Problem with adding "+1" to one cell while another cell decreased by "1"?

[Michael Slater]

I have a column that shows employees working on a given day. The bottom
cell of that column "total"s the number of employees working.

I would like to have the cell below the "total" cell, which would be
"overtime shifts available", increase by "1" for each decrease in the
"total" cell, above, when it goes below "6".

So, if the "Total" cell is "5", the "Overtime" cell is "1".
If the "Total" cell is "4", the "Overtime" cell is "2", etc...

Using an "IF" formula, I've gotten it to indicate "1" when the "Total" cell
is "5", but I'm lost after that.

Any help appreciated.

Mike

 

[Roger Govier]

Hi Michael

With your total in A1
=MAX(0,6-A1)

 

[Elkar]

See if this works for you (assuming total is in cell A1):

=6-A1

Or, to avoid negative numbers:

=MAX(6-A1,0)

HTH,
Elkar

 

[Michael Slater]

Guys,

That worked great. Thanks alot!

Mike

 

[Gord Dibben]

=IF(A9>5,"",IF(ISNA(LOOKUP(A9,{0,1,2,3,4,5},{0,5,4,3,2,1})),"",LOOKUP(A9,{0,1,2,3,4,5},{0,5,4,3,2,1})))

Assuming A9 is Totals cell.


Gord Dibben MS Excel MVP

 

[Gord Dibben]

Too simple and elegant for me<g>

Gord

 

[Michael Slater]

This may sound like a sophmoroic question, but I have couple of books on
Excel 2007. Microsoft's "Excel 2007, Inside Out", and John Walkenbach's
"Excel 2007 Formulas".

After reading and applying the "MAX" function that was posted here (Thank
you again!), I started looking up this function in both of theses books
(which I did reference, in vain, in the first place), and, maybe it's me
(and I'm sure it is), but from the description in these books, I still have
NO IDEA how this function applys in this instance.

Can anyone recommend some reference source that spells these things out so
that a newb like myself might understand it?

Thanks Again,

Mike

 

[Michael Slater]

Gord,

Does that do the same thing as the other replies that were posted?

 

[Pete_UK]

The MAX function just returns the largest value from the list (in this
case of two numbers - either 0 or 6-A1). Run through some possible
values of A1 - if A1 is 3 then 6-A1 is also 3, and as this is larger
than 0 this is what will be returned. If A1 is 7, then 6-A1 is -1
which is less than 0, so 0 will be returned in this case. Does it make
more sense now?

Hope this helps.

Pete

 

[Michael Slater]

Pete,

Thank you. That does make sense now. I knew it was my inability to wrap my
brain around it. It's just the
way it's used in this formula, as opposed to how the MAX function is
described in the books and help files in Excel that confused me.

I suppose a book describing every possible use of functions, in layman's
terms, would require a wheel-barrow to lug around.

I really do prefer to find the answers to these problems myself, whenever
possible. I guess there's no substitute for experience after all.

Thanks again,

Mike

 

[Roger Govier]

But, if only I could always think in this way<bg>

 

[Gord Dibben]

Returns a blank cell if "total" value is greater than 5 or less than 0

Returns a zero if no value in "total"

Otherwise.......same returns as others.


Gord

 

[Pete_UK]

The way it is being used here, though, with only two parameters, is
equivalent to a conditional IF statement - it could be replaced with:

=IF(6-A1<0,0,6-A1)

Hope this helps further.

Pete