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Date:	Fri, 18 May 2001 23:45:46 PDT
From:	John Hlavac <jhlavac@flash.net >
Reply-To:	scoug-sundialsig@scoug.com
To:	scoug-sundialsig@scoug.com
Subject:	SCOUG-SundialSIG: Initial Offering

Content Type: text/plain

Peter-

I know I uploaded the spreadsheet with NO explanation, but the intention
was to have it be a >summary< of a person's assets done on, say, a
quarterly basis. That's why I tried to get all the information on just
one sheet. Now as time goes on the right side of the spreadsheet just
grows. But it was never the intention to _print_ the entire worksheet.
Just the most recent information. That's why the most recent quarter is
right next to the account number. To put a new quarter in place, you
have to insert a new column and everything else move over one. That's
why all the % formulas are in the form {=RATE(1,-1*$I$4,$L$4} with
absolute cell addresses. In retrospect, the dollar sign before the row
appellation should be relative rather than absolute. Thus:
=RATE(1,-1*$I4,$L4) would be more correct. (That way you could add rows
too).

Printing would be only of the more recent data.

For example, let's say I live for another 25 years. That's just another
100 columns. Clearly unprintable, even at 6 point type and very wide
paper. The hope is that you can print just columns A-M, U, & AC.

I just tried to do this and the results were less than stellar. A-M is
okay, but then the next two disparate columns print one to a page. I'm
sure that this is a problem with me, rather than Mesa/2.

The contribution correction idea of yours is a different can-o-worms. Of
course it is the way to go. I don't know if it should show on the main
sheet or get placed on another page. My intention was to make an easy to
read summary page of investments. Adding additional columns of
contributions could double (or triple) the size of the spreadsheet and
would run the risk of burying the overview information in the details.
(You can't tell the forest for the trees).

What do you think? Any suggestions?

Peter Skye wrote:
>
> Good spreadsheet. Can I make a suggestion? Can you split the
> information into two parts, so the % return info (the left-side columns)
> is on one page and the $ detail info is on a separate page (with dates
> going down, not across)? It will be easier to add more displays if you
> do this (and will also be easier to print).
>
> > Right off the bat there's a problem. The Roth IRA has
> > a fairly common problem. Each year's contribution
> > gets wrapped into the interest increase. How does
> > one deal with continuing contributions to a fund?
>
> You need to also post to the spreadsheet what the contribution amount is
> and the date it is made. Then it's possible to back out the
> contributions and "approximately" determine the true % return. (You
> can't determine an "absolute" true % return because you don't know the
> value of the account on the date that the contribution is made. If you
> _do_ know the account value on the contribution date, then you _can_
> calculate the "absolute" true % return.)
>
> Suppose you're calculating the 5YEAR%. Start five years ago and
> calculate as-best-you-can the account value on the date of your next
> contribution, then calculate the rate of return for just that time
> period. Calculate the rates of return for all other time periods as
> well ("time period" being the time periods between your contributions).
> You can now compound the individual rates of return into one overall
> rate of return (this is easy if each time period is the same number of
> days, more complex if the time periods have different numbers of days).
>
> - Peter
>
> =====================================================
>
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