the
    city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage. I'm
    trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary funds so
    that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of like tax
    brackets...

    It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're requesting.
    Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.

    There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants. For
    example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get from 95%
    to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??

    I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just be
    another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of me figure
    out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?

    Many thanks
    Ron M.


  2. #2
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in one column
    and the Percent to get in the next..........

    Vaya con Dios,
    Cuck, CABGx3


    "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no luck. I'd
    > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    >
    > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of funding.
    > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to give them.
    >
    > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say, $1,655,502.
    > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    >
    > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    >
    > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all the grants
    > total up to $1,500,000.
    >
    > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet in a
    > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    >
    > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the smallest
    > request will always get the highest percentage of its request, and the
    > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage. I'm
    > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary funds so
    > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of like tax
    > brackets...
    >
    > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're requesting.
    > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    >
    > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants. For
    > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get from 95%
    > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    >
    > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just be
    > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of me figure
    > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    >
    > Many thanks
    > Ron M.
    >




  3. #3
    Bob Phillips
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!


    "CLR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:e0PY4%[email protected]...
    > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in one column
    > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    >
    > Vaya con Dios,
    > Cuck, CABGx3


    You've suddenly lost your H :-)



  4. #4
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Ack. Sorry, I have NO idea what you're talking about.

    Ron M.

    CLR wrote:
    > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in one

    column
    > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    >
    > Vaya con Dios,
    > Cuck, CABGx3
    >
    >
    > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > news:[email protected]...
    > > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no luck.

    I'd
    > > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    > >
    > > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of

    funding.
    > > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to give

    them.
    > >
    > > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say,

    $1,655,502.
    > > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    > >
    > > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    > >
    > > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all the

    grants
    > > total up to $1,500,000.
    > >
    > > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet in

    a
    > > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    > >
    > > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the smallest
    > > request will always get the highest percentage of its request, and

    the
    > > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage. I'm
    > > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary funds so
    > > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of like

    tax
    > > brackets...
    > >
    > > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're

    requesting.
    > > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    > >
    > > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants. For
    > > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get from

    95%
    > > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    > >
    > > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just be
    > > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of me

    figure
    > > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    > >
    > > Many thanks
    > > Ron M.
    > >



  5. #5
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    LOL..........'deed I did <g>...........old fingers getting tired I
    reckon...........

    Vaya con Dios,
    Chuck, CABGx3


    "Bob Phillips" <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:#[email protected]...
    >
    > "CLR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > news:e0PY4%[email protected]...
    > > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in one

    column
    > > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    > >
    > > Vaya con Dios,
    > > Cuck, CABGx3

    >
    > You've suddenly lost your H :-)
    >
    >




  6. #6
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Hi Ron.........
    I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving those who
    ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but I'm not
    here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages you
    assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective thing.......you have
    to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those percentages
    to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being with a
    VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say your 10
    cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with 50000
    increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert whatever
    Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then highlight
    K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the small
    window > OK.
    Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with each
    request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum D1:D10 and
    see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your selections
    are satisfactory.

    hth
    Vaya con Dios,
    Chuck, CABGx3

    ..


    "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    > Ack. Sorry, I have NO idea what you're talking about.
    >
    > Ron M.
    >
    > CLR wrote:
    > > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in one

    > column
    > > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    > >
    > > Vaya con Dios,
    > > Cuck, CABGx3
    > >
    > >
    > > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > > news:[email protected]...
    > > > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no luck.

    > I'd
    > > > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    > > >
    > > > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of

    > funding.
    > > > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to give

    > them.
    > > >
    > > > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say,

    > $1,655,502.
    > > > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    > > >
    > > > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    > > >
    > > > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all the

    > grants
    > > > total up to $1,500,000.
    > > >
    > > > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet in

    > a
    > > > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    > > >
    > > > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the smallest
    > > > request will always get the highest percentage of its request, and

    > the
    > > > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage. I'm
    > > > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary funds so
    > > > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of like

    > tax
    > > > brackets...
    > > >
    > > > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're

    > requesting.
    > > > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    > > >
    > > > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants. For
    > > > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get from

    > 95%
    > > > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    > > >
    > > > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just be
    > > > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of me

    > figure
    > > > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    > > >
    > > > Many thanks
    > > > Ron M.
    > > >

    >




  7. #7
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Thanks. Let me see if I can make that work. I'm a pretty experienced
    Excel user, but I have zero experience with things like VLookup.

    The table below illustrates it. You only have 1,000,000 to give, but
    they're requesting much more: 1,769,430. You don't have enough money to
    give everybody what they're requesting.

    1,000,000/1,760,430 - .5652, so you give everybody 56.52% of their
    request.

