IT Training Microsoft Excel 2013 Comments (Level 3) Contents Introduction...1 Adding a Comment to a Cell...1 Displaying Cell Comments...2 Editing a Cell Comment...3 Deleting a Cell Comment...3 Searching for a Cell Comment...3 Formatting Cell Comments...3 Comment Positioning...4 Automatic Sizing...4 Additional Comment Options...5 Printing Cell Comments...5 Introduction Microsoft Excel has a very useful facility which allows you to add explanatory notes to your worksheet. These can be used, for example, to explain what a particular formula is calculating or to store further information which doesn't generally need to be displayed. Comments can also be useful where an Excel file is shared by several people in an office - each user can add comments to inform the others of any changes. Adding a Comment to a Cell Starting on a new worksheet, create an expenses form: 1. Type the heading Expenses into cell A1 and press <Enter> 2. Press <right arrow> to move to cell B2 and type Travel 3. Press <right arrow> again to move to cell C2 and type Food 4. Press <Enter> then the <Home> key to move to cell A3 5. In cell A3 type a date (eg 2/9/11) then press <right arrow> to move to cell B3 6. In cell B3 type =16.4+0.8*2 - press <right arrow> to move to C3 7. In cell C3 type =1+0.35+2.25 - press <Enter> 8. Select cells B3 and C3 then show them as money using the [Accounting Number Format] button
Now add the explanatory notes: 1. Click on cell B3 then move to the REVIEW tab and click on [New Comment] 2. Use <Backspace> to delete the existing information, if you don t want it (it shows who is adding the comment, which is very useful in an office where several users may access the same Excel file) 3. Now type: Rail: 16.40, press <Enter> then type Bus: 0.80 (x2) 4. Using the lower right comment handle narrow the comment box slightly (keeping each item on a single line) and shrink it vertically Note that a comment box for a particular cell can be placed anywhere on the spreadsheet - it doesn't have to be immediately to the right of the cell. You may, for example, want to move it so that you can view information in the cell hidden by the comment. To do this: 5. EITHER: Use the <arrow> keys to move the comment downwards and to the left OR: Point the mouse cursor to the comment box border (the cursor becomes an arrow with a doubleheaded cross), hold down the mouse button and drag the comment to its new position Now add a comment to list your food expenses: 6. Right click on cell C3 then choose Insert Comment from the pop-up menu - this is an alternative to using the button on the REVIEW tab 7. <Backspace> to delete the existing user, if you want 8. Now type: Coffee: 1.00, press <Enter> then Crisps: 0.35, press <Enter> then Sandwich: 2.25 9. Press <Esc> to end the typing and select the comment box, then resize it (using the handles) and reposition it using the <arrow> keys (or drag it using the mouse) 10. Finally, click on any empty cell to close the comment box Note the little red triangles in the top right corner of cells B3 and C3 which denote that these cells have a comment attached. Displaying Cell Comments Whenever the mouse cursor points to a cell, the comment is displayed: 1. Move the mouse cursor over cell B3 and watch the comment reappear - the comment is displayed close to the cell, not where it has been positioned 2. Move the mouse cursor slightly to the right and the comment for cell C3 appears To permanently display both comments: 3. On the REVIEW tab click on [Show All Comments] The other buttons in the Comments group are: [Delete], [Previous], [Next], [Show/Hide Comment] (just the current one) and [Show Ink],]. You will be trying some of these out next. 4. Click on cell B3 5. Click on the [Show/Hide Comment] button to hide just this comment 6. Click on the same button again - the comment reappears 7. Click on [Next] twice to move to the other comment (if you are viewing the last comment a dialog box appears asking you if you would like to circle round to the first one - press <Enter> for [OK]) 8. Use [Show/Hide Comment] to hide that one you can also right click inside a cell to Show/Hide a comment 9. Finally, click on [Show All Comments] to hide both the comments (this is really a Show/Hide All Comments button) 2
Editing a Cell Comment If a comment is displayed then you can edit it simply by clicking on it - the insertion point is positioned at the end of the comment. To edit a comment that isn't displayed: 1. Right click on cell C3 then choose Edit Comment from the pop-up menu 2. Make the required changes to the comment then click on another cell to hide it again Note that by default comments move, along with the cell contents, if you insert extra rows/columns or use sort or cut/copy and paste. The only exception to this is in a Pivot Table. Paste Special allows you to cut/copy just the comment from one cell to another. Deleting a Cell Comment To remove a comment from a cell: 1. Either right click on the cell and select Delete Comment from the pop-up menu Or move to the cell and use the [Delete] button in the Comments group on the Review tab Or move to the cell and use the [Clear] button in the Editing group on the Home tab 2. Try out the above, if you like, then click on [Undo] to restore the comment Tip: To select all the comments, click on the [Find & Select] button on the far right of the Home tab then choose Comments. Alternatively, select the cells with comments (note: this allows you to delete just some of the comments). Once selected, you can use any of the above methods to remove the comments. Searching for a Cell Comment Excel allows you to search for information stored in a comment via a special option in the Find dialog box. 1. Press <Ctrl f> (or click on the [Find & Select] button and choose Find...) 2. Type the search text into the Find what: box (eg Bus) 3. Click on [Options>>] then on the list arrow attached to the Look in: box and select Comments 4. Press <Enter> or click on [Find Next] to locate