D
dmck
I am using Excel 2000
In the language of Excel, dates are actually numeric values based on
the number of days since January 1, 1900. i.e., the date 12/30/2003 is
actually the value 37985, or 37,985 days since January 1, 1900....or at
least that's how I understand it. Because of this nifty bit of info,
you can add and subtract dates. *My question, is there a formula that
says ONLY perform the subraction IF dates are present in both cells.*
I explain below.
Try the following, when you have time. Open a new worksheet.
- in A1 type the following formula - =A3-A2
- In A2 type 12/30/03
- In A3 type 1/7/03
A1 should now read 8, or 8 days. If it reads a date, just reformat
the cell. Splendid, yes? Now remove the value from A3. You'll
notice that A1 now says -37985. This is not date specific. If you
subtract 8 from 0 you will get -8. In this case you're saying 0
minus 37985 and getting the negative value. What I need is to say
ONLY perform the subtraction IF a value is typed into A3. IS THIS
POSSIBLE??
In the language of Excel, dates are actually numeric values based on
the number of days since January 1, 1900. i.e., the date 12/30/2003 is
actually the value 37985, or 37,985 days since January 1, 1900....or at
least that's how I understand it. Because of this nifty bit of info,
you can add and subtract dates. *My question, is there a formula that
says ONLY perform the subraction IF dates are present in both cells.*
I explain below.
Try the following, when you have time. Open a new worksheet.
- in A1 type the following formula - =A3-A2
- In A2 type 12/30/03
- In A3 type 1/7/03
A1 should now read 8, or 8 days. If it reads a date, just reformat
the cell. Splendid, yes? Now remove the value from A3. You'll
notice that A1 now says -37985. This is not date specific. If you
subtract 8 from 0 you will get -8. In this case you're saying 0
minus 37985 and getting the negative value. What I need is to say
ONLY perform the subtraction IF a value is typed into A3. IS THIS
POSSIBLE??