We're dividing 217987 by 74 
We're looking to find how many times 74 goes into 217987.

Advancing to step 1:
The number 74 fits into 2 0 times, leaving a remainder of 2.
Put 0 as the next digit of the answer. 
Result so far: 0.0
If we subtract 0 from 2, we get 2.
Fetch the next digit (1) from the dividend, attach it to 2 and continue: 21 / 74

Going ahead to step 2:
The number 74 fits into 21 0 times, leaving a remainder of 21.
Record the quotient 0 as the next digit in the result. 
Result so far: 0.0
Subtracting 0 from 21 leaves us with 21.
Include the next digit (7) from the dividend after 21, then repeat: 217 / 74

Let's proceed to step 3:
If we divide 217 by 74, we get 2 and a remainder of 69.
Record the quotient 2 as the next digit in the result. 
Result so far: 2.0
If we subtract 148 from 217, we get 69.
Append the next digit (9) from the dividend to 69 and continue with: 699 / 74

On to step 4:
74 can be fit into 699 9 times, resulting in a remainder of 33.
Record the quotient 9 as the next digit in the result. 
Result so far: 29.0
If we take 666 away from 699, we end up with 33.
Grab the next digit (8) from the dividend, add it to 33, then carry on: 338 / 74

Advancing to step 5:
If we divide 338 by 74, we get 4 and a remainder of 42.
The number 4 becomes the next digit in our result. 
Result so far: 294.0
Subtracting 296 from 338 leaves us with 42.
Fetch the next digit (7) from the dividend, attach it to 42 and continue: 427 / 74

Going ahead to step 6:
When dividing 427 by 74, we get 5 with a remainder of 57.
Write down 5 as next digit of the result. 
Result so far: 2945.0
If we take 370 away from 427, we end up with 57.
Since there are no more digits in the dividend, we add a zero to the remainder making it 570, and continue the process.

On to step 7:
If we divide 570 by 74, we get 7 and a remainder of 52.
Write down 7 as next digit of the result. 
Result so far: 2945.7
If we subtract 518 from 570, we get 52.
Since there are no more digits in the dividend, we add a zero to the remainder making it 520, and continue the process.

Going ahead to step 8:
If we divide 520 by 74, we get 7 and a remainder of 2.
Record the quotient 7 as the next digit in the result. 
Result so far: 2945.77
If we take 518 away from 520, we end up with 2.
Since there are no more digits in the dividend, we add a zero to the remainder making it 20, and continue the process.

The final result is 2945.77 with a remainder of 0.002.