In Excel 2010, 2011, and 2013, make sure the solving method is set to Simplex LP. Similarly, add a constraint setting C2:C15 to be integers as shown in Figure 1-25 below. To add in the total calorie constraint, press the Add button and set C17 equal to 2,400. Also, we'll need to add a constraint that our decisions be counting numbers, so we'll need to check the non-negative box (under the options menu in Excel 2007) and add an integer constraint to the decisions. And the constraints are that C17, the total calories, needs to be equal to 2,400. The cells that can be altered are the item selections in C2:C15. In your case, the objective is to minimize the total items in cell C16.

The main elements you plug into Solver to solve a problem are an objective cell, an optimization direction (minimization or maximization), some decision variables that can be changed by Solver, and some constraints. We'll learn all about these elements later Rather, there's an 'Assume Linear Model' checkbox under the Options menu. In Excel 2007, the layout is slightly different, but the only substantive difference is that there is no algorithm selection box. Note: The Solver window, shown in Figure 1-23 in Excel 2011, looks pretty similar in Excel 2010, 2011, and 2013. Now you're ready to build the model, so bring up the Solver window by pressing the Solver button on the Data tab. In cell C16, sum up the number of items to be bought above as:ДЄnd below that you can sum up the total calorie count of these items (which you'll want eventually to equal 2,400) using the SUMPRODUCT formula: Excel considers blank cells to be 0s so you needn't fill in these cells with anything to start.

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