    Requested % of Granted % of
    total request
    6,136.00 0.35 3,467.78 56.52 Dallas
    11,234.00 0.63 6,348.94 56.52 Houston
    18,356.00 1.04 10,373.96 56.52 Austin
    112,562.00 6.36 63,614.84 56.52 San Antonio
    113,374.00 6.41 64,073.74 56.52 Lubbock
    115,134.00 6.51 65,068.41 56.52 El Paso
    146,251.00 8.27 82,654.30 56.52 Fort Worth
    293,561.00 16.59 165,907.10 56.52 Amarillo
    369,471.00 20.88 208,807.92 56.52 Corpus Christi
    583,351.00 32.97 329,683.01 56.52 Abilene

    1,769,430.00 100.00 1,000,000.00

    What I want to do is grant the smaller requestors a larger percentage
    of their request, instead of granting everybody 56.52%. For example,
    Dallas might get, say, 90% of their request. San Antonio might get 84%.
    Abilene, the largest requestor, might get, say, 65%.

    There are two interrelated issues here:

    1. The range of the grant percentages. In the table above, it could be
    narrow (e.g. Dallas 58% to Abilene 54%) or it could be wide (e.g.
    Dallas 98% to Abilene 32%). I'm just making up those percentages, but
    you get the picture. It would still total 1,000,000.

    2. The range of the request amounts is subjectively tied to #1. If they
    were all close together, (e.g. 364,586, 364,923, 364,188...)then it
    wouldn't make sense to have a huge grant spread like 30%-to-99%. I
    REALLY wish I could find some way to have this determination worked
    into the formula, but it's simply beyond me... (-;

    Don't worry, this isn't going to actually happen - I'm just using
    cities as an example. The actual spreadsheet, if this system is
    adopted, will have several hundred requests, by the way. I'm trying to
    fix it so the only things entered will be the request amounts and the
    total amount available. Everything else would be generated with
    formulas.

    Thanks a heap,
    Ron


    CLR wrote:
    > Hi Ron.........
    > I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    those who
    > ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    I'm not
    > here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    > something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    you
    > assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    thing.......you have
    > to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    > offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    percentages
    > to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    with a
    > VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    your 10
    > cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    > B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    50000
    > increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    whatever
    > Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    > percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    highlight
    > K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    small
    > window > OK.
    > Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    > B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    each
    > request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    > automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    D1:D10 and
    > see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    > percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    selections
    > are satisfactory.
    >
    > hth
    > Vaya con Dios,
    > Chuck, CABGx3
    >
    > .
    >
    >
    > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > news:[email protected]...
    > > Ack. Sorry, I have NO idea what you're talking about.
    > >
    > > Ron M.
    > >
    > > CLR wrote:
    > > > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in

    one
    > > column
    > > > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    > > >
    > > > Vaya con Dios,
    > > > Cuck, CABGx3
    > > >
    > > >
    > > > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > > > news:[email protected]...
    > > > > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no

    luck.
    > > I'd
    > > > > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    > > > >
    > > > > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of

    > > funding.
    > > > > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to

    give
    > > them.
    > > > >
    > > > > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say,

    > > $1,655,502.
    > > > > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    > > > >
    > > > > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    > > > >
    > > > > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all

    the
    > > grants
    > > > > total up to $1,500,000.
    > > > >
    > > > > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet

    in
    > > a
    > > > > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    > > > >
    > > > > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the

    smallest
    > > > > request will always get the highest percentage of its request,

    and
    > > the
    > > > > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage.

    I'm
    > > > > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary

    funds so
    > > > > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of

    like
    > > tax
    > > > > brackets...
    > > > >
    > > > > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're

    > > requesting.
    > > > > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    > > > >
    > > > > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants.

    For
    > > > > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get

    from
    > > 95%
    > > > > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    > > > >
    > > > > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just

    be
    > > > > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of

    me
    > > figure
    > > > > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    > > > >
    > > > > Many thanks
    > > > > Ron M.
    > > > >

    > >



  8. #8
    Peter Webb
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!


