Problems with a minus value

  • Thread starter Thread starter Russ
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R

Russ

Hey, anyone with an answer can reply to this one.

I have a spreadsheet with a number of formulas, a couple
of which are additions or subtractions. Now, the problem
is this: In one cell (C1) I have a value of "3200", in the
cell (C2) below I have a value of "-200" due to other
calculation formulas. The resulting cell (C3) should have
the value of (C1) - (C2), which would be "3000". However,
the resulting value in cell (C3) is "3400". Why is that?
And how can I resolve this issue? Any time a value of
minus anything is subtracted from a value in another cell
the resulting values goes up (increases) equal to the
minus value being subtracted.

Any answers or solutions to this mystery will be welcome.

Thanks,
 
Russ said:
Hey, anyone with an answer can reply to this one.

I have a spreadsheet with a number of formulas, a couple
of which are additions or subtractions. Now, the problem
is this: In one cell (C1) I have a value of "3200", in the
cell (C2) below I have a value of "-200" due to other
calculation formulas. The resulting cell (C3) should have
the value of (C1) - (C2), which would be "3000". However,
the resulting value in cell (C3) is "3400". Why is that?
And how can I resolve this issue? Any time a value of
minus anything is subtracted from a value in another cell
the resulting values goes up (increases) equal to the
minus value being subtracted.

Any answers or solutions to this mystery will be welcome.

Thanks,
Click to expand...

This isn't a mystery at all - it's correct!
If you start with 3200 and subtract 200 you get 3000.
If you start with 3200 and subtract -200 you get 3400. Subtracting a
negative number is the same as adding a positive one. That's how maths
works!

If you want to make a number always be positive, use the ABS function. For
example, consider the formula
=ABS(A1)
If A1 is 20 the formula will return 20.
If A1 is -20 the formula will also return 20.
 
Paul:

Thanks, for your reply post. Of course, it makes perfect
sense, only, I did not figure that that was what was
happening within Excel. Your ABS reference suggestion
should work nicely.

Thanks, again.....
 
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