Adjusting Column and Row Sizes

If you have a label that does not fit in the default size of a cell, you can make that column wider by moving the cursor to the border between the column headers, then click and drag the border to a new location to specify how wide you want the column to be:
Note that the other columns do not change size; they just all move to the right.

Double clicking on the border between the column headers will automatically adjust the column width so that it is just wide enough to fit the labels in that column. This is a quick way to resize several columns.

Row heights can be adjusted in the same ways.

To change several columns (or rows) at once, press "control" and click on columns (or rows) to select them. Click on "Format" in the menu, then select "Column," then "Width." The current column width is displayed. Overwrite the width with the desired width, and all selected columns will be resized to the new width.

To change all columns (or rows) on a sheet at the same time, click in the upper left corner of the sheet (the intersection of the column labels and row labels) to select the entire sheet. Click on "Format" in the menu, then select "Column," then "Width." The current column width is displayed. Overwrite the width with the desired width, and all columns in the worksheet will be resized to the new width.

Adding, Deleting, Copying Columns and Rows

If you need to add information between existing columns or rows, it is easy to insert a new column or row. Right click on a cell to bring up a menu of options. Select "Insert" from the menu. Your options are:

• Shift cells right - Move the contents of the selected cell and all cells to its right one column to the right, and insert a new cell here.
• Shift cells down - Move the contents of the selected cell and all cells below it down one row, and insert a new cell here.
• Entire row - Move this entire row and all the rows below it down one row, and insert a new row here.
• Entire column - Move this entire column and all the columns to its right one column to the right, and insert a new column here.

If you need to delete a cell, or an entire column or row, right click on a cell to bring up a menu of options. Select "Delete" from the menu. Your options are:

• Shift cells left - Delete the contents of the selected cell, and shift all cells to its right one column to the left.
• Shift cells up - Delete the contents of the selected cell, and shift all cells below it up one row.
• Entire row - Delete this entire row and move all the rows below it down up one row.
• Entire column - Delete this entire column and move all the columns to its right one column to the left.

You can use the "cut," "copy," and "paste" icons in the standard toolbar to move or copy one column or row to another column or row. Select a column or row, click on "cut" in the standard toolbar, then select another column or row and click "paste" to move the column or row. Use "copy" to copy one column or row into another column or row.

Formatting Labels and Values

Each cell can be formatted to display text and/or numbers in a specified way. Select a cell or a range of cells for formatting. Then right click on the selected cell or selected range of cells to get a menu of possible operations. Select "Format Cells" from the list for a menu of formatting options. Or, select "Format" from the menu bar, then select "Cells."

You can format cells after entering information, or preformat a cell or a range of cells before entering data. Click the tabs to specify formats for: Numbers (e.g. currency, fractions, dates) Alignment (e.g. left, right, center) Font (font name, size, etc) Border (around the cell or data) Patterns (e.g. color, shading) Protection (hide or lock information) Some of the most commonly used text format options are available as icons on the Format toolbar (e.g. font, size, bold, center).

You can also select from a list of predefined styles to format cells for numbers. To access the style menu, select "Format" from the menu bar, then select "Styles" for a list of preformatted options. Click the down arrow beside the Style name (default is "Normal") for a list of preformatted styles. Use the "Format Cells" menu above if none of the preformatted styles fit your criteria.

The styles to the left, when applied to "12345," look like: Normal Comma Comma [0] Currency Currency [0] Percent The "Currency," "Percent," and "Comma" styles are also available as icons on the Format toolbar.

Note that you can create, edit, and delete styles in the style menu. When you click to Modify, Add, or Delete a style, you can use the Format Cells menu to select options for numbers, alignment, font, size, color, or any other available formatting option. When you create a new style, it will be available in the style menu.

Copying and Editing Cells

You can delete (or clear) the contents of a cell while retaining the format, or clear the format while retaining the contents (when you clear the format, the cell's format reverts to "Normal"). Select the cell(s) you want to clear. Then click on "Edit" in the menu bar; select to "Clear"; then select to clear "Format" while retaining content, "Content" while retaining format, or "All" to clear both content and format.

To copy a format from one cell to another, use the "format painter" icon in the standard toolbar. Select a cell, then click the "format painter" icon; click on any other cell to copy the format to that cell. To copy a format to more than one cell, select the original cell, then double click on the "format painter" icon; click on all the cells you want to format (you can also click and drag to format a range of cells); when all the desired cells have been formatted, click on the "format painter" icon to turn the format painter function off.

To copy a format and content from one cell to another, right click on a cell to bring up a menu of options, then click to "copy" the cell. This copies the format and content of the cell. A dotted line will appear around the selected cell. Right click on any other cell, then click to "paste" into that cell. Both the format and the contents of the original cell will be pasted into the new cell. You can continue right clicking on other cells to paste the format and contents into them also. To paste to an entire range of cells, select the range, then right click anywhere within the selected range, and "paste" the format and contents into all cells in the range. When you are finished copying, double click anywhere on the worksheet to turn off the copy/paste function.

You can also use the "cut," "copy," and "paste" icons in the standard toolbar to move or copy the format and contents of one cell to another cell. Select a cell, click on "cut" in the standard toolbar, then select another cell and click "paste" to move the format and contents of the first cell to the second cell. Use "copy" to copy the format and contents of the first cell to the second cell.

Formatting Tables

To make it easy to make your data look good, Excel allows you to select from a list of preformatted tables for your data. Once you have entered your data, click anywhere in your table, then select "Format" from the menu bar, and select the "Autoformat" option. This will bring up a menu of preformatted tables. Scroll through the list to find one you like, click to select it, then click "OK" to create a table for your data.

Next: Using Formulas