    "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    > Thanks. Let me see if I can make that work. I'm a pretty experienced
    > Excel user, but I have zero experience with things like VLookup.
    >
    > The table below illustrates it. You only have 1,000,000 to give, but
    > they're requesting much more: 1,769,430. You don't have enough money to
    > give everybody what they're requesting.
    >
    > 1,000,000/1,760,430 - .5652, so you give everybody 56.52% of their
    > request.
    >
    > Requested % of Granted % of
    > total request
    > 6,136.00 0.35 3,467.78 56.52 Dallas
    > 11,234.00 0.63 6,348.94 56.52 Houston
    > 18,356.00 1.04 10,373.96 56.52 Austin
    > 112,562.00 6.36 63,614.84 56.52 San Antonio
    > 113,374.00 6.41 64,073.74 56.52 Lubbock
    > 115,134.00 6.51 65,068.41 56.52 El Paso
    > 146,251.00 8.27 82,654.30 56.52 Fort Worth
    > 293,561.00 16.59 165,907.10 56.52 Amarillo
    > 369,471.00 20.88 208,807.92 56.52 Corpus Christi
    > 583,351.00 32.97 329,683.01 56.52 Abilene
    >
    > 1,769,430.00 100.00 1,000,000.00
    >
    > What I want to do is grant the smaller requestors a larger percentage
    > of their request, instead of granting everybody 56.52%. For example,
    > Dallas might get, say, 90% of their request. San Antonio might get 84%.
    > Abilene, the largest requestor, might get, say, 65%.
    >
    > There are two interrelated issues here:
    >
    > 1. The range of the grant percentages. In the table above, it could be
    > narrow (e.g. Dallas 58% to Abilene 54%) or it could be wide (e.g.
    > Dallas 98% to Abilene 32%). I'm just making up those percentages, but
    > you get the picture. It would still total 1,000,000.
    >
    > 2. The range of the request amounts is subjectively tied to #1. If they
    > were all close together, (e.g. 364,586, 364,923, 364,188...)then it
    > wouldn't make sense to have a huge grant spread like 30%-to-99%. I
    > REALLY wish I could find some way to have this determination worked
    > into the formula, but it's simply beyond me... (-;
    >
    > Don't worry, this isn't going to actually happen - I'm just using
    > cities as an example. The actual spreadsheet, if this system is
    > adopted, will have several hundred requests, by the way. I'm trying to
    > fix it so the only things entered will be the request amounts and the
    > total amount available. Everything else would be generated with
    > formulas.
    >
    > Thanks a heap,
    > Ron
    >
    >
    > CLR wrote:
    >> Hi Ron.........
    >> I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    > those who
    >> ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    > I'm not
    >> here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    >> something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    > you
    >> assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    > thing.......you have
    >> to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    >> offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    > percentages
    >> to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    > with a
    >> VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    > your 10
    >> cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    >> B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    > 50000
    >> increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    > whatever
    >> Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    >> percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    > highlight
    >> K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    > small
    >> window > OK.
    >> Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    >> B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    > each
    >> request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    >> automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    > D1:D10 and
    >> see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    >> percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    > selections
    >> are satisfactory.
    >>
    >> hth
    >> Vaya con Dios,
    >> Chuck, CABGx3
    >>
    >> .
    >>
    >>
    >> "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    >> news:[email protected]...
    >> > Ack. Sorry, I have NO idea what you're talking about.
    >> >
    >> > Ron M.
    >> >
    >> > CLR wrote:
    >> > > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in

    > one
    >> > column
    >> > > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    >> > >
    >> > > Vaya con Dios,
    >> > > Cuck, CABGx3
    >> > >
    >> > >
    >> > > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    >> > > news:[email protected]...
    >> > > > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no

    > luck.
    >> > I'd
    >> > > > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    >> > > >
    >> > > > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of
    >> > funding.
    >> > > > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to

    > give
    >> > them.
    >> > > >
    >> > > > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say,
    >> > $1,655,502.
    >> > > > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    >> > > >
    >> > > > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    >> > > >
    >> > > > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all

    > the
    >> > grants
    >> > > > total up to $1,500,000.
    >> > > >
    >> > > > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet

    > in
    >> > a
    >> > > > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    >> > > >
    >> > > > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the

    > smallest
    >> > > > request will always get the highest percentage of its request,

    > and
    >> > the
    >> > > > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage.

    > I'm
    >> > > > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary

    > funds so
    >> > > > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of

    > like
    >> > tax
    >> > > > brackets...
    >> > > >
    >> > > > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're
    >> > requesting.
    >> > > > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    >> > > >
    >> > > > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants.

    > For
    >> > > > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get

    > from
    >> > 95%
    >> > > > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    >> > > >
    >> > > > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just

    > be
    >> > > > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of

    > me
    >> > figure
    >> > > > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    >> > > >
    >> > > > Many thanks
    >> > > > Ron M.
    >> > > >
    >> >

    >


    There are two extremes. You could give every city the same, or you could
    pro-rata it on size, so its the same for every resident. You want some
    formula in between. Well, there are an infinite number. So lets pick
    something simple.

    You could say that the grant is half for the city itself and half for the
    residents. So divide all the money in two, and divide up one half equally
    amongst each city and the other half equally by population. This would mean
    the smallest city gets about twice as much per resident as in the biggest
    cities.

    One problem would be if two cities were really parts of one bigger city -
    like Boston and Cambridge or Dallas and Fort Worth. They would get a bigger
    funding that other single cities of the same size. But if you try and adjust
    for geography, you will never get any formula right ...




  9. #9
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Hi Peter...........
    I wish to congratulate you on your submission. Of course the OP said he is
    not using actual Cities, that was just for example, so the concern for
    geography may not be a necessary, (but there may be others that are). But,
    your concept of providing 50% of the distribution according to one factor,
    and the other 50% according to another factor is very
    interesting!..........WELL DONE!

