I have a spreadsheet that for usability purposes records the information for each record on two separate lines.
I have to pull this information into a flat file and make the data available for quick look up. I know and use two different methods to do so and was wondering which other people preferred and why or if they use another way.
One method is to have hidden columns that use just a straight =(cell reference) formula in the top row of the record to look at the correct cell in the second row of the record so everything is in one row that can be pulled by VLOOKUP.
The other is to use MATCH to find the corresponding information.
I like that MATCH means I don't have to have the information in two different places, but it makes the formulas necessary to get the information longer and that can be harder to fix or make changes to when updates are made.
I know Excel is not the ideal program for less than simple databases, but it is the tool we currently have available.
I have to pull this information into a flat file and make the data available for quick look up. I know and use two different methods to do so and was wondering which other people preferred and why or if they use another way.
One method is to have hidden columns that use just a straight =(cell reference) formula in the top row of the record to look at the correct cell in the second row of the record so everything is in one row that can be pulled by VLOOKUP.
The other is to use MATCH to find the corresponding information.
I like that MATCH means I don't have to have the information in two different places, but it makes the formulas necessary to get the information longer and that can be harder to fix or make changes to when updates are made.
I know Excel is not the ideal program for less than simple databases, but it is the tool we currently have available.
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