MODULE III: NAVIGATING AND FORMULAS

MODULE III: NAVIGATING AND FORMULAS Copyright 2012, National Seminars Training

Navigating and Formulas Using Grouped Worksheets When multiple worksheets are selected, the worksheets are grouped. If you type, edit, create formulas, or format entries in one of the grouped worksheets, entries in the same cell in all the grouped worksheets change at the same time automatically. 1. Select the first worksheet you want to group. 2. Hold down the [Ctrl] key if the other worksheets you want in the group are not adjacent, or the [Shift] key if they are, and select any additional worksheets you want to add to the group. 3. Select the cells or range you want to enter information into, type the desired entry, and press the [Enter] key. 4. Select the cell or range to which you want to apply formatting and apply the desired formatting. Caution: Be sure to ungroup the sheets before proceeding. You can do this by clicking one of the ungrouped sheet tabs or right-clicking one of the grouped sheet tabs and select the Ungroup Sheets command. Extreme caution: Do not save the file while grouped unless you really intend to. 2

Moving and Copying Data Between Worksheets Instead of cutting and pasting, you can move data between worksheets using drag-and-drop editing by holding down the [Alt] key as you drag. 1. Select the range you want to copy or move and then use your mouse to point to the border of the selection. Notice the pointer changes shape (Fig. 4-1) to a Move or Copy pointer. 2. Hold down the [Alt] key to move or [Ctrl] & [Alt] keys together to copy and then click on the border. Note that the pointer will now become a Move or Copy pointer. 3. Start dragging the selection down toward the destination sheet tab and just kiss the tab. 4. Continue dragging on the new sheet, then release the mouse button and the keys when you have positioned the range where you want it. Tip: To move or copy data from one workbook to another, make sure that you have the two or more workbooks open, then on the View tab in the Window group, click the Arrange All button and select one of the options in the Arrange Window dialog box (or on the Window menu, click Arrange and select one of the options). You will now be able to drag and drop data between workbooks using the steps above. 3

Creating 3-D Formulas You can create formulas on one worksheet that refer to numbers on other worksheets in the same or different workbooks. In 3-D formulas, the worksheet names are separated from the cell addresses by exclamation points (!). There are several ways to create the 3-D formula. The simplest way to remember is to start by typing an = sign. Think about each of the components you want in the formula and then select them one at a time, remembering to insert a mathematical operator between each one. Finish by clicking the [Enter] key at the end. 1. Select the worksheet in which you want to enter the formula. 2. Select the cell in which you want to enter the formula and type =. 3. Select the worksheet containing information you want to use in the formula. 4. Select the cell containing the information you want to use in the formula. 5. Type the desired mathematical operator. 6. Select the worksheet containing the next piece of information you want to use in the formula. 7. Select the cell containing the information you want to use in the formula. 8. Continue adding mathematical operators and cell addresses as needed to complete the formula. 9. Press the [Enter] key. 4

Working With Range Names You can assign a name to a cell or range in a worksheet. Once a name has been assigned, the name can be used in any instance where you can use a cell address. Advantages to using names instead of cell addresses include: 1. Names reduce the chance of error in formulas. It is much easier to recognize if the name EXPENSES is typed incorrectly. If a cell or range address is typed incorrectly, it is much harder to detect. 2. Names adapt to changes within a range because it is absolute. (For example, when rows and columns are added to or removed from the range). 3. Names are easy to recognize and maintain in formulas. (For example, the formula =TOTALSALES-EXPENSES is easier to understand than the formula B3-C3). 4. You can easily move the active cell to a named cell or range using the Name box. 5. Names created in one worksheet are available to all other worksheets in the workbook. 6. Names can refer to noncontiguous ranges or to ranges that contain blank cells, columns, or rows. 7. Names are absolute by default. If you use a name in a formula, the formula always refers to that range even if you copy or move the formula. 5

Assigning Names You can use names instead of cell references in formulas and dialog boxes. You can use the Name Box to assign range names. Simply click in the Name Box (Fig. 4-3) on the formula bar, type the desired name, and press the [Enter] key. The following rules apply to naming ranges: Names must start with a letter or an underscore. The remainder of the name can contain any character except a space or a hyphen. Avoid using the dollar sign ($), since it may be confused with an absolute reference. Names can be up to 255 characters long. You should keep them short to make them easy to use and to conserve space in formulas. Names are not case sensitive. They can be typed in either uppercase or lowercase. You should not use names that resemble cell references (such as A1). 6

Editing and Deleting Range Names 1. On the Formula tab in the Defined Names group, click the Name Manager button as shown in Fig. 4-4 (or select the Insert menu, then the Name command, then Define ). 2. Use the New, Edit, or Delete buttons in the Name Manager dialog box as necessary to edit or delete a range name. 3. Click the Close button when done. 7

Jumping to a Named Range You can use the Name Box (next to the formula bar) to jump to a named range. If the formula bar is not displayed, on the View tab in the Show/Hide group, you can select the Formula Bar check box (or use the View menu to check the Formula Bar check box to display it). 1. Click the arrow for the Name list on the formula bar. 2. Select the name of the desired range. 8

