Re: Can Excel Choose from a List What Makes a Particular Total?

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On Sun, 24 Apr 2005 11:13:01 -0700, "Homeboy"
<Homeboy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

>Basically the only thing I know how to do in Excel is use basic arithmetic. I
>don't know the formulas or functions at all. But if you have 60 numbers and
>we call them n1, n2, n3 etc. couldn't you add n1+n2 and test the result
>against the target number, then if it was wrong add n1+n2+n3 and test, etc.
>until you added all 60 numbers. Then after that, start with n2, adding n2+n3,
>then n2+n3+n4, etc. the last in this series being n2+n3...+n60+n1. I don't
>know if this makes sense or would exhaust all the possibilities. And, in any
>case, I don't know how to write the formula.
>
>Another idea. Contine to add random combinations of the 60 numbers, testing
>against the target figure each time, then let the formula run all night.
>Wouldn't all combinations likely be exhausted by morning? But again, I don't
>know how to write this?
>
>
>"Ron Rosenfeld" wrote:
>
>> Not easily and there would be a lot of potential ambiguity.

Well, let's say your customer sends you a check for $112, and you have the
following outstanding invoices:

Invoice Amt
1 $15
2 $10
3 $12
4 $5
5 $7
6 $6
7 $15
8 $15
9 $15
10 $9
11 $13
12 $7
13 $6
14 $6
15 $9
16 $6

What rule will you use to decide whether to apply the payment to

1,3..11
2,4..10

or some other combination that adds up to $112?

And what if your customer is not applying the same rule, because he disagrees
with one of the invoices, but hasn't gotten around to informing you yet?

If you can develop clear rules to resolve the inevitable possible ambiguities,
then you should be able to develop a suitable algorithm. But it seems a lot
simpler to just apply the payments to the oldest invoices first, absent
specific instructions from your customer.


--ron
.

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