Spreadsheet failures, any recent examples? [Software]
Dear ElMaestro,
Nope. I have examples of users using the wrong functions, or unlocked spreadsheets getting modified at some point, but that's about all. The problem is most often somewhere between the chair and the keyboard: wetware rather than software.
Well, there are some "features" of Excel you need to be aware of when using it for stats, of course. Already mentioned on the forum.
Maybe their coding skills are not any better than mine*, and they consider that they will always trust whatever they do with a spreadsheet more than anything they might obtain with R ?
* sharing with the forum some experience already discussed by email with ElMaestro a couple of years ago: I installed R on my home computer. With the help of some "R for R-seholes" tutorials, it took me something like 4 hours to manage to open a simple set of data and make a simple plot out of it . I spent a few more hours trying to have the colour of the plot change based on simple conditions (red if under a threshold value, green above it). I was even waking up at night with ideas on new ways to test. I never succeeded. Never used R again. I would never trust any of my results anyway.
❝ does anyone have recent examples of spreadsheet functions truly misbehaving with real-life realistic data?
Nope. I have examples of users using the wrong functions, or unlocked spreadsheets getting modified at some point, but that's about all. The problem is most often somewhere between the chair and the keyboard: wetware rather than software.
Well, there are some "features" of Excel you need to be aware of when using it for stats, of course. Already mentioned on the forum.
❝ [...] which led regulators to conclude they were the only ones who could be trusted to make proper use of such pernicious creations.
Maybe their coding skills are not any better than mine*, and they consider that they will always trust whatever they do with a spreadsheet more than anything they might obtain with R ?
* sharing with the forum some experience already discussed by email with ElMaestro a couple of years ago: I installed R on my home computer. With the help of some "R for R-seholes" tutorials, it took me something like 4 hours to manage to open a simple set of data and make a simple plot out of it . I spent a few more hours trying to have the colour of the plot change based on simple conditions (red if under a threshold value, green above it). I was even waking up at night with ideas on new ways to test. I never succeeded. Never used R again. I would never trust any of my results anyway.
—
Regards
Ohlbe
Regards
Ohlbe
Complete thread:
- Spreadsheet failures, any recent examples? ElMaestro 2019-07-18 13:43 [Software]
- Spreadsheet failures, any recent examples?Ohlbe 2019-07-18 14:32
- Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-18 16:12
- Nasty beast Ohlbe 2019-07-18 17:30
- Nasty beast Helmut 2019-07-18 20:26
- Nasty beast Ohlbe 2019-07-19 11:32
- Nasty beast ElMaestro 2019-07-19 12:32
- Decidedly off topic Ohlbe 2019-07-19 13:38
- OT: R limbo 101 Helmut 2019-07-19 13:00
- Nasty beast ElMaestro 2019-07-19 12:32
- Nasty beast Ohlbe 2019-07-19 11:32
- Nasty beast Helmut 2019-07-18 20:26
- Spreadsheet addiction Shuanghe 2019-07-18 18:59
- Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-18 20:04
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction Shuanghe 2019-07-19 12:41
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-19 14:29
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction nobody 2019-07-19 15:53
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-19 19:32
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction nobody 2019-07-19 15:53
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-19 14:29
- OT: Spreadsheet addiction Shuanghe 2019-07-19 12:41
- Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-18 20:04
- Nasty beast Ohlbe 2019-07-18 17:30
- Spreadsheet etc. failures zizou 2019-07-20 00:18
- As designed ☺ Helmut 2019-07-20 02:12
- As designed ☺ ElMaestro 2019-07-20 09:08
- To round or not to round… Helmut 2019-07-20 12:53
- To round or not to round… ElMaestro 2019-07-20 19:59
- floating-point math is always more complex than you think it is mittyri 2019-07-20 22:43
- To round or not to round… ElMaestro 2019-07-20 19:59
- To round or not to round… Helmut 2019-07-20 12:53
- As designed ☺ ElMaestro 2019-07-20 09:08
- As designed ☺ Helmut 2019-07-20 02:12
- Spreadsheet addiction Helmut 2019-07-18 16:12
- Spreadsheet failures, any recent examples? Ohlbe 2020-12-10 18:43
- Floating point arithmetic, again Helmut 2020-12-10 19:12
- Floating point arithmetic, again ElMaestro 2020-12-10 19:40
- Floating point arithmetic, again Ohlbe 2020-12-10 20:18
- Floating point arithmetic, again ElMaestro 2020-12-10 21:38
- Floating point arithmetic, again Ohlbe 2020-12-10 21:46
- Floating point arithmetic, again ElMaestro 2020-12-10 22:05
- Floating point arithmetic, again Ohlbe 2020-12-10 21:46
- Floating point arithmetic, again ElMaestro 2020-12-10 21:38
- Floating point arithmetic, again Ohlbe 2020-12-10 20:18
- Floating point arithmetic, again Ohlbe 2020-12-10 20:13
- Floating point arithmetic, again ElMaestro 2020-12-10 19:40
- From bad to worse Ohlbe 2020-12-10 22:11
- From bad to worse mittyri 2020-12-11 00:22
- All is good Helmut 2020-12-11 00:36
- Float is float PharmCat 2020-12-18 20:53
- Float is float! Helmut 2020-12-20 23:27
- rational solution in R mittyri 2020-12-21 13:49
- related stuff Helmut 2021-01-14 12:53
- related stuff SDavis 2021-02-09 12:02
- related stuff ElMaestro 2021-02-09 19:55
- related stuff SDavis 2021-02-09 12:02
- related stuff Helmut 2021-01-14 12:53
- rational solution in R mittyri 2020-12-21 13:49
- Float is float! Helmut 2020-12-20 23:27
- Float is float PharmCat 2020-12-18 20:53
- Floating point arithmetic, again Helmut 2020-12-10 19:12
- Spreadsheet failures, any recent examples?Ohlbe 2019-07-18 14:32