I want to hank all members of this group VERY much for the help! We did as suggested, but found it became a somewhat arduos task! It was more accurate to match the 300 vendor-names by eye after both lists were sorted. We divided and conquered! Job creation!! I appreciate all the help, and will be back for more support when next needed! Regards, Darryl
On Nov 1, 10:27 am, Paul <schreiner_p...@att.net> wrote: > Your first task is to "standardize" the lists. > I would suggest first taking both lists and make a copy. > then, in the copy, remove all punctuation, and common terms like > "inc", "company", "the", lastly: double-spaces. > Then, I would build a dictionary of terms by loading the master list > into a Dictionary Object (converting to Upper case). > Next, add each separate WORD of the name to the Dictionary, saving the > full name with the object. > Add to the object any additional company names that have the word in > common. > This creates a term that has an array of name values. > > once the dictionary object is created from the Master list, (5-10 > seconds) > you then begin searching through your smaller list. > If it finds an EXACT match for the name, indicate it and move on. > If no exact match is found, begin looking for individual terms. > By keeping track of the names that contain individual terms, you can > create a list of "possible" matches. > For instance, if you're looking for "Acme Industrial Corporation" > You may find: > Acme Industrial Widget Corporation (3) > Acme Industrial Company (2) > Acme Industrial Widget Division (2) > Acme Corporation (2) > Acme, Inc. (1) > > you can then sort them by "relevance" by the number of matching terms, > or even the POSITION the terms hold. > > If you can send or post a sample file, I can probably throw something > together in a few minutes. > It would take me longer to generate the lists on my own than it would > be for me to write the code! > > hope I can help.... > > Paul > > On Oct 31, 4:45 pm, Darryl <d...@dgoebel.com> wrote: > > > > > I have a spreadsheet containing about 7K Business Names. It is > > considered a Master List of vendors. I have another with about 300 > > names, and I need to know if any of these are contained in the first > > one. The problem is the smaller one may list the company name as "The > > Acme Company," while the larger (master) list may call it "Acme, > > Inc." There does not appear to be anything certain about either > > entry... Can someone help me get the process started? > > > Thanks in advance, > > Darryl- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text - -- FORUM RULES (925+ members already BANNED for violation) 1) Use concise, accurate thread titles. Poor thread titles, like Please Help, Urgent, Need Help, Formula Problem, Code Problem, and Need Advice will not get quick attention or may not be answered. 2) Don't post a question in the thread of another member. 3) Don't post questions regarding breaking or bypassing any security measure. 4) Acknowledge the responses you receive, good or bad. 5) Cross-promotion of, or links to, forums competitive to this forum in signatures are prohibited. NOTE : Don't ever post personal or confidential data in a workbook. Forum owners and members are not responsible for any loss. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ To post to this group, send email to excel-macros@googlegroups.com
