cma-ss excel tips

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Conditional Format 2ControlsBlanksProtectionFormat TextConditional FormatLook UpCameraIndexText FunctionsSubtotalsUnique Recordssheet 1

An updated version of this file, with a new Excel tip, is e-mailed each month by CMA Spreadsheet Solutions. If you'd like to receive a regular free copy, please contact us at [email protected] or telephone 01438 212680

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CMA Spreadsheet Solutions

If you've got a large data table it's often worth highlighting alternate lines to make it more readable

1. Using the mouse, highlight the range c6 to h39. Or click anywhere in the table and then click on <ctrl>, <shift> and <8> simultaneously.

2. On the main menu bar, click on <Format>, then <Conditional Formatting>. Then change the drop down list to show "Formula Is" in place of "Cell Value Is". Then, in the long blank space, enter =MOD(ROW( ),2)=0

3. Then click on the <Format> button, then select the <Patterns> tab, then choose a colour. Finally click <OK> twice.

4. As an alternative you could change the font (click on the <Font> tab rather than <Patterns>), or you could highlight every third row by changing the number 2 in the formula to a number 3

5. To remove the highlighting, click on <Format> then <Conditional Formatting> then <Delete>. Put a tick against <Condition 1> then click <OK> twice

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250 212825 77891 512

93 899948 261149 789189 345853 976966 366312 865854 278695 680259 842206 476871 731

31 975923 732773 559

30 54367 923

11 284901 755318 316808 418738 611749 32218 896348 362743 630345 683163 844

32 196479 948

58 827


On this sheet we're looking at two ways of controlling the data that goes into a cell

1. The control to the right of this text box is a "Combo Box". In this case it allows the user to select any of the names that appear in the list from cell k11 to k22 by clicking on the downward-pointing arrowhead. The output of the control is the position in the list that the name occupies, and in this case the output is placed in cell k8. In cell k9, we use the "Index" function to turn this back into as name.

2. The range of cell containing the list, and the output cell, are both specified in the following way. Right click on the control, then click on <Format Control>. Click on the <Control> tab, and you'll see that the input range has been set as k11 to k22. The cell link is where the output appears, in this case cell k8

3. The control to the right of this text box is a "Scroll Bar". Here it's being used to place a particular number in cell k34. The range has been set from 0 to 100 in steps of 5. Again, right click on the control, then click on <Format Control> and on the <Control> tab. You'll see, among other things, the maximum and minimum vales, and the linked cell.

4. How do you add controls to a worksheet? By clicking on the <Forms> toolbar, then drawing the control on your worksheet.If your <Forms> toolbar isn't visible, click on <View>, then <Toolbars> then click on <Forms>


8Nothern Ireland

EastSouth WestNorth ScotlandNorth EastCentral ScotlandSouth EastLondonNothern IrelandMidlandsYorkshireWalesNorth West

5

1-Jan-033-Jan-03

12-Jan-0315-Jan-03

21-Jan-03

26-Jan-0330-Jan-032-Feb-03

4-Feb-035-Feb-03

13-Feb-0322-Feb-0326-Feb-037-Mar-03

8-Mar-0312-Mar-0321-Mar-0324-Mar-0330-Mar-039-Apr-03

14-Apr-0320-Apr-03

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25-Apr-0326-Apr-0327-Apr-032-May-038-May-038-May-03

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25-May-033-Jun-039-Jun-03

13-Jun-0315-Jun-03

21-Jun-0325-Jun-035-Jul-039-Jul-03

13-Jul-03


On this sheet we're looking at ways of dealing with blank cells. In one case, we just want to delete them - in the other case we want to copy down the value from the cell immediately above the blank.

1. Column D contains a list of dates - with some blank rows. To get rid of these, you could highlight each in turn and delete them. But this takes time with a long list!An alternative is to highlight the entire range (from D5 to D117) . Then click on <Edit>, <Go To>, <Special...>, <Blanks> and <OK>.

2. Then, click on <Edit>, <Delete>, <Shift cells up> and <OK>. The blanks have disappeared.

3. Now click on the undo button - or <Edit>, <Undo Delete> - to put the blanks back in. The next step is to fill the blank cells with the date immediately above them.

4. Highlight the entire range again, and click on <Edit>, <Go To>, <Special…>, <Blanks>, and <OK>. Now click on the "Equals" key, then the "Up arrow" key, and finally the "Ctrl" and "Enter" keys together.


