I was compelled to explain in a large training session that Excel and MathCAD are not, Not, NOT acceptable tools for performing QL-1 nuclear safety calculations.

I absolutely hate that I have to keep explaining this to degreed engineers doing safety-critical work.

I am going to die on this hill whether I want to or not.

This just makes me want to cry.

Excel is suitable only for tasks less important than Girl Scout cookie sales tracking. Do not bet anything more valuable than a box of Thin Mints on Excel.

@arclight
Excel is not a spreadsheet. Excel is a full-featured virtual machine running a smalltalk-inspired REPL whose display layer happens to resemble a spreadsheet.

Something like a third of the world’s money goes through Excel every single day, and the reason you don’t think Excel is a Real Programming Language is because if we admitted that, we’d have to admit that most of the most important software in the world was written by underpaid women in pink collar jobs, and we can’t have that.

@mhoye I think we're on the same page here. Excel is the world's most popular functional programming system. The problem is that it's sold and viewed as an easy-to-use tool for "non-programmers". The problem is that it is in fact a programming system, spreadsheets are software, and should be treated with the same rigorous review process as software written in traditional languages. Hiding the programming aspect of the system has a secondary effect of making them virtually impossible to verify.

@mhoye I can't really speak to the pink collar aspect; I'll have to forward that to my wife who is the Excel expert in the family ;)

@arclight my guy, you just referred to excel as a child’s toy only suitable for tasks less important than girl guide cookie sales and then referred me to your wife as the family excel expert.

Just tell her how little you think of her, don’t involve me in this.