How do I activate and deactivate the Fill Handle feature?
	What is a good shortcut to justify text across rows?
	What are some shortcuts for entering formulas?
	What are some common keyboard shortcuts?
	What are some of the basic Excel keyboard shortcuts?
	How does the Replace Feature work?
	How does the Repeat feature work?
	How do I use the Undo Feature?
	How do I use the Fill Handle?
	How do I use the AutoSum Feature?
	How do I use Excel's copy command?

How do I activate and deactivate the Fill Handle feature?
Keywords: Fill Handle Activate Deactivate
Posted May 20, 1996

Worksheets at times require a text series of months or days (January, February, March or Sunday, Monday, Tuesday) or a numeric series (1, 2, 3 or 1993, 1994, 1995). The fill handle enables you to enter a series of text or numbers automatically. The fill handle is the small black square in the bottom-right corner of the active cell or range.

To activate or deactivate this feature:

1. From the menu bar choose Tools - Options - Edit tab
2. Click (or un-click) the Allow Cell Drag and Drop box

To enter a text series:

1. Select the first cell of the range you want to use and enter the initial value
2. For a numeric series, enter the first two values and then select both cells
3. Place the mouse pointer over the fill handle; it will change to a plus sign (+)
4. Drag the mouse pointer until the gray border encompasses the range you want to fill
5. Release the mouse pointer; the range will be filled with the series.

What is a good shortcut to justify text across rows?
Keywords: Shortcut Justify Text Rows
Posted April 29, 1996

When entering descriptive text into cells in successive rows, we need to judge when the next word will not fit in the available display width and move on to the next row, right? Wrong! Use Excel's Edit->Fill->Justify feature. Here are the steps:

1. Enter the text any which way you want in one or more rows
2. Highlight the cells in one or more rows across the display width you wish to use up
3. Under the Edit menu, choose Fill->Justify

Now watch Excel do the hard work for you.

If you highlight cells in two rows and five columns (with the text entered in the leftmost cells), if the text will not fit in two lines of display, Excel will display the following warning message: Text will extend beyond the selected range. Press OK and the text will be automatically wrapped and fit in as many rows as are needed but within the five columns.

What are some shortcuts for entering formulas?
Keywords: Shortcut Entering Formula
Posted April 29, 1996

When entering cell references in a formula, press the function key {F4} to cycle through the four combinations of absolute and relative references.

An example will show this is a simple and useful tool. Suppose you are entering the following formula in cell $E$5:

= E$1 * ($B$5+$D5) / C5

If you start typing the equals sign and then use the mouse or keyboard to point to a cell, Excel inserts a relative reference. For instance, the first reference will be inserted as E1. If you press {F4} repeatedly, Excel will change the reference to $E$4, E$4, $E$4 and back to E4. You can highlight any part of an existing formula and use this shortcu to adjust references.

What are some common keyboard shortcuts?
Keywords: Common Keyboard Shortcut
Posted February 8, 1996
Some of the most useful keyboard shortcuts used are the select, cut, copy and paste functions. In addition to the Edit menu and the Right mouse click, these keyboard short cuts can often make your work much easier.

Start by selecting an area. Then use
Ctrl-A to select the entire page.
Ctrl-S to save an open file.
Ctrl-P to send a file to the printer.
Ctrl-Z for edit undo.
Ctrl-X to cut the selected area.
Ctrl-C to copy the selected area.
Ctrl-V to paste the selected information to the new location.
Ctrl-B for making text bold.
Ctrl-I for making text italic.

Remember, these shortcuts work in many Microsoft Applications and are often faster than using your mouse.

What are some of the basic Excel keyboard shortcuts?
Keywords: Basic Keyboard Shortcut
Posted January 17, 1996

The standard way of changing Excel's font attributes is from the menu bar, Format - Cells or from the Formatting Toolbar. Excel provides a number of keyboard shortcuts you can use to select font attributes.

• You can Right-click and choose Format Cells from the shortcut menu
• Ctrl+2 or Ctrl+B Toggles the Bold style on or off
• Ctrl+3 or Ctrl+I Toggles the Italic style on or off
• Ctrl+4 or Ctrl+U Toggles the Underline style on or off

The standard way to open/close a file is by clicking on File - Open or File - Close. The standard way to maximize or minimize a window is by clicking on the boxes in the upper right hand corner of the screen. Here are some keyboard shortcuts:

• Ctrl+F12 Display's the File Open dialog box
• Ctrl+F4 Closes a file, prompting you to save if necessary
• Ctrl+F9 Minimizes the Window
• Ctrl+F10 Maximizes a Window

How does the Replace Feature work?
Keywords: Replace Feature Shortcut
Posted January 19, 1996

Making changes that effect your entire worksheet are easy using Excel's Replace feature. From the menu bar, choose Edit - Replace. Excel displays the Replace dialog box. Enter what you want to replace in the Find What edit box. Enter the replacement text in the Replace with edit box. For a case-sensitive search, activate the Match Case check box.