    Vaya con Dios,
    Chuck, CABGx3


























    "Peter Webb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    >
    > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > news:[email protected]...
    > > Thanks. Let me see if I can make that work. I'm a pretty experienced
    > > Excel user, but I have zero experience with things like VLookup.
    > >
    > > The table below illustrates it. You only have 1,000,000 to give, but
    > > they're requesting much more: 1,769,430. You don't have enough money to
    > > give everybody what they're requesting.
    > >
    > > 1,000,000/1,760,430 - .5652, so you give everybody 56.52% of their
    > > request.
    > >
    > > Requested % of Granted % of
    > > total request
    > > 6,136.00 0.35 3,467.78 56.52 Dallas
    > > 11,234.00 0.63 6,348.94 56.52 Houston
    > > 18,356.00 1.04 10,373.96 56.52 Austin
    > > 112,562.00 6.36 63,614.84 56.52 San Antonio
    > > 113,374.00 6.41 64,073.74 56.52 Lubbock
    > > 115,134.00 6.51 65,068.41 56.52 El Paso
    > > 146,251.00 8.27 82,654.30 56.52 Fort Worth
    > > 293,561.00 16.59 165,907.10 56.52 Amarillo
    > > 369,471.00 20.88 208,807.92 56.52 Corpus Christi
    > > 583,351.00 32.97 329,683.01 56.52 Abilene
    > >
    > > 1,769,430.00 100.00 1,000,000.00
    > >
    > > What I want to do is grant the smaller requestors a larger percentage
    > > of their request, instead of granting everybody 56.52%. For example,
    > > Dallas might get, say, 90% of their request. San Antonio might get 84%.
    > > Abilene, the largest requestor, might get, say, 65%.
    > >
    > > There are two interrelated issues here:
    > >
    > > 1. The range of the grant percentages. In the table above, it could be
    > > narrow (e.g. Dallas 58% to Abilene 54%) or it could be wide (e.g.
    > > Dallas 98% to Abilene 32%). I'm just making up those percentages, but
    > > you get the picture. It would still total 1,000,000.
    > >
    > > 2. The range of the request amounts is subjectively tied to #1. If they
    > > were all close together, (e.g. 364,586, 364,923, 364,188...)then it
    > > wouldn't make sense to have a huge grant spread like 30%-to-99%. I
    > > REALLY wish I could find some way to have this determination worked
    > > into the formula, but it's simply beyond me... (-;
    > >
    > > Don't worry, this isn't going to actually happen - I'm just using
    > > cities as an example. The actual spreadsheet, if this system is
    > > adopted, will have several hundred requests, by the way. I'm trying to
    > > fix it so the only things entered will be the request amounts and the
    > > total amount available. Everything else would be generated with
    > > formulas.
    > >
    > > Thanks a heap,
    > > Ron
    > >
    > >
    > > CLR wrote:
    > >> Hi Ron.........
    > >> I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    > > those who
    > >> ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    > > I'm not
    > >> here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    > >> something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    > > you
    > >> assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    > > thing.......you have
    > >> to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    > >> offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    > > percentages
    > >> to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    > > with a
    > >> VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    > > your 10
    > >> cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    > >> B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    > > 50000
    > >> increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    > > whatever
    > >> Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    > >> percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    > > highlight
    > >> K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    > > small
    > >> window > OK.
    > >> Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    > >> B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    > > each
    > >> request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    > >> automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    > > D1:D10 and
    > >> see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    > >> percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    > > selections
    > >> are satisfactory.
    > >>
    > >> hth
    > >> Vaya con Dios,
    > >> Chuck, CABGx3
    > >>
    > >> .
    > >>
    > >>
    > >> "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > >> news:[email protected]...
    > >> > Ack. Sorry, I have NO idea what you're talking about.
    > >> >
    > >> > Ron M.
    > >> >
    > >> > CLR wrote:
    > >> > > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in

    > > one
    > >> > column
    > >> > > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    > >> > >
    > >> > > Vaya con Dios,
    > >> > > Cuck, CABGx3
    > >> > >
    > >> > >
    > >> > > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > >> > > news:[email protected]...
    > >> > > > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no

    > > luck.
    > >> > I'd
    > >> > > > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of
    > >> > funding.
    > >> > > > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to

    > > give
    > >> > them.
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say,
    > >> > $1,655,502.
    > >> > > > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all

    > > the
    > >> > grants
    > >> > > > total up to $1,500,000.
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet

    > > in
    > >> > a
    > >> > > > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the

    > > smallest
    > >> > > > request will always get the highest percentage of its request,

    > > and
    > >> > the
    > >> > > > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage.