15-Jul-03

27-Jul-035-Aug-036-Aug-037-Aug-03

12-Aug-0318-Aug-0323-Aug-0326-Aug-0328-Aug-03

30-Aug-033-Sep-034-Sep-03

12-Sep-0320-Sep-0325-Sep-0329-Sep-0330-Sep-032-Oct-03

10-Oct-0313-Oct-0319-Oct-0323-Oct-031-Nov-03

8-Nov-0317-Nov-0317-Nov-0326-Nov-0328-Nov-0328-Nov-035-Dec-03

13-Dec-0315-Dec-0323-Dec-03

28-Dec-035-Jan-04

13-Jan-0413-Jan-0422-Jan-0424-Jan-0426-Jan-044-Feb-044-Feb-04

11-Feb-0418-Feb-0427-Feb-04

4-Mar-04

5-Mar-0414-Mar-0423-Mar-0423-Mar-0428-Mar-0428-Mar-046-Apr-04

11-Apr-04

On this sheet we're looking at ways of dealing with blank cells. In one case, we just want to delete them - in the other case we want to copy down the value from the cell immediately above the blank.

1. Column D contains a list of dates - with some blank rows. To get rid of these, you could highlight each in turn and delete them. But this takes time with a long list!An alternative is to highlight the entire range (from D5 to D117) . Then click on <Edit>, <Go To>, <Special...>, <Blanks> and <OK>.

2. Then, click on <Edit>, <Delete>, <Shift cells up> and <OK>. The blanks have disappeared.

3. Now click on the undo button - or <Edit>, <Undo Delete> - to put the blanks back in. The next step is to fill the blank cells with the date immediately above them.

4. Highlight the entire range again, and click on <Edit>, <Go To>, <Special…>, <Blanks>, and <OK>. Now click on the "Equals" key, then the "Up arrow" key, and finally the "Ctrl" and "Enter" keys together.

RegionEast 4.7 2.8 59.6South West 4.7 2.9 61.7North Scotland 4.3 3 69.8North East 6.5 5.2 80.0Central Scotland 8.9 6.2 69.7South East 9.8 6.7 68.4London 15.6 10.8 69.2Nothern Ireland 3.4 2.5 73.5Midlands 9.6 6.3 65.6Yorkshire 7.7 5.4 70.1Wales 8.1 5.2 64.2North West 9.1 5.9 64.8


Total Sales £m

Product X Sales

£m

X sales as % of

total

On this sheet we're looking at ways of protecting cell entries from being over-written - and of hiding formulae

1. A data table has been set up in the range b10 to e22. Our objective is to allow users to change the values in the range d11 to d22 - but not any other entries on this worksheet. We also want to hide the formula that appears in cells e11 to e22

2. Firstly, mark off the cells d11 to d22 using the left mouse button. Then, on the menu bar, click on <Format>, <Cells>, <Protection> and remove the tick from the "Locked" box. Then click on <OK>

3. Secondly, mark off cells e11 to e22 and on the menu bar click on <Format>, <Cells> and <Protection>. Now click in the "Hidden" box so that a tick appears

4. Finally, click on<Tools>, <Protection> and <Protect Sheet>. Don't bother to enter a password - then click on <OK>

5. You'll now find that you can't change any of the entries on the sheet - except the values in column D. You'll also see the formulae in column E aren't displayed on the menu bar. To "unprotect", click on <Tools>, <Protection>, <Unprotect Sheet>


1. A data table has been set up in the range b10 to e22. Our objective is to allow users to change the values in the range d11 to d22 - but not any other entries on this worksheet. We also want to hide the formula that appears in cells e11 to e22

2. Firstly, mark off the cells d11 to d22 using the left mouse button. Then, on the menu bar, click on <Format>, <Cells>, <Protection> and remove the tick from the "Locked" box. Then click on <OK>

3. Secondly, mark off cells e11 to e22 and on the menu bar click on <Format>, <Cells> and <Protection>. Now click in the "Hidden" box so that a tick appears

4. Finally, click on<Tools>, <Protection> and <Protect Sheet>. Don't bother to enter a password - then click on <OK>

5. You'll now find that you can't change any of the entries on the sheet - except the values in column D. You'll also see the formulae in column E aren't displayed on the menu bar. To "unprotect", click on <Tools>, <Protection>, <Unprotect Sheet>

Too much text to fit

Eastenders


On this sheet we're looking at ways of formatting text within a cell - and across several cells

1. A string of text has been entered in cell E9. To get the text to wrap, click on the cell then on <Format>,<Cells>,<Alignment>, and check <Wrap Text>

2. Alternatively, you can click on the cell, then click in the text where it's displayed on the formula bar. Position the cursor to where you'd like a new line to start, and click on <Alt> and <Enter>

3. To merge cells together, and centre text within them, block off the range of cells (for example E16 to G16) using the left mouse button. Then click on the "Merge and Centre" button - a letter "a" with two arrows - which should be on your formatting toolbar.

