Why You Shouldn't Use Spreadsheets For Important Work

An anonymous reader writes "Computer science professor Daniel Lemire explains why spreadsheets shouldn't be used for important work, especially where dedicated software could do a better job. His post comes in response to evaluations of a new economics tome by Thomas Piketty, a book that is likely to be influential for years to come. Lemire writes, 'Unfortunately, like too many people, Piketty used spreadsheets instead of writing sane software. On the plus side, he published his code ... on the negative side, it appears that Piketty's code contains mistakes, fudging and other problems. ... Simply put, spreadsheets are good for quick and dirty work, but they are not designed for serious and reliable work. ... Spreadsheets make code review difficult. The code is hidden away in dozens if not hundreds of little cells If you are not reviewing your code carefully and if you make it difficult for others to review it, how do expect it to be reliable?'"

Comments

What he's really saying is

[Anonymous Coward]

"I don't know how to use spread sheets properly."

Re:What he's really saying is

[Anonymous Coward]

To be fair, neither to the vast majority of people who use spreadsheets for important work.

Re:What he's really saying is

[Anonymous Coward]

Disagree. I think what he's really saying is "I've had to maintain and develop tools made by people that don't know how to use spreadsheets properly, and I'm fucking sick of it."

Re: What he's really saying is

[Anonymous Coward]

Most people have no idea how to use a relational database.

Re:What he's really saying is

[jd2112]

"I don't know how to use spread sheets properly."

Or, I realize that just because I have a hammer not all problems are nails.

Re:What he's really saying is

[lonecrow]

Spreadsheets are just a part of the Darwinism of applications. Some sharp fellow within an organization things its important to start tracking some data point or another. Maybe it gets ignored and forgotten. Other times it grows as other people see its utility and start making requests to track related data points. Eventually you get a multi-worksheet or even multi-workbook spreadsheet masquerading as an application. At some point it becomes far to hard to maintain or understand so they contract out someone like me who moves it to a relational database with a web front end. Everyone is happy!

This work forms a major part of my work load don't fuck with it!

Also, it is appropriate. It would be inefficient to develop a proper relational database application on the whim that some set of data points might be useful. Spreadsheets are a proving ground, and important stage in the life cycle of an application.

Code reviewing a spreadsheet

[muhula]

If the inability to code review spreadsheets was a real issue, it wouldn't be too hard to convert spreadsheet functions into a functional language. For non-programmers, a spreadsheet lowers the barrier to entry. This allows people to do something useful and productive who couldn't do so otherwise. That's a good thing.

Re:Code reviewing a spreadsheet

[geekoid]

For non programmers modern spread sheet give the user rope, with a noose already premade and a map on where to put your head.

Spreadsheets as a software development platform?

[Virtucon]

You're doing it wrong.

Re:"spreadsheets" = computation program

[geekoid]

Maybe you should read it again?
His real criticizm is that spreadsheet software is horrible for any high end work, or with anything you want to share, and he is correct.

"so he probably doesn't know how to use the interface of a spreadsheet very well, which makes the act of checking a formula tedious..."
it is tedious, even if you are an expert and even if the user uses goof practices.

"P-hacking is the problem in social science/economics research, not using 'spreadsheets'"
I don't think you know what P-Hacking is.

Piketty's work will be done for him

[matbury]

The fact that Piketty's work describes a damning indictement of the USA's most cherished concept - free market capitalism - means that thousands of neo-liberal economists will pour over every single digit and operator in his spreadsheets looking for anything to negate the findings. If they can't find anything, they'll attack him. When you hear of character attacks against Piketty or some other diversionary tactic, you'll know his data is correct.

Re:Spreadsheets as a software development platform

[preaction]

Tell that to the entire finance and insurance industry.

What you're really saying is

[CriminalNerd]

"I never worked in a company with normal people."

I'm guessing you haven't had the pleasure of working in the typical firm where the company's years-old ENTIRE lifetime of work and data is passed around e-mail as a 80MB Excel attachment.

Re:Some things stick

[timeOday]

The question is whether having the logic squirreled away in code or a DB would have made it more correct, which is a big assumption!

I really think Piketty deserves a lot of credit for releasing his "source" spreadsheets on such a substantive and controversial work. Most authors do not. If the critiques turn out to be substantial and extensive, I plan on waiting for a second edition with corrections before investing time in reading it.

Re:Spreadsheets - best and worst thing there is

[Boronx]

Spread sheets are such awesome tools that they allow non-programmers to create the same problems that noob programmers do while writing code.