That’s an excellent point—honestly, I was thinking the exact same thing, that maybe memory isn't even the culprit here. Thank you so much for posting that comment; seeing only one reply after 70 views had me starting to get a little anxious.
So, looking at the first six columns, those are just raw data,
then in the next six columns, I'm generating indices using a formula like LEFT(A2,2)&LEFT(B2,2)... and so on. These indices end up being about eight digits long,
but then in the following six columns, I use the MATCH function (searching the index against a second list from row 2 down to row 500,000—which is locked in with $ signs;0). The formula *should* return the specific row number where the indices match, but instead, it just keeps throwing this #N/A error at me.
It is entirely possible I botched the formula itself—not that copying the formula down to the XY row is the issue—but rather what you pointed out: the fact that it has to constantly scan through every single row of that second list, which just drags on and on forever.
..I’m at a total loss for a faster way to calculate this, because the whole objective is simply to identify matching indices... any ideas for a different approach? For context, one of my sheets is sitting at roughly 46 MB... (though sometimes I just copy and paste values once I don't need the formula anymore to save my sanity)
I’m running into a massive headache with my RAM—specifically, I need to figure out how to make this computer actually finish calculating formulas in Excel. Right now, it’s taking hours upon hours, and I have quite a few columns packed with data...
So, I went ahead and asked an IT guy how to speed things up, and his big piece of advice was that I simply don't have enough memory. Fine, whatever—but what does that actually mean in practice? Do I just buy more RAM and slap it in there? And more importantly, will that even touch the problem of these agonizingly slow Excel calculations?
To give you the specs: I’ve got 2 GB of RAM and an AMD Athlon IIx2 250 3.00 GHz processor. If you need any other technical details, just ask.
Or am I better off just biting the bullet and buying a completely new computer? Any advice?
I realize this question is probably better suited for medical doctors—though they usually seem quite eager to just brush you off and move on to the next patient—but I’m hoping someone here might have some insight to offer.
...I’ve been putting off getting a full battery of medical tests for quite some time now, and it has me wondering: what kind of underlying physical imbalances can actually trigger mental health issues? To be blunt, I’ve been battling psychosis and depression, yet in the ten years since these issues began, I haven't gone beyond the absolute basics—just standard blood work and checking my three thyroid hormones.
...I want to know exactly what could be malfunctioning in the body that manifests as a psychiatric disorder—because if the root cause is physical, then treating the mind alone is essentially just chasing shadows while the real culprit remains untouched.
Alright, look—I’ll admit this topic leans a bit toward being discriminatory, but let’s be honest, it’s also incredibly real, and I truly believe it’s a "fascinating" question to unpack.
Let me give you a concrete example... one of my neighbors—a really attractive, genuinely sweet girl who's practically family—has two cases of schizophrenia in her immediate bloodline (her mother and her uncle)... and since we all know this is a biological condition (at least in most instances where heredity is established), would I actually enter a relationship with a girl like that? I have to be honest: I wouldn't... partly because of her specifically, and partly because of the looming chance that our children (if things even get to that stage, of course) might also suffer from it. With all due respect to those currently battling the illness, I simply wouldn't knowingly enter a relationship with someone who is either sick herself or has an extremely, extremely high probability of becoming so. Now, OK, I suppose it’s a completely different story if you’re already in a relationship—you fall in love, everything is going great, and then suddenly certain facts come to light... ...
silentpilot6, walk me through your logic here—you say you wouldn't enter a relationship because of *her*? I mean, if you're already considering a relationship and the attraction is mutual, wouldn't you want to protect her from yourself? Like, maybe she’d be better off without you? Or maybe she'd be happier alone... I don't know, I'm probably just being dense and not following your train of thought.
Do you honestly think that with people who don't have an official diagnosis, it never happens that some disorder manifests later in their lives?
The scenario would be this: you’re with a girl, you fall in love, everything is perfect, and then she tells you—"I'm ill"—and in that specific case, would you stay because you've already fallen for her, making the diagnosis irrelevant at that point? But then what's the actual difference? If she's honest and tells you upfront, you wouldn't be with her; but if she plays it close to the vest and tells you later, you *would* be... I mean, what is the distinction there? The illness was present from the very beginning, just as much as it was at the moment you found out... so, you wouldn't consciously enter the relationship, but you'd enter it unconsciously???
I see you're quite well-versed in medical terminology, so just a quick correction—it isn't "hereditary" used as a noun like that; the term is heredity.
And as for the kids... in this day and age, it’s much harder to protect them from the environment they are surrounded by than from whatever they carry in their own DNA...
Honestly, silentpilot6, this whole debate is just spinning its wheels at this point... you asked the question, you already made it clear you aren't looking to date someone struggling with mental illness, and frankly—given how much you seem to know about psychological disorders both theoretically and practically—you’ve got all the data you need. You have arguments for and against right here in front of you. So, what's the move? What happened with that girl from the beginning of your story? This entire forum basically just validated your gut feeling that she’d likely develop schizophrenia. And by the way—don't forget that certain psychiatric conditions don't even show up until much later in life—so your odds of running into someone dealing with insanity are basically a coin flip at 50:50... though I suppose I can't say for sure if those odds jump higher if you come from a medical family like 🙂
silentpilot6, I honestly think you’re just slapping a schizophrenia diagnosis on this girl when she’s probably perfectly healthy and fine. And besides—what about all those other medical issues that can be way more serious than mental health struggles? When you're looking at a woman as potential life partner, shouldn't you first ask for a full medical history of her immediate and extended family to ensure your kids don't inherit some bad genes? Even if you do end up with "bad" genetic material, it doesn't mean a disease will actually manifest.
The real issue here is the prejudice in our society; people act like those with mental illnesses are somehow "lesser." But the truth is, there are probably more people struggling with mental health issues who haven't been officially diagnosed than those who have. And one more thing—how on earth do you think you'll make a "good choice" by picking someone without a diagnosis, only to find out later she was hiding her true nature and turns out to be a malicious, manipulative gold-digger?
According to your logic, people with mental health struggles don't even deserve a partner or to be loved—which is ridiculous, because they likely need support even more than "perfectly healthy" people do. It also seems totally foolish to suggest you should pick a partner based solely on cold logic rather than your heart. My mother always used to say it's better to walk through thorns with the one you love than to build a castle with someone you despise. All this over-analyzing won't do you any good; life is going to happen to you regardless. You think you've mapped everything out, but life always has an unexpected curveball waiting for you. Don't complicate your existence by trying to plan for a future that hasn't happened yet while ignoring the reality of today. And as my mom used to say: if you aim for the rose and miss, you're still gonna hit the dirt...