4. You can also merge vertically. Undo previous merging by clicking on the cell, then on <Format>, <Cells>, <Alignment>, then uncheck the <Merge Cells> box. Now block off the range E16 to E21 then click on the "Merge and Centre" button. Now click on <Format>,<Cells>,<Alignment> and change the degree setting to 90. Finally ensure that both the horizontal and vertical text alignment boxes are set to "Center"


2. Alternatively, you can click on the cell, then click in the text where it's displayed on the formula bar. Position the cursor to where you'd like a new line to start, and click on <Alt> and <Enter>

4. You can also merge vertically. Undo previous merging by clicking on the cell, then on <Format>, <Cells>, <Alignment>, then uncheck the <Merge Cells> box. Now block off the range E16 to E21 then click on the "Merge and Centre" button. Now click on <Format>,<Cells>,<Alignment> and change the degree setting to 90. Finally ensure that both the horizontal and vertical text alignment boxes are set to "Center"

Target: 70Minimum: 65

East 4.7 2.8 59.1South West 4.7 2.9 62.4North Scotland 4.3 2.9 67.6North East 6.5 5.2 79.9Central Scotland 8.9 6.2 70.1South East 9.8 6.7 68.3London 15.6 10.8 68.8Nothern Ireland 3.4 2.5 74.1Midlands 9.6 6.3 66.3Yorkshire 7.7 5.4 69.5Wales 8.1 5.2 64.7North West 9.1 5.9 64.9


Total Sales £m

Product X Sales £m

X sales as % of total

This table shows some sales figures by region

1. In cells B2 and B3, we've entered a target for the "X sales percentage", and a minimum acceptable figure

2. The range D7 to D19 is "conditionally formatted" by clicking on Format then Conditional Formatting on the menu bar. Values that are above the target are shown in a bold blue font; those below the minimum have pink shading. Changing the values in cells B2 and B3 instantly affects the formatting of the "X sales percentage"



1. In cells B2 and B3, we've entered a target for the "X sales percentage", and a minimum acceptable figure

2. The range D7 to D19 is "conditionally formatted" by clicking on Format then Conditional Formatting on the menu bar. Values that are above the target are shown in a bold blue font; those below the minimum have pink shading. Changing the values in cells B2 and B3 instantly affects the formatting of the "X sales percentage"

RegionEast 4.7 2.8 59.1 LondonSouth West 4.7 2.9 62.4North Scotland 4.3 2.9 67.6North East 6.5 5.2 79.9Central Scotland 8.9 6.2 70.1South East 9.8 6.7 68.3London 15.6 10.8 68.8Nothern Ireland 3.4 2.5 74.1Midlands 9.6 6.3 66.3Yorkshire 7.7 5.4 69.5Wales 8.1 5.2 64.7North West 9.1 5.9 64.9


Total Sales £m

Product X Sales

£mX sales as % of total

1. In this cell, enter the name of one of the regions from column A

2. The Vlookup function has been entered in this cell. This looks up the text that's been entered in cell F7 within the range A7 to D19. It then chooses the value in the fourth column of this range on the same row



68.8

Conversion Factor

2. The Vlookup function has been entered in this cell. This looks up the text that's been entered in cell F7 within the range A7 to D19. It then chooses the value in the fourth column of this range on the same row


Total Sales £m

Product X Sales



This worksheet contains a section of the "Look Up" worksheet which has been placed here by using the camera tool. If the values in this section on the "LookUp" sheet are changed - they also change here.

1. You can add the camera icon to a toolbar by clicking on View - Toolbars - Customize, then choosing the Command tab. Scroll down in the Categories window and click on "Tools". Then in the right hand window, scroll down and click on the Camera icon. Using the left mouse button, drag this icon on to a toolbar.

2. Now go to one of the other worksheets in this file, mark off a range then click on the Camera icon that you've just installed. Then go to any other worksheet, and draw a box using the left mouse button.


Total Sales £m

Product X Sales



2. Now go to one of the other worksheets in this file, mark off a range then click on the Camera icon that you've just installed. Then go to any other worksheet, and draw a box using the left mouse button.