Using Range Names in 3-D Formulas A 3-D formula is when cell references in a formula refer to cells in more than one worksheet. In standard 3-D formulas, you must activate the worksheets and select the cells you want to use while you are building the formula. When using names in formulas, you can either type the name into the formula or select the name from the Paste Name dialog box. If range names are long, the Paste Name dialog box avoids typing errors. 1. Select the cell in which you want to create the formula. 2. Type = to start the formula. 3. Press the [F3] key to open the Paste Name dialog box. 4. Double-click the desired range name. 5. Type the desired mathematical operator. 6. Continue to enter names by pressing [F3] repeatedly and double-clicking on the desired range names as necessary to complete the formula. 7. Finish by pressing the [Enter] key. 9

Using Number Formats You can format cells to change the way a number appears in a cell; however, formatting does not change the underlying value. The underlying value is still used in all calculations, and it appears on the formula bar when the cell is selected. Using formatting, you can add features such as dollar signs ($), percent symbols (%), commas (,), and a fixed number of decimal places. You can apply formats to a cell either before or after you enter data, and they can be applied to one cell, a range of cells, columns, rows, or the entire worksheet. The default format for a cell with a numeric entry is the General style. You can change the format of numbers using the options in the Number group on the Home tab (or using the buttons on the Formatting toolbar), which apply preset number styles. You can also format numbers using the Number page in the Format Cells dialog box. The Number page includes other number categories such as Currency, Date, Time, Percentage, and Fraction. Some categories include options for selecting currency symbols, the number of decimal places, and the display of negative numbers. The Special category includes formats for numbers that are not calculated. These numbers are frequently found in lists and include Social Security numbers, telephone numbers, and ZIP codes. For other types of numbers that should be treated as text, you can use the Text category. Using Formatting Buttons Currency Style: Apply the Currency style to a range by selecting the Dialog Box Launcher in the Numbers group on the Home tab. This launches the Format Cells dialog box in which you can select the Number tab. (or select the Format menu, then the Cells command, and then the Number tab). On the Number page, you then select the number of decimal places and the currency symbol you want to display. You can also select a style for displaying negative numbers. 10

The Most Common Formatting Buttons Accounting Number Format: Select the range you want to format. Click the Accounting Number Format button on the Home tab in the Numbers group (or on the Formatting toolbar). Percent Style: Select the range you want to format. Click the Percent Style button on the Home tab in the Numbers group (or on the Formatting toolbar). Comma Style: The Comma style uses the Accounting format (without the $), which lines up the decimal places in a colum. Select the range you want to format. Click the Comma Style button on the Home tab in the Numbers group (or on the Formatting toolbar). Changing Decimal Places: You can increase or decrease the number of decimal places in cells using the Increase Decimal and the Decrease Decimal buttons. Because the stored number is used in calculations, results displayed in the worksheet may appear to be incorrect. Select the range of numbers with the decimal places you want to change. Click the Increase Decimal button or the Decrease Decimal button on the Home tab in the Numbers group (or on the Formatting toolbar.) Tip: One of the greatest enhancements to Excel 2010 and 2007 is the mini-toolbar (Fig. 5-6). When you right-click a cell or a range selection, you get a shortcut menu. In addition, a new mini-toolbar appears above or below the shortcut menu. 11

Creating a Custom Format If you want to format a number using a format that does not exist in Excel, you can create a custom number format. Custom number formats can contain text, hyphens, and symbols. When you create a custom number format, you can use an existing format as the basis for the new format. Custom number formats use the following conventions: A pound sign (#) indicates a placeholder and is used when you need to indicate at what position to place a comma. A zero (0) is used when a number should always be displayed. For example, if there is no number for the position, Excel will display a 0, as in 0.8. The format can contain up to four sections separated by semicolons. The first section controls the appearance of positive numbers. The second section controls the appearance of zero values. The fourth section controls the appearance of text. If only two sections exist, the first controls positive numbers and zero values, and the second controls negative numbers. Each section can be displayed in a color. You place the color name in brackets at the beginning of the section, i.e., [RED]. Text in number formats must be surrounded by quotes ( ). 1. Select the cell to which you want to apply a custom format. 2. Select the Home tab, then click the Dialog Box Launcher in the Numbers group and select the Number tab (or on the Format menu, then the Cells command, then the Number tab). 3. Select Custom in the Category list box. 4. Select the format that most closely resembles the format you want to create in the Type list box. 5. Place the insertion point in the desired location in the Type text box. 6. Make the desired changes to the format. 7. When you have finished making changes, click the OK button. After you create a custom number format, it is available in the Type list box when Custom is selected in the Category list box on the Number page in the Format Cells dialog box. Tip: To display leading zeros, create a custom number format that uses the 0 character. For example, if you want all numbers to display with 10 digits, use the number format string that follows. Values with fewer than 10 digits will display with leading zeros. 0000000000 12