Re: [libreoffice-users] Calc: Searching for values in a certain range string

At 16:57 08/02/2014 +0200, Hylton Conacher wrote:
> What I seek is to be able to have a sheet of Lottery results 
> downloaded from the Internet and pasted into a Calc sheet. On 
> another Calc sheet I will have a listing of the 6 numbers held for 
> each specific draw date.  Each populated cell of my ticket sheet 
> will indicate if the number in that cell is the same as a number in 
> a range of cells from the results sheet, on a particular date.

I'm guessing (since you don't say) that the ticket sheet is not the 
results sheet?

> As an example:
>
> Assume the draw results below dated drew the following numbers:
> 04/02/2014 16, 03, 19, 21, 23, 06
> 11/02/2014 17, 05, 02, 20, 22, 04
> 18/02/2014 09, 40, 05, 09, 42, 03
>
> Also assume that draw numbers I chose for a draw on a date were:
> 11/02/2014  02, 05, 18, 20, 22, 04
>
> If any number on my ticket matches a corresponding date value, I 
> want the cell to change background colour.  After looking into the 
> usage of vlookup and given I want the background colour to change if 
> the conditions are met, I selected the cell containing the first 
> number on my ticket (02) and then selected 'Format', Conditional 
> Formatting'.  I selected that the cell value is equal to and entered 
> vlookup($LottoResults.$B$39,$LottoResults.$C$39:$D$39,1,0) into the 
> field, chose the new background style and said OK.

I think you are getting confused here: are you trying to search two 
things with one test?  You presumably need to search the various date 
rows for the appropriate date, and for this VLOOKUP() might be 
appropriate.  But you haven't attempted that here: you have mentioned 
only cells in row 39.  Yes, you may then also need to search the row 
for a matching draw result, but that is along a row, not down a 
column, so HLOOKUP() might be more appropriate for that.  Don't you need both?

You have also said that the ticket numbers are on a separate sheet 
from the draw numbers, but your search is confined to the results 
sheet.  You appear to be searching to see if a draw result happens to 
be equal to the date on which it was drawn!  That would happen on 11 
February 2014 only if a number drawn were 41681!  Now I can't speak 
for South African lotteries, but ...

> Using the other option on Conditional Formatting I selected 'Formula 
> is' and entered the same vlookup formula with the same disastrous results, ...

That tests the formula for zero result.  How could your retrieved 
draw result be zero?  Now if you subtracted your ticket number from 
the draw result ...

> So close yet so far, what am I missing?

The need to apply two searches or tests.  Oh, and the need to specify 
correct arguments.

> pointers?

See above.

I trust this helps.

Brian Barker


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