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While putting formulas in cells is confusing a single use script somewhere on the file system is also terrible and looking at it isn't all that obvious what is
by econ 2mo ago
While putting formulas in cells is confusing a single use script somewhere on the file system is also terrible and looking at it isn't all that obvious what is going on either. If you put everything in a db you need the ancient art of SQL Kung Fu. Great if you can, to bad if you can't. I like joins, it instantly confused the hell out of the uninitiated. You can make the query complicated enough that even a seasoned champion needs a warm up before lifting.
I remember my first thought looking at excel. They force name and number everything which is exactly like using single letter variables, they are only allowed for simple things. Using row numbers is even worse. Each additional col of numbers makes it harder to find things and it invites mistakes.
I'm not complaining, each solution survived because it has great advantages. JSON and XML have their place too ofc.
My gut says that after learning the advantages and disadvantages we should be able to make something better.
I put CSVs in html documents, use JS, run from the file system, output is CSV usually. I haven't tested the limit of html files but if you put a comment at the bottom the rendering engine ignores it efficiently.
One more bad solution for your collection.
- Arainach 2mo ago> They force name and number everything which is exactly like using single letter variables, they are only allowed for simple things. This isn't true, named ranges have existed for longer than many (most?) HN readers have been alive. As far as I'm aware they were in the first version in 1985. Joel Spolsky's "you suck at Excel" is more than a decade old but still relevant: https://youtu.be/JxBg4sMusIg https://youtu.be/JxBg4sMusIg
- econ 2mo agoYou mean the second row right? Then i have to freeze the top row that isn't the top row? I understand there is no way back but it was a poor design choice. If you see a table on a website no one would put the alphabet in the top row. That you get a thousand columns by default also is a poor choice. The thing is supposed to be data entry, organisation, presentation, calculation and data storage in one. Very ambitious, not a bad result but also not good at any of it. It makes relatively simple things terrifying lol
- Arainach 2mo agoNo, I mean that you give a name to a cell of "Price" or "ExchangeRate" and then you write formulas as =Price*ExchangeRate rather than =A13*C8