    > > I'm
    > >> > > > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary

    > > funds so
    > >> > > > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of

    > > like
    > >> > tax
    > >> > > > brackets...
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're
    > >> > requesting.
    > >> > > > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants.

    > > For
    > >> > > > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get

    > > from
    > >> > 95%
    > >> > > > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just

    > > be
    > >> > > > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of

    > > me
    > >> > figure
    > >> > > > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    > >> > > >
    > >> > > > Many thanks
    > >> > > > Ron M.
    > >> > > >
    > >> >

    > >

    >
    > There are two extremes. You could give every city the same, or you could
    > pro-rata it on size, so its the same for every resident. You want some
    > formula in between. Well, there are an infinite number. So lets pick
    > something simple.
    >
    > You could say that the grant is half for the city itself and half for the
    > residents. So divide all the money in two, and divide up one half equally
    > amongst each city and the other half equally by population. This would

    mean
    > the smallest city gets about twice as much per resident as in the biggest
    > cities.
    >
    > One problem would be if two cities were really parts of one bigger city -
    > like Boston and Cambridge or Dallas and Fort Worth. They would get a

    bigger
    > funding that other single cities of the same size. But if you try and

    adjust
    > for geography, you will never get any formula right ...
    >
    >
    >




  10. #10
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Hi Ron............

    Well, I really-really like Peter's suggestion of making each grant a
    composite of different factors. He suggested two, but it could be several.
    This would give a rather complex formuls, (but easy for Excel) as to how the
    Grants are calculated. I remember one time a looong time ago in a land far
    away, I was using Lotus 123 to do some calculations on Horse Race
    Handicapping. There were several contributing factors as to why one horse
    should be picked to win over another. The interesting part was to give each
    factor a Percentage weight (of 100%) and then blend them together to make
    the final outcome in accordance with your wishes. I recommend that you
    decide which factors in your situation you wish to be part of your
    conclusion, and then give a weight to each of them, subjectively of course
    to start, and then massage and blend them all together to come up with a
    final grant amount.........and then factor it by yet another percentage if
    it exceeds your available amount. You may wish to only use the
    "RequestedAmount*.95%" as a MAX amount, and maybe "RequestedAmount*50%" as a
    MIN amount, or something like that..........all sorts of
    possibilities........I would like to hear what you finally come up with
    tho........most interesting project..........

    hth
    Vaya con Dios,
    Chuck, CABGx3






    "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    > Thanks. Let me see if I can make that work. I'm a pretty experienced
    > Excel user, but I have zero experience with things like VLookup.
    >
    > The table below illustrates it. You only have 1,000,000 to give, but
    > they're requesting much more: 1,769,430. You don't have enough money to
    > give everybody what they're requesting.
    >
    > 1,000,000/1,760,430 - .5652, so you give everybody 56.52% of their
    > request.
    >
    > Requested % of Granted % of
    > total request
    > 6,136.00 0.35 3,467.78 56.52 Dallas
    > 11,234.00 0.63 6,348.94 56.52 Houston
    > 18,356.00 1.04 10,373.96 56.52 Austin
    > 112,562.00 6.36 63,614.84 56.52 San Antonio
    > 113,374.00 6.41 64,073.74 56.52 Lubbock
    > 115,134.00 6.51 65,068.41 56.52 El Paso
    > 146,251.00 8.27 82,654.30 56.52 Fort Worth
    > 293,561.00 16.59 165,907.10 56.52 Amarillo
    > 369,471.00 20.88 208,807.92 56.52 Corpus Christi
    > 583,351.00 32.97 329,683.01 56.52 Abilene
    >
    > 1,769,430.00 100.00 1,000,000.00
    >
    > What I want to do is grant the smaller requestors a larger percentage
    > of their request, instead of granting everybody 56.52%. For example,
    > Dallas might get, say, 90% of their request. San Antonio might get 84%.
    > Abilene, the largest requestor, might get, say, 65%.
    >
    > There are two interrelated issues here:
    >
    > 1. The range of the grant percentages. In the table above, it could be
    > narrow (e.g. Dallas 58% to Abilene 54%) or it could be wide (e.g.
    > Dallas 98% to Abilene 32%). I'm just making up those percentages, but
    > you get the picture. It would still total 1,000,000.
    >
    > 2. The range of the request amounts is subjectively tied to #1. If they
    > were all close together, (e.g. 364,586, 364,923, 364,188...)then it
    > wouldn't make sense to have a huge grant spread like 30%-to-99%. I
    > REALLY wish I could find some way to have this determination worked
    > into the formula, but it's simply beyond me... (-;
    >
    > Don't worry, this isn't going to actually happen - I'm just using
    > cities as an example. The actual spreadsheet, if this system is
    > adopted, will have several hundred requests, by the way. I'm trying to
    > fix it so the only things entered will be the request amounts and the
    > total amount available. Everything else would be generated with
    > formulas.
    >
    > Thanks a heap,
    > Ron
    >
    >
    > CLR wrote:
    > > Hi Ron.........
    > > I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    > those who
    > > ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    > I'm not
    > > here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    > > something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    > you
    > > assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    > thing.......you have
    > > to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    > > offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    > percentages
    > > to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    > with a
    > > VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    > your 10
    > > cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    > > B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    > 50000
    > > increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    > whatever
    > > Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    > > percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    > highlight
    > > K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    > small
    > > window > OK.
    > > Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    > > B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    > each
    > > request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    > > automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    > D1:D10 and
    > > see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    > > percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    > selections
    > > are satisfactory.
    > >
    > > hth
    > > Vaya con Dios,
    > > Chuck, CABGx3
    > >
    > > .
    > >
    > >
    > > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > > news:[email protected]...
    > > > Ack. Sorry, I have NO idea what you're talking about.
    > > >
    > > > Ron M.
    > > >
    > > > CLR wrote:
    > > > > I would look at a VLOOKUP table with the Requested Amounts in

