elapsed time v. target

[David Whiteley]

How can I compare an elapsed time in the format 00:00:00
against a target time in the same format, to give a time
(again in the 00:00:00 format) under or over, i.e. + or -,
the target? Excel doesn't seem to recognise a figure -
00:00:00.

 

[Mark]

Enter 0
Cells >Format > Custom

HH:MM:SS

In the formatted cell:
zero will appear as 00:00:00

1:2:3 will appear as 01:02:03

You can now add, subtract etc. but make sure the cells
have the selected format

 

[Guest]

But you still can't have a negative number - ie. one that
is below target (?)

 

[Guest]

you have to separate elapsed time and his sign to 2 columns
times are in cells A4 and B4
cell C4: = A4 - B4 , format: "+,-" (it means: positive is shown as "+", negative as "-")
cell D4: =ABS(A4-B4), format "hh:mm:ss"
For eventual further calculations is to using value of cell C4

(sorry for my English)

 

[Guest]

Thanks a lot! One thing: I assume that you intend that
C4 shows a '+' or a '-'. However when I format the cell
under Format Custom, the cell shows '-+,-' or '+,-'. How
do I get rid of the superfluous symbols?

-----Original Message-----
you have to separate elapsed time and his sign to 2 columns
times are in cells A4 and B4
cell C4: = A4 - B4 , format: "+,-" (it means: positive

is shown as "+", negative as "-")