Dates pre 01/01/1900

[xpnovice]

Hi,

I can manipulate dates and times fine when they are post 01/01/1900, and I
know that this is the base date for Excel date numbering.

I had automatically assumed, but never needed to apply, that when I wanted
to calculate historical dates prior to 01/01/1900 that the values returned
would be a minus value, but still a valid number.

I now want to calculate values using dates prior to 01/01/1900 and find that
even if I format the cells to date and then enter a date, the values are
assigned as text, and therefore I am not able to do any calculations.

For example I cannot calculate the number of days between the dates
16/12/1770 and 26/3/1827.

Is there a way around this, or can dates only be manipulated if they are
post 01/01/1900?

Thanks
John

 

[Paul B]

have a look here for tips on working with pre 1900 dates

http://j-walk.com/ss/excel/usertips/tip028.htm
--
Paul B
Always backup your data before trying something new
Please post any response to the newsgroups so others can benefit from it
Feedback on answers is always appreciated!
Using Excel 2002 & 2003

 

[xpnovice]

Thanks Paul
John H

have a look here for tips on working with pre 1900 dates

http://j-walk.com/ss/excel/usertips/tip028.htm
--
Paul B
Always backup your data before trying something new
Please post any response to the newsgroups so others can benefit from it
Feedback on answers is always appreciated!
Using Excel 2002 & 2003