    > one
    > > > column
    > > > > and the Percent to get in the next..........
    > > > >
    > > > > Vaya con Dios,
    > > > > Cuck, CABGx3
    > > > >
    > > > >
    > > > > "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    > > > > news:[email protected]...
    > > > > > I've spent hours and hours trying to figure this out, with no

    > luck.
    > > > I'd
    > > > > > be PROFOUNDLY grateful if anybody can help.
    > > > > >
    > > > > > You have several cities, say 10, requesting various amounts of
    > > > funding.
    > > > > > You, the fund source, have a total of $1,500,000 in funds to

    > give
    > > > them.
    > > > > >
    > > > > > However, the total amount they're all requesting is, say,
    > > > $1,655,502.
    > > > > > You don't have enough; you only have $1,500,000.
    > > > > >
    > > > > > 1,500,000/1,655,502 = .9061.
    > > > > >
    > > > > > So, you grant EACH city 90.61% of what it requested, and all

    > the
    > > > grants
    > > > > > total up to $1,500,000.
    > > > > >
    > > > > > No problem with that one, you can throw up a little spreadsheet

    > in
    > > > a
    > > > > > few seconds. But here's the twist:
    > > > > >
    > > > > > You want to do it PROGRESSIVELY, where the city with the

    > smallest
    > > > > > request will always get the highest percentage of its request,

    > and
    > > > the
    > > > > > city with the largest request will get the lowest percentage.

    > I'm
    > > > > > trying to come up with a way of distributing the imaginary

    > funds so
    > > > > > that the large requestors won't suck up all the money. Sort of

    > like
    > > > tax
    > > > > > brackets...
    > > > > >
    > > > > > It has to be computed precisely by the exact amount they're
    > > > requesting.
    > > > > > Perhaps some kind of grouping is a possibility.
    > > > > >
    > > > > > There's also the issue of deciding how far to range the grants.

    > For
    > > > > > example, instead of everybody getting 90.61%, they could get

    > from
    > > > 95%
    > > > > > to 85%. Or 100% to 70%. Or..... ??
    > > > > >
    > > > > > I've been trying to come up with a formula for this - it'd just

    > be
    > > > > > another column on the spreadsheet - but can't for the LIFE of

    > me
    > > > figure
    > > > > > out a way to approach it. Can anybody help?
    > > > > >
    > > > > > Many thanks
    > > > > > Ron M.
    > > > > >
    > > >

    >




  11. #11
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!


    CLR wrote:
    > Hi Ron.........
    > I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    those who
    > ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    I'm not
    > here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    > something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    you
    > assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    thing.......you have
    > to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    > offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    percentages
    > to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    with a
    > VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    your 10
    > cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    > B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    50000
    > increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    whatever
    > Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    > percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    highlight
    > K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    small
    > window > OK.
    > Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    > B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    each
    > request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    > automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    D1:D10 and
    > see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    > percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    selections
    > are satisfactory.


    Chuck, I did EXACTLY what you described above. In L1;l30, I put 100 in
    L1, incrementing down to 70 in L30.

    When I entered the VLOOKUP string you described above in C1, though, it
    says "#N/A."

    Ron M.


  12. #12
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Sorry Ron........looks like I made a boo-boo.........should have been

    =VLOOKUP(B1,PercentRange,2,True) instead of

    =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True)

    This time it should be ok, but let me know if not..........

    Vaya con Dios,
    Chuck, CABGx3



    "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    >
    > CLR wrote:
    > > Hi Ron.........
    > > I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    > those who
    > > ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    > I'm not
    > > here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    > > something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    > you
    > > assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    > thing.......you have
    > > to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    > > offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    > percentages
    > > to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    > with a
    > > VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    > your 10
    > > cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    > > B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    > 50000
    > > increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    > whatever
    > > Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    > > percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    > highlight
    > > K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    > small
    > > window > OK.
    > > Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    > > B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    > each
    > > request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    > > automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    > D1:D10 and
    > > see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    > > percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    > selections
    > > are satisfactory.

