Don't KISS me!

[the magician]

You know the old saying - KISS - Keep It Simple Stoopid. (or some such word that begins with S) That may be helpful in some cases, but not so often here. What do I mean? I may speak for many, or maybe just myself, but I've seen many a post with this sort of thing:

I'm trying to sum cells across multiple sheets with a formula. Let's say I want to add A1 on Sheet1 with B2 on Sheet2 and C3 on Sheet3. How would I do that? Heelllp!

After some MVP replies with a helpful suggestion like =sum("Sheet1!A1","Sheet2!B2","Sheet3!C3") the OP (original poster) writes back:

Perhaps I should have been clearer. I have 39 workbooks with 80 worksheets each storing payroll information for 3120 employees, and the information is randomly entered in various cells from a webpage download that runs at midnight, and the sheet names are according to the employee name stored in A1 for full-time salaried males, B39 for full-time hourly males, BX6143 for part-time salaried females, IW65537 for......

Well, you get the picture. And let's not even talk about when an employee leaves.

I say, instead of KISS, how about GUTS: Give Us The Skinny. Tell us what you're really doing and help us to help you. Use code tags, and Colo's HTML maker to show us what you're doing.

I'll leave you with this "simple" thought:
With all the MVP's and Excel wizards on this forum, the LAST thing you want to do is dumb it down!

 

[Greg Truby]

Dave,

It's hard to make a universal recommendation on how complete or complex you want to make a post. If you really only need to sum a few numbers from different worksheets? Why give all the rest of that info? It only muddies the waters. On the other hand; sometimes it is critical to providing a good solution. If this person's situation was a complex as you describe, then the only way this person would be asking such a simple question would be that the designer of the project is not the OP. The OP has most likely inherited this from someone that was much more Excel skilled.

But if you do KISS and post a question that can be scanned quickly; your chances of getting an answer quite a bit better. So there are benefits to each. Just depends on the particular situation.

Anyhoo, what, exactly are you testing?

 

[the magician]

Here's a KISS:
http://www.mrexcel.com/board2/viewtopic.php?t=250216

 

[Err]

I think there is also a question of Privacy and Data Privacy. It's nice to generalize when you think you can sort things out -but per my job's rules I can not post personal information or even what I do because of the sensitive nature of the data that I deal with.

(Yes, I am a spy).

However I think it is almost always possible to give people suitable examples NOT USING the data that I'm dealing with.

Well anyways, that's my Two Cents.

 

[the magician]

Err (assuming that's your code name) - complete agreement. And thanks for the post.

I just hate when someone says "in A1 I have A and B1 I have B, how to put them together in C1?" And then later they tell you that actually the cells contain complex formulas referencing protected workbooks on a remote server and blah blah blah.

You'll find this :

the real question is more complex than what I stated (in the past)

here:
http://www.mrexcel.com/board2/viewtopic.php?t=250710
on post #10 of a 3+ page thread that wasted a lot of good people's time and needed a CIA-trained cryptographer to decipher. And that's another issue.

Sure, edit the data and change the names to protect the innocent, I agree. Do it myself. But if you change "John Doe" into "abc" and then later tell us it's "John Doe" when the formula/code we give to work with "abc" doesn't work because that in fact isn't what's in the cell, well...

Like I said at the end of the original post, and I'll modify it a little here:
Clean it up - sure. Dumb it down - Nah.

Now, kill me if you must. A job's a job after all.

 

[Andrew Fergus]

Don't get caught!

That's what some call a 'bait and switch'. Unfortunately you see these occasionally. The trick is to identify such posts before you get hooked into something that is over your head - it has happened to me too on what geniunely appear to be simple questions. Pick your threads and pick your OP's carefully - it may seem selfish but no-one likes to leave a thread hanging and no-one I know enjoys being baited.

Just my thoughts.....
Andrew

I just hate when someone says "in A1 I have A and B1 I have B, how to put them together in C1?" And then later they tell you that actually the cells contain complex formulas referencing protected workbooks on a remote server and blah blah blah.

You'll find this :

the real question is more complex than what I stated (in the past)

here:
http://www.mrexcel.com/board2/viewtopic.php?t=250710

 

[Greg Truby]

Ya know, I think this is a first for me (I'm so proud). I've actually diverted a thread to the point of getting it moved from one forum to another.

 

[Michael M]

I tend to agree with "the magician", and I also get a bit testy when a dozen users input into a thread over about 10 pages.....and then the user can't even repond with a quick "thanks".
I made this comment in another forum in the past, and was told in no uncertain terms....."If you need thanks every time you help someone, your doing it for the wrong reasons"
I always make the point of thanking the repondent when I ask a question.
Catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
Keep up the good work guys.
Michael M

 

[steve case]

Interesting,

I'm one of the A1 B1 C1 question askers, and I've nearly always gotten the exact answer that I want.

Usually I've got the <s>toy</s> spreadsheet all laid out and I need some help in syntax to perform some explicit function and I don't want the helpers to get all balled up with the details of alphanumeric part numbers, and yes the Bill of Material is downloaded fresh at midnight every day.

I'm a rank amateur at this stuff, but on a few occasions I've been able to return the favor and answer some of the questions posed here. It's the general A1 B1 C1 question that I will tackle.


Whatever the point of view, I'm very grateful that this site exists, as I would not be regarded in my small corner of the world as an Excel guru when I most certainly am not.
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[Greg Truby]

Yes, Stanley. And the fact that you generally ask clear questions is why, if, when I am scanning the first couple of pages of the questions forum and I see that StACase has asked a question, I will pop in and see if you've gotten an answer. There are certain other long-time members that I know generally ask clear questions and know how to search, so they aren't posting something too common. I'll always read their threads when I see them.

And, of course, the reverse holds true. There are some posters that have posted muddled or overly complex or easily researched questions too often and they are on my personal "ain't-gonna-even-look-'cause-it's-waste-of-my-time" list.

And there are certain members whose work I will generally stop by and take a look at. For example, if the title of a thread looks interesting and I see that Right-Click, Ivan, or Jaafar or someone of their caliber have answered, I'll pop in to see if there's something new to be learned.