ClarisWorks: Finding the Minimum Non-Zero Value in a Range

This information was provided by Claris Corporation on 16 March 1998, and incorporated into Apple Computer's Tech Info Library.
If you use the MIN function to find the lowest value in a range, any empty cell in that range will force the MIN function to return a zero. To find the minimum non-zero value in a range, you need to first create a calculation that will return either the non-zero value for each cell or a value that is higher than the non-zero minimum in the range.

Let's say you have numbers entered in A1 to A10. In B1, enter the following formula:

=IF(A1 = 0,MAX($A$1..$A$10),A1)

Plain English: If the value in A1 is zero, return the highest value from A1 to A10; if it is not zero, return the number. Once you have entered this, select cells B1 to B10 and fill down. Now you will have a column of numbers where the zeros (or empty cells) have been replaced by the highest number in column A. Now to find the minimum non-zero value in column A use this formula:

=MIN(B1..B10)

Since there are no zero values in column B, it will return the lowest number.

Note: Instead of MAX($A$1..$A$10), you could use any number that would be higher than the non-zero minimum, such as 10,000,000 or MAX($A$1..$A$10) -1.

Although ClarisImpact Tables have no visible cell references this solution will still work.
Published Date: Feb 18, 2012