    >
    > Chuck, I did EXACTLY what you described above. In L1;l30, I put 100 in
    > L1, incrementing down to 70 in L30.
    >
    > When I entered the VLOOKUP string you described above in C1, though, it
    > says "#N/A."
    >
    > Ron M.
    >




  13. #13
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    No, still didn't work. Still get #N/A. Here's what I have in the
    respective columns:

    A1-A10: names of ten cities
    B1-B10: their requests, sorted ascending
    K1-K30: 50000 to 1500000, in 50,000 increments.
    L1-L30: 1.0 to .71, in .01 increments

    I tried it with L1-L30 done several different ways, like from 100 to
    71, as well as 1.0 to .71.

    I'm on the edge of my seat... (-;

    Ron M.


  14. #14
    CLR
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Well, then it sounds like either your column B or column K is formatted as
    TEXT even tho they may look like numbers..........

    Vaya con Dios,
    Chuck CABGx3


    "Ron M." <[email protected]> wrote in message
    news:[email protected]...
    > No, still didn't work. Still get #N/A. Here's what I have in the
    > respective columns:
    >
    > A1-A10: names of ten cities
    > B1-B10: their requests, sorted ascending
    > K1-K30: 50000 to 1500000, in 50,000 increments.
    > L1-L30: 1.0 to .71, in .01 increments
    >
    > I tried it with L1-L30 done several different ways, like from 100 to
    > 71, as well as 1.0 to .71.
    >
    > I'm on the edge of my seat... (-;
    >
    > Ron M.
    >




  15. #15
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Nope, it's numbers. I'm trying to find your email address so I can send
    it to you as an attachment and you can look at it, but the username
    part just says "crobe..."

    Feel free to send me a note, then I can reply.

    Ron


  16. #16
    Debra Dalgleish
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    I've added a sample workbook to my web site that shows one approach you
    could use. It lets you enter the amount available, the maximum
    percentage to allocate, and the percentage spread.

    http://www.contextures.com/excelfiles.html

    Under Functions, look for 'Grant Distribution'

    Ron M. wrote:
    > CLR wrote:
    >
    >>Hi Ron.........
    >>I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    >
    > those who
    >
    >>ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    >
    > I'm not
    >
    >>here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    >>something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    >
    > you
    >
    >>assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    >
    > thing.......you have
    >
    >>to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was only
    >>offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    >
    > percentages
    >
    >>to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    >
    > with a
    >
    >>VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    >
    > your 10
    >
    >>cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    >>B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down with

    >
    > 50000
    >
    >>increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    >
    > whatever
    >
    >>Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    >>percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    >
    > highlight
    >
    >>K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    >
    > small
    >
    >>window > OK.
    >>Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    >>B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    >
    > each
    >
    >>request. If the requests should change, the percentages will adjust
    >>automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    >
    > D1:D10 and
    >
    >>see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    >>percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    >
    > selections
    >
    >>are satisfactory.

    >
    >
    > Chuck, I did EXACTLY what you described above. In L1;l30, I put 100 in
    > L1, incrementing down to 70 in L30.
    >
    > When I entered the VLOOKUP string you described above in C1, though, it
    > says "#N/A."
    >
    > Ron M.
    >



    --
    Debra Dalgleish
    Excel FAQ, Tips & Book List
    http://www.contextures.com/tiptech.html


  17. #17
    Ron M.
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Debra, that looks great - but it doesn't seem to work right. The first
    9 grants are EXACTLY .50% apart, and then Abilene suddenly plunges down
    about 16%.

    Ron M.

    P.S. That's a nice web page; I bookmarked it instantly. Thanks for all
    the work you obviously put into it.

    Debra Dalgleish wrote:
    > I've added a sample workbook to my web site that shows one approach

    you
    > could use. It lets you enter the amount available, the maximum
    > percentage to allocate, and the percentage spread.
    >
    > http://www.contextures.com/excelfiles.html
    >
    > Under Functions, look for 'Grant Distribution'
    >
    > Ron M. wrote:
    > > CLR wrote:
    > >
    > >>Hi Ron.........
    > >>I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving

    > >
    > > those who
    > >
    > >>ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but

    > >
    > > I'm not
    > >
    > >>here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    > >>something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages

    > >
    > > you
    > >
    > >>assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective

    > >
    > > thing.......you have
    > >
    > >>to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was

    only
    > >>offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those

    > >
    > > percentages
    > >
    > >>to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being

    > >
    > > with a
    > >
    > >>VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say

    > >
    > > your 10
    > >
    > >>cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    > >>B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down

    with
    > >
    > > 50000
    > >
    > >>increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert

    > >
    > > whatever
    > >
    > >>Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    > >>percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then

    > >
    > > highlight
    > >
    > >>K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the

    > >
    > > small
    > >
    > >>window > OK.
    > >>Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    > >>B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with

    > >
    > > each
    > >
    > >>request. If the requests should change, the percentages will

    adjust
    > >>automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum

    > >
    > > D1:D10 and
    > >
    > >>see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    > >>percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your

    > >
    > > selections
    > >
    > >>are satisfactory.