East 6 South East South EastSouth WestNorth ScotlandNorth EastCentral ScotlandSouth EastLondon Midlands 9Nothern IrelandMidlandsYorkshireWalesNorth West


This sheet shows how the Index and Match functions are used - and also an example of a named range

1. The Index formula is contained in cell C7. In this case, the formula uses the value in cell B7 and then looks up the corresponding value in a range. So if, for example, this cell contains the value 4, the result of the formula is the 4th value in the specified range (in this case, A7 to A19)

2. The range A7 to A19 has been named "Regions" using Insert/Name/Define on the menu bar. The range name can now be used in the formula

3. The Match function works the other way round. Here we enter a value from a list (in cell D13), and the function shows its position in the list. The zero entered at the end of the formula means that it will look for the first exact match


2. The range A7 to A19 has been named "Regions" using Insert/Name/Define on the menu bar. The range name can now be used in the formula

Text Formula Result

London TonighLondon London T

Carlton Weath ther ther

Travel News el N el N

ITV Evening 16 16

Weather 4 4

Emmerdale EmmerdaEmmerdale Weather

coronation streCoronatioCoronation Street


This sheet looks at seven of Excel's text functions 1. The eight leftmost

characters (inc spaces) in cell A82. The four rightmost characters (inc spaces) in cell A103. The middle four characters (inc spaces) in cell A12, starting in position five4. The length of cell A155. The position of the letter "t" in cell A176. The combination (concatenation) of cells A19 and A17- with a space between them7. Capitalizing the first letter of each word


Customer Manufacturer Price £ Rating1 Apple 1461 32 Apple 538 53 IBM 1293 44 Apple 900 35 Apple 1181 46 Apple 1348 47 Dell 889 48 Compaq 649 19 Dell 1132 3

10 Dell 613 111 IBM 585 212 IBM 700 413 IBM 713 514 Apple 512 515 Apple 1144 416 Apple 777 517 IBM 1432 218 IBM 599 319 IBM 735 120 IBM 1295 521 Apple 616 522 Compaq 736 523 Dell 1233 224 Apple 1098 425 Apple 1496 226 Dell 1193 227 Dell 614 128 Compaq 1222 329 Compaq 1009 430 Dell 1163 431 Dell 1163 332 IBM 1228 333 Apple 1233 134 Compaq 1452 135 Apple 925 136 Apple 1168 337 IBM 1426 338 Apple 1227 239 Compaq 649 540 Apple 1472 441 Compaq 1271 342 Dell 562 443 IBM 1220 344 Compaq 658 345 IBM 1228 146 Apple 881 147 Compaq 1199 348 Apple 1074 3


This sheet uses some of the database tools with in Excel. The table to the left lists the make of computer bought by 50 customers along with the price they paid and the rating they gave it. All the figures are completely fictitious!

1. Our task is to calculate the total amount of money spent on each make (IBM, Apple, Compaq and Dell) and the average rating given to each of them. Firstly, we sort the list by clicking an any of the cells in the range, for example B12, then click on <Data>, <Sort> and choose "Manufacturer" in the first box. Then click on OK

2. Now, with the cursor still on one of the cell sin the table, click on <Data>, <Subtotals>, then at each change in Manufacturer use function Sum and add subtotal to Price £. Then click on OK. To remove the subtotals, click on <Data>,<Subtotals>, <Remove All>

3. Now repeat stage 2, but this time use function Average and add subtotal to Rating. By clicking on the numbers 1 or 2 that are located near cell A1, you can show just the totals


This sheet uses some of the database tools with in Excel. The table to the left lists the make of computer bought by 50 customers along with the price they paid and the rating they gave it. All the figures are completely fictitious!

1. Our task is to calculate the total amount of money spent on each make (IBM, Apple, Compaq and Dell) and the average rating given to each of them. Firstly, we sort the list by clicking an any of the cells in the range, for example B12, then click on <Data>, <Sort> and choose "Manufacturer" in the first box. Then click on OK

2. Now, with the cursor still on one of the cell sin the table, click on <Data>, <Subtotals>, then at each change in Manufacturer use function Sum and add subtotal to Price £. Then click on OK. To remove the subtotals, click on <Data>,<Subtotals>, <Remove All>

3. Now repeat stage 2, but this time use function Average and add subtotal to Rating. By clicking on the numbers 1 or 2 that are located near cell A1, you can show just the totals

ManufacturerAppleAppleIBMAppleAppleAppleDellCompaqDellDellIBMIBMIBMAppleAppleAppleIBMIBMIBMIBMAppleCompaqDellAppleAppleDellDellCompaqCompaqDellDellIBMAppleCompaqAppleAppleIBMAppleCompaqAppleCompaqDellIBMCompaqIBMAppleCompaqApple


Quite often, you'll want to identify the just the different entries in a long list. In column A we've got a list of computer manufacturers with each company name appearing several times. To create a simplified list, with each company just appearing once, go through the following steps.......

1. Click on <Data> in the main menu, then on <Filter> then on <Advanced Filter>. Click on <Copy to another location> and in the <List Range> box enter A3:A51In the <Copy To> box, enter B3, then select <Unique records only> and click on <OK>

2. You should now see just the four company names appearing in the range B4:B7


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