All right.
So the last look up reference function that I want to talk about is called offset offsets kind of a
lesser known function but it's a really useful one when it comes to doing some kind of unique powerful
things which I'll show you in the next lecture.
But basically just to give you some background.
It's similar to index.
It returns the value of a cell within an array but it can also return a reference to a specific range
of cells which can be very useful when you want to create dynamic arrays.
And I know that sounds kind of like jibberish.
It will make more sense in the next lecture I promise.
So basically syntax wise offset starts just like an index function.
You determine a reference which is what's your starting point.
Typically that's a single cell reference and then you have a rose component which tells you OK how many
rows down should move and then columns which is how many columns over from the reference should I move
.
And if you just leave it at that it will function exactly like an index it will give you the value of
whatever cell it lands on.
What makes offset different is that it includes these two additional components height and width which
lets you return a multi dimensional array rather than just the value within a single cell.
So these are optional which is why they're shown surrounded by brackets.
And if you leave those blank if you just close out your formula after the columns indicator again it
will be just like an index and the height and width will default to 1 and 1.
So you return the value of a cell that's 1 row tall and 1 column wide.
Quick protip here I'm showing you all these functions like offset and index match which have very specific
and in some cases very particular applications.
Don't get too caught up in using them just for the sake of using them.
So don't use an offset or an index match when a simple lookup will do the trick.
So with that that's how the offset function works.
I'm going to show you how it can be used to build a really cool dynamic scrolling chart in the next
lecture so get ready