    > >
    > >
    > > Chuck, I did EXACTLY what you described above. In L1;l30, I put 100

    in
    > > L1, incrementing down to 70 in L30.
    > >
    > > When I entered the VLOOKUP string you described above in C1,

    though, it
    > > says "#N/A."
    > >
    > > Ron M.
    > >

    >
    >
    > --
    > Debra Dalgleish
    > Excel FAQ, Tips & Book List
    > http://www.contextures.com/tiptech.html



  18. #18
    Debra Dalgleish
    Guest

    Re: Please help with Excel formula problem!

    Ron, the last value is the difference between the total available, and
    the first nine amounts allocated.

    If you'd prefer that the last value be an equal percentage from the
    previous city, you could drag down the formula from the cell above.

    If all ten amounts are determined by formulas, you'll probably have to
    do some manual tweaking to get the total to exactly equal the amount
    available.

    Ron M. wrote:
    > Debra, that looks great - but it doesn't seem to work right. The first
    > 9 grants are EXACTLY .50% apart, and then Abilene suddenly plunges down
    > about 16%.
    >
    > Ron M.
    >
    > P.S. That's a nice web page; I bookmarked it instantly. Thanks for all
    > the work you obviously put into it.
    >
    > Debra Dalgleish wrote:
    >
    >>I've added a sample workbook to my web site that shows one approach

    >
    > you
    >
    >>could use. It lets you enter the amount available, the maximum
    >>percentage to allocate, and the percentage spread.
    >>
    >> http://www.contextures.com/excelfiles.html
    >>
    >>Under Functions, look for 'Grant Distribution'
    >>
    >>Ron M. wrote:
    >>
    >>>CLR wrote:
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>Hi Ron.........
    >>>>I don't understand, nor even agree with your concept about "giving
    >>>
    >>>those who
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>ask for less a larger percentage than those that ask for more", but
    >>>
    >>>I'm not
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>here to argue that point.........given that it is your concept, and
    >>>>something you want to do, is good enough........but the percentages
    >>>
    >>>you
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>assign to whatever dollar values is a purely subjective
    >>>
    >>>thing.......you have
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>to decide what they will be and where the breaks will be. I was
    >>>

    > only
    >
    >>>>offering an Excel-way for you to automatically associate those
    >>>
    >>>percentages
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>to the requested dollar values by each city........that way being
    >>>
    >>>with a
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>VLOOKUP table and formula. For a couple of assumptions, lets say
    >>>
    >>>your 10
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>cities are in cells A1:A10, and their requested amounts are in
    >>>>B1:B10..........then in K1 put 50,000 and fill that column down
    >>>

    > with
    >
    >>>50000
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>increments to your 1500000 in K30..........then in L1:L30, insert
    >>>
    >>>whatever
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>Percentage you wish to assign to each value. It's ok for the same
    >>>>percentage to apply to several increments if you wish. Then
    >>>
    >>>highlight
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>K1:L30 and do Insert > Name > Define, and type PercentRange in the
    >>>
    >>>small
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>window > OK.
    >>>>Then in C1 put =VLOOKUP(A1,PercentRange,2,True) and copy it down to
    >>>>B10...........now you have your selected percentage associated with
    >>>
    >>>each
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>request. If the requests should change, the percentages will
    >>>

    > adjust
    >
    >>>>automatically. In D1 put =B1*C1 and copy down to D10 Then sum
    >>>
    >>>D1:D10 and
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>see how it compares to your 1,500,000 available........adjust the
    >>>>percentages in L1:L30 accordingly until your goal is met and your
    >>>
    >>>selections
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>are satisfactory.
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>Chuck, I did EXACTLY what you described above. In L1;l30, I put 100

    >>

    > in
    >
    >>>L1, incrementing down to 70 in L30.
    >>>
    >>>When I entered the VLOOKUP string you described above in C1,

    >>

    > though, it
    >
    >>>says "#N/A."
    >>>
    >>>Ron M.
    >>>

    >>
    >>
    >>--
    >>Debra Dalgleish
    >>Excel FAQ, Tips & Book List
    >>http://www.contextures.com/tiptech.html

    >
    >



    --
    Debra Dalgleish
    Excel FAQ, Tips & Book List
    http://www.contextures.com/tiptech.html


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