# Kudos to this forum



## Jonmo1 (Dec 7, 2007)

Kudos to this forum !!!!!

I'd like to take just a minute to thank this forum for all the helpful people and information here.
This is truely a remarkable website.  I have learned more by reading and posting than I ever would
have learned from any book.  By reading posts, and challenging myself to come up with resolutions to other
people's problems, I have greatly increased my learning curve.  I saw a post here that referred to a website 
http://www.xl-logic.com/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=1 that ranks Excel Skills.

When I first found this forum, I was in the intermediate level.  I could make a Vlookup formula, Use the
AutoFilter, Make a Pivot Table.  I could do rudamentary Macro Editing after first creating a macro
with the macro recorder.

Now, a little more than a Year later, thanks to this forum I would say I am in Advanced - Teetering on Expert Level.
I can write advanced macros by hand without the recorder.  I know not to use (and how not to use) select.  I
Can create and use arrays in VBA,  Loop through sheets/rows/columns/arrays.  I can use advanced formulas like Index/Match,
Sumproduct, Array formulas like {Sum(If()) Average(If())}.  The part that has me teetering on Expert level, 
is I have created an addin, but have yet to distribute it for widespread use.  Not to mention dreaming about spreadsheets..  

About 2 years ago, I was handed a project with about a dozen processes.  None were automated.  All was done
by hand.  Formatting/Filtering/Presenting/Sending lots of different data.  For about 6 months - 1 year I muddled a
little bit at automating the processes, and I would spend at least 6 hours of a workday doing these processes.  
Now thanks to this forum, I spend all of about 1 hour actually working on these processes.  Maybe 25% of that speed
increase is due purely to repetition (the more you do something, the faster you get at it).  But the rest is due 
directly to Practices I've learned on this forum.

So anyway, thanks to everyone.  You guys ROCK !!!!


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## erik.van.geit (Dec 7, 2007)

Quite some members could tell similar stories.
Helping each other is a very interesting way to enhance skills.

mine in a few words
Coincidence brought me here, just to ask a question. About a year later another one, and a bit later I decided to answer questions.

Developed almost all my Excel skills here: thank you to those who shared their knowledge and thank you to those who asked challenging questions 

Let's continue to rock


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## QuietRiot (Dec 7, 2007)

I'm getting there..

Only started really using excel since my join date and I have learned so much its unbelievable. I think the worse part is now at work I'm the Excel guru and more and more people have realized this. I have at least 1 major automation project a week and a ton of random questions daily.


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## mrhartley (Dec 10, 2007)

Its very refreshing to see such a well thought out kudos to the forum too.

I think it's nice to read how you feel you have progressed over the last few years rather than reading 'I think this place is great, I have learnt so much'.

Anyone that spends even the smallest amount of time here is going to learn something, so like I say, nice to read how it's affected you.

With almost 5000 posts, I suspect you do your fair shair of helping out too. Kudos to you as it's people like you that we all rely on.

~Mark


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## Lewiy (Dec 10, 2007)

January will mark the end of my first year with the board and I still can’t believe how much I’ve learned in the last 11 months.  This time last year, I considered myself to be fairly proficient with Excel......how wrong I was!!!  I had never really used macros, certainly never written a single line of VBA code and knew about 10% of the worksheet functions which I now use regularly.

I was lured in by the Challenge of the Month which very quickly demonstrated to me how much I didn’t know!!!  A few questions later and I found myself well on the way to becoming a competent Excel user.  Aside from the odd specific enquiry, however, I’ve obtained most of my knowledge through helping others which is what makes this board such a powerful tool, you can learn and help at the same time!!

I’m leaving my current job at the end of December and going on to bigger and better things.  As I have bastardised most of my current role with VBA projects and elaborate spreadsheets, I am spending most of the remainder of this month writing user guides and cleaning up my applications so they are more user friendly.  In doing so I’ve been coming across code which I wrote over 7/8 months ago and it is so noticeable how much I’ve improved since then.  Much of this code was very poorly written and I’ve been improving/re-writing a lot of it to make everything more efficient.

Without this board, I wouldn’t be where I am today, so a big thumbs up to everyone that monitors, controls, contributes, asks questions on and even just browses the forums and keeps this amazing site going!!


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## Stormseed (Dec 10, 2007)

oh ! wat can I say now...heck I was unable to write a vlookup() the time I joined this message board...and now things are so different ! I can work up complex formulae with ease, make and edit macros, speed up processes in Excel, design the whole structure and interface of Reports using my own head  all the members on the board...experts and average...all being a great help to each other irrespective of the race or religion...sharing knowledge and good things in peace and harmony...this board is not less then heaven !!

Hats off to all the members here on MrExcel...I love you all...I salute you !

Cool Regards
Stormseed.


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## steve case (Dec 27, 2007)

The I.T. people where I get my pay check regard me as an Excel guru.  (I am not) and I owe it all to Mr Excel where I find out what I need to know to in order to make someone's spreadsheet automated (-:
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## Domski (Dec 28, 2007)

I just feel sorry for the folk who struggle on unaware that such a resource exists. I used to spend hours doing things some very strange ways mainly because nobody who I worked with knew any different to me a spreadsheet was just a lot of boxes for adding stuff up in.

Fortunately when I was waiting to be made redundant from my last job I had a bit of time to surf the net and stumbled across this site completely by accident. The rest as they say is (a slightly chequered) history.

I just wish I had more time to learn and experiment but am very grateful for all the knowledge I've gained and assistance I've been given.

Happy New Year anyway.

Dom


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## RossMcColl (Jan 11, 2008)

I've only been seriously using the forum since I started my new job a couple of weeks ago and it's a revelation that this many people are happy to help solve peoples problems in such a friendly and helpful way.

I've probably answered more questions than I've asked but the amount I've learnt in the last 3 days has been staggering.

I've refused to use code for years in my spreadsheets, convinced that everything required can be done with a set of formulas. I've now been forced to having to edit and build workbooks with VBA in and am learning "on job" and realised I've been shooting myself in the foot for so long!

Thank you all for your help and support.


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## Jon von der Heyden (Jan 17, 2008)

> I just feel sorry for the folk who struggle on unaware that such a resource exists.



What fustrates me are colleagues who appear eager to learn but don't make the effort.  I have referred countless colleagues to MrExcel.com, most suggest they will involve, but find that so far I have only ever managed to (properly) introduce one user.  Some of the other visit occassionally.

I came to this forum thinking I was a fairly advanced user.  WRONG!!!  I initially came looking for ideas to construct some training material for colleagues.

Regards
Jon


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## hatepoppy (Jan 17, 2008)

i've only been posting for about a week, but had browsed the forums in the past to solve some problems i had.  It wasnt long before i noticed how repetitive alot of the requests here are, and decided to pitch in and take some of the load off the regulars.  

In the 6 months since I graduated, the engineering firm i work for (well, in this city) has started seeing me as an Excel Guru, and frequently come to me with problems.  when i notiecd how much i enjoyed increasing my skills by offering _A_ solution others' problems, i decided to do the same on the boards.

in short, thanks, and keep it up.  i'll be here to do what i can.


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