Displaying negative values

[Angela]

Hi, I am trying to work out a way of displaying negative values in a
different colour. At the moment, my baselined costs minus actual costs are
overspent in some areas and I would like all negative values to automatically
be highlighted in red. Other than going through each row and manually
formatting, is there an easier way of doing this?

Thanks
Angela

 

[John]

Hi, I am trying to work out a way of displaying negative values in a
different colour. At the moment, my baselined costs minus actual costs are
overspent in some areas and I would like all negative values to automatically
be highlighted in red. Other than going through each row and manually
formatting, is there an easier way of doing this?

Thanks
Angela

Angela,
The only effective way to automate this is through VBA. It could be done
with an Open Event macro that runs each time the file is opened or it
could be set up as a manually activated macro.

If you don't have any Project VBA skills then the manual approach is
probably "easier". However, with a little VBA coding, an automated
approach is definitely easier.

John
Project MVP

 

[vanita]

Hi Angela

1. Insert a Text Column. Customise it with a formula
IIf(([Baseline Cost]-[Actual Cost])<0,-1,0)
2. Select the option of Graphical indicators and make a selection of Red or
Green indicators as required.
3. Now as you input the Actual Cost data, Text1 column will automatically
get populated with these coloured indicators.

I hope it helps.
Vanita

 

[Angela]

Thank you both for your advice. I've taken on Vanita's suggestion as it was
quicker to do, although I am aware that my lack of knowledge on VB may become
a bit of a hindrance in future. I'll have to look at investing in some time
to learn this more thoroughly.

Angela

Hi Angela

1. Insert a Text Column. Customise it with a formula
IIf(([Baseline Cost]-[Actual Cost])<0,-1,0)
2. Select the option of Graphical indicators and make a selection of Red or
Green indicators as required.
3. Now as you input the Actual Cost data, Text1 column will automatically
get populated with these coloured indicators.

I hope it helps.
Vanita
--
Project Management consultant and trainer
(e-mail address removed)

Hi, I am trying to work out a way of displaying negative values in a
different colour. At the moment, my baselined costs minus actual costs are
overspent in some areas and I would like all negative values to automatically
be highlighted in red. Other than going through each row and manually
formatting, is there an easier way of doing this?

Thanks
Angela

 

[JulieS]

Hello Angela,

You may find that Highlight filters work well in this situation.
Take a look at the built-in filter named "Late/Overbudget tasks."
If you look at the filter definition, you'll see there's a line
which compares the Cost field to the Actual Cost field. You could
easily modify the existing filter or create your own filter. Then
create a new view (View > more views , copy an existing view and
rename) and have the custom filter you created be applied as a
highlight filter.

Then you can simply display the view and the tasks which meet the
filter criteria will show in cyan blue. You can also define what
color the text is through Format > Text Styles.


I hope this helps. Let us know how you get along.

Julie
Project MVP

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for the FAQs and additional
information about Microsoft Project

 

[John]

Thank you both for your advice. I've taken on Vanita's suggestion as it was
quicker to do, although I am aware that my lack of knowledge on VB may become
a bit of a hindrance in future. I'll have to look at investing in some time
to learn this more thoroughly.

Angela

Angela,
You're welcome. In the absence of VBA, either Vanita's or Julie's
suggestions are excellent alternatives.

If you would like to learn Project VBA, and it will open up a whole new
world of functionality for you if you do, I highly recommend fellow MVP,
Rod Gill's book. You can get more information at,
http://www.projectvbabook.com.

John
Project MVP

Hi Angela

1. Insert a Text Column. Customise it with a formula
IIf(([Baseline Cost]-[Actual Cost])<0,-1,0)
2. Select the option of Graphical indicators and make a selection of Red or
Green indicators as required.
3. Now as you input the Actual Cost data, Text1 column will automatically
get populated with these coloured indicators.

I hope it helps.
Vanita
--
Project Management consultant and trainer
(e-mail address removed)

Hi, I am trying to work out a way of displaying negative values in a
different colour. At the moment, my baselined costs minus actual costs
are
overspent in some areas and I would like all negative values to
automatically
be highlighted in red. Other than going through each row and manually
formatting, is there an easier way of doing this?

Thanks
Angela