Referring to first row of the defined name

[kpark91]

Hello,

Is it possible to refer to the first row of a defined name in excel 2003?

Currently, I have a whole worksheet defined as the name "DB" (the worksheet name is Cyclic_DB)

So, I was thinking along the lines of
=DB!$1:$1

but obviously this is for referencing to a worksheet...

In xl2007, I would have had my worksheet (Cyclic_DB) in a table
and use DB[row][col] but it seems there's no function like that in xl2003.

Please help me.

Thank you :)

[HansV]

Warning: DB is not a very good choice for a defined name, because it is also the name of an Excel worksheet function:

DB function

Returns the depreciation of an asset for a specified period using the fixed-declining balance method.

Syntax

DB(cost,salvage,life,period,month)

If you want to refer to a specific cell within a range, you can use the OFFSET function. OFFSET has the syntax

=OFFSET(reference,rows,cols,height,width)

First cell in the range: =OFFSET(DB,0,0,1,1)
First row in the range: =OFFSET(DB,0,0,1)
First column in the range: =OFFSET(DB,0,0,,1)

[kpark91]

Oh.... I will rename my name then :)

The formula works perfectly as expected.

Thank you very much HansV!

You just solved a project in 9 minutes;;
I feel kinda useless and happy at the same time (a weird feeling)

Thanks :D

[HansV]

Experience comes over time - I've worked with Excel since version 1.0 (for Apple Macintosh) in 1985!

[kpark91]

Wow... That was before I was even born lol.
Master, teach me the way of MS Excel xD (bribe)

[HansV]

As with most software: be inquisitive, dare to experiment, read the help file, don't hesitate to ask questions here, and... save often!

[rory]

FYI, you can also use INDEX which has the advantage of not being volatile:
=INDEX(named_range, 0, 1)
would refer to the first row.
(basic syntax is index(range, row, column) but you can use 0 to return an entire row or column)

[VegasNath]

As with most software: be inquisitive, dare to experiment, read the help file, don't hesitate to ask questions here, and... save often!

Not sure about the bit about the help file

[HansV]

The Excel and Excel VBA help files could be a lot better than they are (they seem to get worse with each new version - the documentation for the early Mac versions of Excel was superb), but despite that they still contain a wealth of information - it pays to follow the "See Also" links, you often learn something new.

[Don Wells]

Experience comes over time - I've worked with Excel since version 1.0 (for Apple Macintosh) in 1985!

Hi Hans
    Did you get to work with its predecessor, Multiplan?

[HansV]

Did you get to work with its predecessor, Multiplan?

Yes, I did, but I didn't like it much. Neither did I like the first version of Word for the Mac.

(I also used VisiCalc and WordStar, I think on a CP/M machine...)