Formula Properties dialog
You use the Formula Properties dialog to maintain the details of the selected formula. You can construct formulae to display practically any information in the spreadsheet: formulae can reference spreadsheet fields, user-defined fields and tables, variable dates, etc, and can take information from the live data or from a specified baseline. On top of this, you can construct formulae to perform calculations on project data. For example, you could construct a formula to subtract the baseline cost from the actual cost in the live data, then display the result in a format of your choosing; you could construct a formula to calculate what percentage of total project costs the cost of each individual task represents.
How to access the Formula Properties dialog
To access the Formula Properties dialog, right-click a formula in Library Explorer and select Properties, or select a formula in the Table Definition Properties dialog and click Edit Formula.
Explanation of the fields and buttons on the dialog
| Field/Button | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Enter a name to apply to the formula. |
| Category |
Select a category to apply to this formula, if required.
Categorising formulae makes it easier to find the formula you are looking for, for example when selecting a formula to display in a spreadsheet column. Whenever you select a formula, they are arranged into their categories, with any formulae that do not belong to a category being displayed below the formula categories that do exist.
|
| Description | Enter a detailed description of the formula. Entering a detailed description of what a formula does in this field can help others to understand your formulae once you have constructed them. |
| Formula |
Type the formula into this field; if you use the Insert buttons below the field to enter formula expressions, they appear in this field.
You can construct formulae using a combination of direct typing in this field and using the Insert buttons. Note that you can insert spaces between the various elements of a formula to aid readability, provided that the spaces do not appear in the middle of individual elements.
|
| Symbol |
Click this button to insert one of the following types of symbol into the formula:
|
| Function |
Click this button to insert a function into the formula, for example Min(val1,val2,…), Text(val1), If(val1,val2,val3).
|
| Field |
Click this button to insert a spreadsheet field into the formula, for example Name, Cost[2383], Start, Task.ActualDuration.
The Select Object dialog appears once you have selected a field for you to specify the object about which you want the field to display information.
|
| Object |
Click this button to insert a reference to a specific object into the formula, for example [1045], [3456].This can be useful when specifying the parameters that are required for various functions.
The Select Object dialog appears for you to specify the object that you want to use as a function parameter.
|
| Status | As you construct a formula, this field alerts you to any potential errors in the formula syntax. Click the button to the right of the field to view additional information on any error messages that are displayed. |
| Save as new formula | If you have edited an existing formula and want to save it as a new formula - ie without overwriting the existing formula - enter a new name for the formula in the Name field and select this check box before clicking OK. |
How do I...
... edit or construct the selected formula?
- Enter a name for the formula in the Name field, and a more detailed description of the formula in the Description field.
- If you want to assign a category to the formula, select a formula category in the Category field.
- Construct the formula itself in the Formula field. You can type a complete formula directly into the field; you can use the Insert buttons to insert specific elements into a formula, and you can construct formulae using a combination of direct typing and using the Insert buttons.
- As you construct a formula, the Status field alerts you to any potential errors in the formula syntax. Click the button to the right of the Status field to view additional information on any error messages that are displayed.
- Click OK to save the formula once you have finished editing it. If you have edited an existing formula and want to save it as a new formula - ie without overwriting the existing formula - enter a new name for the formula in the Name field and select the Save as new formula check box before clicking OK.