If you want your search text to match the entire cell's contents, select the Find Entire Cells Only check box. To replace every instance of the text in the Find What box, click on the Replace All button. To replace only selected matches, choose Find Next and, when you find a match you want to replace, click on the Replace button.

Shortcut: Use Ctrl+H to display the Replace dialog box quickly.

How does the Repeat feature work?
Keywords: Repeat Feature Shortcut
Posted January 19, 1996

If you need to repeat a command or dialog box command, Excel's Repeat feature enables you to redo an action quickly. To use Repeat, from the menu bar choose Edit - Repeat. The command will reflect the operation you're trying to repeat.

Shortcut: Press F4 to activate Repeat without accessing a menu or Click on the Repeat tool in the Standard toolbar.

How do I use the Undo Feature?
Keywords: Undo Feature Shortcut
Posted January 19, 1996

Occasionally a mistake is made when you are editing or erasing worksheet data. Excel has an Undo Feature that enables you to recover from making mistakes. Please note that only your most recent change is stored in Excel's memory. If you make a mistake and then make further changes to the worksheet, you won't be able to undo the error.

To use Undo, from the menu bar choose Edit - Undo. The command will reflect the operation you're trying to reverse.

Shortcut: Use Ctrl+Z to activate Undo without accessing a menu or Click on the Undo tool in the Standard toolbar.

How do I use the Fill Handle?
Keywords: Fill Handle Shortcut
Posted January 18, 1996

Often you want to use a series of text or numbers in your worksheet. To enter these automatically, you can use the fill handle. The fill handle is the small black square in the bottom-right corner of the active cell or range.

To enter a text series, select the first cell of the range you want to use and enter the initial value. For a numeric series, enter the first two values and then select both cells. Place the mouse pointer over the fill handle, it will change to a plus sign (+). Drag the mouse pointer until the gray border encompasses the range you want to fill. Release the mouse pointer. The range will be filled with the series.

When used with numbers, this technique works, but will sometimes give you interesting results. If you select two or more numbers which have an unknown relationship to each other, Excel will calculate a relationship. For example:

• Selecting 1 and 2 and filling down will give you expected results: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and so on.
• Selecting 2, 8, and 14 and filling down will give you 2, 8, 14, and then 20 (2+6=8, 8+6=14, Excel calculates 14+6=20).
• However, selecting 2, 8, and 16 and filling down will give you 2, 8, 16, and then 21.66667. Here Excel is trying to figure out what you're wanting and is saying well, first you added 6 (2+6=8), then 8 (8+8=16), so I'll add 6 2/3. There is a mathematical formula for what Excel is doing, but it's not important for this example. Just understand that Excel is doing what you tell it to, even when it doesn't understand the question.

Dealing with text is another matter. Excel will "fill" from a single cell when it understands a built-in or custom series. If you select one piece of text that Excel does not understand, like Baarns, and drag the fill handle, Excel will repeat the word over and over. If you want to repeat a series on the sheet by selecting several cells, Excel is smart enough to see what you're doing and anticipate your next request. For example:

1. Enter three names Don, Ray, and Tony in cells A1, A2, and A3
2. Select all three cells
3. Use the fill handle to drag down to cell A6. You will see that the series was repeated.

You can create custom fill lists easily as well (see our FAQ on creating a custom list).

Super Tip: As you drag the fill handle, what will be placed in the cells is displayed in the Name area (the left side) of the formula bar.

How do I use the AutoSum Feature?
Keywords: AutoSum Feature Shortcut
Posted January 18, 1996

The Standard toolbar includes the AutoSum button to automatically sum a row or column of numbers. If you are summing a column, select the cell below the values. For a row, select the cell to the right of the values. Click the AutoSum button for Excel to enter the =SUM() function using the range of numbers indicated. Press Enter or click on the Enter button on the formula bar to confirm the action.

Shortcut: Use Ctrl+= (equals sign) to run the AutoSum feature.
Excel 7 Hint: If you just want to know a total without entering it into your spreadsheet, select the range of cells and look at the Sum= are of the status bar.

How do I use Excel's copy command?
Keywords: Copy Command Shortcut
Posted January 19, 1996

If you need to copy data in a cell, you could retype it or you could use Excel's copy command. Select the cell to be copied and then from the menu bar, choose Edit - Copy. Next select the cell where the data will be placed and choose Edit - Paste. If you need to enter the same data in other cells, simply select the cell and choose Edit - Paste.

If you need to move data to a different cell, select the cell and choose Edit - Cut. Then select the destination and choose Edit - Paste.

Shortcuts: Use shortcut keys for faster action: Ctrl+C to Copy, Ctrl+X to Cut, Ctrl+V to Paste. Use the tool button for each command on the Formatting toolbar.

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