the cell with the specified comment 5. Finally, press <Esc> to [Close] the Find and Replace dialog box Note that the Replace command cannot be used with comments. Formatting Cell Comments To format a comment, simply select it and then apply the formatting: 1. Make sure one or more comments are displayed here, click on the [Show All Comments] button on the REVIEW tab 2. Click inside the comment you wish to format then press <Esc> to select it 3. Using the buttons on the HOME tab, try changing the [Font] and [Font Size] note that the usual quick access to these commands don't appear on a right click 4. Change the Alignment to [Center] These and several other options can also be set in the Format Comment dialog box: 5. Right click on the comment border and choose Format Comment... from the pop-up menu make sure you click on the border or you can only change the font (for extra words) Tip: You can also use <Ctrl 1> to activate this command if necessary, press <Esc> to select it first. 3
The following dialog box appears: The Font, Colors and Lines and Alignment tabs offer you the same settings as the buttons on the Home tab, plus a few more. Size lets you set the precise dimensions; Protection can be used to lock the comments (ie make them read only) if the datasheet is also protected; Properties determines whether the comments move and grow/shrink if the cell is resized; Margins can be used to set up internal margins; Alt Text can be used to add text for web engine searches or for helping users with disabilities. 6. On the Font tab, select a different Color 7. On the Colors and Lines tab, select a different Fill Color - click on [OK] 8. With the reformatted comment still selected, use the [Format Painter] button on the far left of the Home tab to copy the new format to any other comments Comment Positioning By default, comments don't move around or resize. This can be annoying, particularly when filtering data. To see the alternative settings: 1. Press <Ctrl 1> to redisplay the Format Comment dialog box 2. Move to the Properties tab and, for this comment only, change the Object positioning to Move but don't size with cells press <Enter> for [OK] 3. Next, select the top row by clicking on the row number 1 4. Move to the Data tab on the Ribbon and click on [Filter] filter arrows appear in the top row 5. Click on the filter arrow in cell C1 and turn off the tick against Food You should find that whereas the comment attached to cell C2 has remained in its original position, the one attached to cell B2 has moved up a row (which is much better). If you filter a large data set, most of the comments will remain in position, several screens down! 6. Click on the [Filter] button to turn off the filter (and redisplay all the rows) Automatic Sizing One very annoying feature is that no facility is provided for automatically sizing a comment. Having to use the frame handles on each comment individually is a real nuisance. There are even reports where every comment on a worksheet has mysteriously resized itself and the user has had to painstakingly go through them all. It's surprising that the facility isn't provided as a very simple macro can do it for you: 1. Begin by resizing one or more of your comments so that the text doesn't fit neatly inside 2. Next, go to the VIEW tab and click on the arrow attached below [Macro] and choose Record Macro 4
3. Set up a Shortcut key: by clicking in the box and pressing <Shift c> - note that while <Ctrl Shift c> will run the macro, <Ctrl c> is still set to Copy 4. Repeat step 2 but choose Stop Recording 5. Now click on the [Macro] button itself and choose [Edit] - Macro1 should already be selected You are now taken into the Visual Basic editor. Don't worry too much about this if you have never seen it before, just amend the macro to read as below (take great care to type it in correctly): 6. Sub Macro1() ' Macro1 Macro ' Keyboard Shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+C Dim MyComments As Comment For Each MyComments In ActiveSheet.Comments MyComments.Shape.TextFrame.AutoSize = True Next End Sub 7. [Close] the Visual Basic window the changes are saved automatically 8. Press <Ctrl Shift c> - you'll find the frames now fit the comments perfectly Additional Comment Options Two further comment settings are to be found in the Excel Options settings. These let you hide the comment indicators (the red triangles) and alter the default heading which appears in each comment. 1. Move to the FILE tab and choose Options at the foot on the left 2. Click on General and note the User name: setting - this is what is used for the comment heading. Note that the User Name cannot be blank - this field must contain at least one character 3. Click on Advanced and under the Display heading note the No comments or indicators option - choosing this turns off the red indicators 4. Press <Enter> or click on [OK] to close the Excel Options dialog box and save the settings Reset either or both of these options, if you like, and note their effect (you'll need to insert a new comment to see any change to the User name). Printing Cell Comments By default, comments are not printed. However, you can print them either as displayed or on an extra sheet. 1. On the PAGE LAYOUT tab click on the Page Setup group arrow on the far right of the group name 2. On the Sheet tab, click on the list arrow attached to the Comments: box under the Print heading 3. Note the alternative settings - choose At end of sheet 4. Click on [Print Preview] to see the results You will find the comments appear on a separate sheet. This may or may not be what you would like - change the Page Setup again if necessary (but you would need to display the comments first, to see them). 5. Click on the HOME tab then [Close] the workbook - there's no need to save it Trademark owned by Microsoft Corporation. Screen shot(s) reprinted by permission from Microsoft Corporation. Copyright 2014: University of Reading Last Revised: November 2014 5