Mark Brady 11/19/2012 Southwest Florida Water Management District Data Analyst Interview.

MS EXCEL LOOKUP FUNCTIONS

Mark Brady11/19/2012

Southwest Florida Water Management District

Data Analyst Interview

http://www.personal.psu.edu/mab745/blogs/mark_brady/

MS EXCEL LOOKUP FUNCTIONSFunction Description

ADDRESSReturns a reference as text to a single cell in a worksheet

AREAS Returns the number of areas in a referenceCHOOSE Chooses a value from a list of valuesCOLUMN Returns the column number of a referenceCOLUMNS Returns the number of columns in a reference

HLOOKUPLooks in the top row of an array and returns the value of the indicated cell

HYPERLINKCreates a shortcut or jump that opens a document stored on a network server, an intranet, or the Internet

INDEXUses an index to choose a value from a reference or array

INDIRECT Returns a reference indicated by a text valueLOOKUP Looks up values in a vector or arrayMATCH Looks up values in a reference or arrayOFFSET Returns a reference offset from a given referenceROW Returns the row number of a referenceROWS Returns the number of rows in a reference

RTD

Retrieves real-time data from a program that supports COM automation (Automation: A way to work with an application's objects from another application or development tool. Formerly called OLE Automation, Automation is an industry standard and a feature of the Component Object Model (COM).)

TRANSPOSE Returns the transpose of an array

VLOOKUPLooks in the first column of an array and moves across the row to return the value of a cell

http://office.microsoft.com/client/helppreview.aspx?AssetId=HP100624079990&lcid=1033&NS=EXCEL&Version=12&CTT=5&origin=HP010079188



















These are functions that operate on lists or arrays of dataData may reside in Workbooks, Databases, or text files Most functions can be nested or combined with other functionsBest used for simple data table relationships

STATION TYPE COUNTYS235 GATE MARTINLZ40 PLATFORM PALM BEACHS308 STRUCTURE DADES155 PLATFORM HENDRY



VLOOKUP(lookup_value,table_array,col_index_num,range_lookup)

lookup_value - The value to search in the first column of the table array

table_array - Two or more columns of data( range or a range name).

col_index_num - The column number in a table array containing target values

range_lookup - A logical value that specifies whether you want to find an exact match or an approximate match



An Example:Grassy Waters Preserve

Rainfall Data



VLOOKUP(lookup_value,table_array,col_index_num,range_lookup)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

True – Exact MatchFalse – Approximate MatchOmitted – Approximate Match



VLOOKUP(BWPS_R,Rain_GrassyWaters,10,True)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

True – Exact MatchFalse – Approximate MatchOmitted – Approximate Match



Grassy W aters Preserve R ainfall Stations Darabase Query Tool

Station Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec AnnualStation 1 PLANT IN_R 3.25 2.82 3.45 3.30 5.27 7.33 5.53 7.28 8.63 6.97 3.69 3.08 60.17Station 2 LANE PRO_R 4.74 4.61 7.32 5.13 6.22 9.02 3.72 7.14 8.38 0.41 9.76 2.31 68.74Station 3 C18W_R 2.50 2.34 3.57 2.44 4.58 7.29 7.31 8.17 8.04 5.63 3.52 0.49 53.52Station 4 PETE RHO_R 4.30 3.28 4.93 3.34 5.62 8.08 6.47 7.80 8.00 5.62 6.09 2.85 66.37Station 5 WWTP_R 2.02 3.30 4.28 4.44 4.95 9.14 7.30 9.80 9.82 6.51 3.38 3.40 68.34

SUM 16.80 16.34 23.56 18.65 26.62 40.85 30.34 40.18 42.87 25.14 26.44 12.12 317.14MAX 4.74 4.61 7.32 5.13 6.22 9.14 7.31 9.80 9.82 6.97 9.76 3.40 68.74MIN 2.02 2.34 3.45 2.44 4.58 7.29 3.72 7.14 8.00 0.41 3.38 0.49 53.52MEAN 3.36 3.27 4.71 3.73 5.32 8.17 6.07 8.04 8.57 5.03 5.29 2.42 63.43

0.00

5.00

10.00

15.00

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

PLANT IN_R

LANE PRO_R

C18W_R

PETE RHO_R

WWTP_R



1. You Have Your Numbers Formatted as Text2. You Have a Trailing Space at the End of Your Values3. You Forgot to Reference Lock Your Arrays4. Your logical condition (range_lookup) is not appropriate

Common Errors Encountered With VLOOKUP

Recommended Uses for VLOOKUP

1. As a simple query tool2. As a user interface to data stored in separate files or databases3. As a data validation tool (dynamic graph generation)4. Complex queries are possible, but multiple nesting levels are often confusing to code and debug



Typical I.F.F.I. Workflow:

Initiative (can I solve this problem with this tool?)

Feedback from Peers

Identify errors (logic, coding, etc)

Implement Solutions

Pronounced….[If-ee]

Just For Fun!


Mark Brady

Initiative

Feedback

Identify Errors

Initiate SolutionsYES!!!



QUESTIONS?

Mark Brady 11/19/2012 Southwest Florida Water Management District Data Analyst Interview.

Documents

approximate match slide

rainfall data slide

debug slide

mark brady initiative

arrays of data data

vlookup lookup

table array table

columns of data range