We want to use it with Excel, and really wish we could easily flatten it. Sometimes we obtain data from an accounting system or from a client that is not flat. All information about a record is contained within the row, and is not derived by its position within the table. This screenshot shows flat data:Īll cells within the table contain values. In contrast, flat data contains repeats the labels as needed. For example, we know that row 39 is for Bayshore Water, but, we only know that row 40 is for Bayshore Water based on its position within the table. Thus, we must determine information about a record based on the position of the row within the table. You can see labels are not repeated, and there are cells with missing values. So, this screenshot shows data that is not flat: It is simple to see the difference visually. All information about the record is derived from the values in the row, and, not from its position within the table. Flat data is described as data which contains values in all cells within the table. Many of Excel’s features, such as PivotTables, Charting, AutoFilter, and the Subtotal feature, were designed to work with flat data. Note: An alternative would be to use a Get & Transform query, as discussed in this post. This can also be referred to as repeating the labels, or, as flattening the data. In this post, we’ll cover a handy technique for manually filling data labels down through an Excel range.
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