M icros oft Exce l2003

Trick s 'n Tips

D atas h e e t

Copy righ t2008 Proph e tTe ch nol

ogie s Pty Ltd
ISBN 9 78-0-9 8049 22-0-0

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Al ik e 2.5 A ustral ia Lice nse . To vie w a copy ofth is l ice nce , visit
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or, (b) se nd a l e tte r to Cre ative Com m ons, 171 2nd Stre e t, Suite 300, San Francisco,
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te rnative
lice nce arrange m e nts.

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2003.com or w rite to
PO Box 70, StLe onards, NSW 159 0 A ustralia

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Al
le xam pl
e s provide d in th is w ork are com pl e te fiction.
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lform ul
as and cal cul ations de scribe d in th is w ork can notbe re l
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Vie w ing S ugge s tion

Th is e l
e ctronic docum e nth as be e n de signe d for vie w ing dire ctl
y w ith A dobe
A crobatR e ade r or printing to an ISO A 5 size book l e t.

Cove r Ph oto Am atue r ph oto tak e n at th e s ite of th e Th e Tw e l

ve Apos tl
es
l
ocate d al ong th e Gre at O ce an Road in Aus tral ia.
 H ow do I H ow do I
H ow do I s e e allth e h igh ligh ta ce ll
cre ate a s e rie s form u las on a bas e d on s pe cial
of nu m be rs ? w ork s h e e t? conditions ?
Page 1 Page 3 Page 5

M icros oft Exce l2003

Trick s 'n Tips

H ow do I
H ow do I cre ate cou ntth e ce lls
an IF form u la? th atonly m e e t
m y crite ria?
Page 8 Page 12

H ow do I H ow do I
s u m a s e tof h ide s om e of
nu m be rs th at m y w ork s h e e ts ?
m e e tm y crite ria?
Page 18 Page 23

H ow do I
H ow do I fre e ze h e adings s o H ow do I
look u p ans w e rs in I don'tlos e th e m m ak e m y
anoth e r table? w h e n I s croll w ork s h e e ttabs
arou nd? colou rfu l?
Page 26 Page 32 Page 35
H ow do I cre ate a s e rie s of num be rs ?

Au tom atic Se rie s Com pl

e tion

Th e re are m any tim e s w h e n you w ant to cre ate a s e rie s of num be rs or date s
acros s a row or col um n. You can cre ate a s e rie s m anually by typing 1, 2, 3, … into
th e ir re s pe ctive ce l
ls or by us ing a form ul
a s uch as C4+ 1, C5+ 1, e tc.

M icros oft Exce lprovide s a conve nie nt s h ortcut to cre ating a s e rie s , s im pl y by
s tarting th e firs t and s e cond ce l
ls in th e s e rie s , s e l
e cting th e tw o ce l
ls and th e n
dragging s e l e ction are a out to th e re q uire d s e t of ce l ls.

Sce nario –Cre ating a s e rie s of ye ars

Cons ide r a cas h fl ow tabl e th at s um m aris e s th e incom e and e xpe ns e s ove r a
s e rie s of ye ars as s h ow n be low .

Ste p 1: Ente r th e firs t tw o ye ars of th e s e rie s

To cre ate a s e rie s w e ne e d to te l lExce lw h at th e s e rie s is . In our e xam pl

e Ce l
lB3
is “01/01/2000” and C3 is “01/01/2001” as s h ow n be l ow . Note th at th e ce l
l
form atting in th is e xam pl e is s e t s o th at onl
y th e ye ar is s h ow n.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 2: Se l
e ct th e ce l
ls th at s h ow firs t and s e cond e l
e m e nts of th e s e rie s

Cl
ick -and-drag w ith th e m ous e to s e l
e ct ce l
ls B3 and C3.

Ste p 3: Cl ick -and-drag th e b ottom -l

e ft corne r of th e ce l
land drag to
com pl e te th e s e rie s

Us e th e m ous e to cl
ick -and-h ol
d th e bottom -l
e ft corne r of ce l
lC3.

Th e drag th e s e l
e ction out untilG3. Th e s cre e n s h oul
dlook s im il
ar to be l
ow .

O nce th e s e rie s re gion is s e l

e cte d th e n re l
e as e th e m ous e button.

Finis h : Exce lw il
lautom atical
ly com pl
e te th e s e rie s for th e s e l
e ction.
H ow do I s e e al
lth e form ul
as on a w ork s h e e t?

Vie w Form u l
ae In Ce l
ls

Som e tim e s it is h andy to vie w (and print) th e form ul ae in al lth e ce l

ls in a
s pre ads h e e t w ith out h aving to m anual ly e nte r e ach ce l l. Be ing abl e to vie w all
th e form ul ae m ak e s it e as ie r to de bug our ow n s pre ads h e e ts as w e l las m ak ing it
s im ple r to unde rs tand oth e r pe opl e ’s s pre ads h e e ts .

Sce nario –Vie w ing th e form ul

ae in a tab l
e.
You m ay h ave a tabl e th at contains a l is t of nam e s (Col
um n A), th e ir ne t w e al
th
(Col um n B) and th e num be r of ye ars th e y h ave be e n w ork ing (Col um n C). Be h ind
th e s ce ne s th e s pre ads h e e t cal
cul
ate s th e am ount of m one y e ach pe rs on m ade
(Col um n D ) and th e ave rage am ount m ade acros s our s am pl e se l e ction (Ce l lD 19 ).
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 1: Pre s s th e Ctrland ~ k e ys on th e k e yb oard at th e s am e tim e to

vie w .

Pre s s ing th e Ctrland ~ k e ys s h ow s th e form ulae in e ve ry ce l lon th e w ork s h e e t.

You are now abl e to vie w th e unde rlying l ogic of th is s pre ads h e e t.

H el
ping Note : In th is curre nt vie w you can print th is page out to your printe r.

Ste p 2: Pre s s th e Ctrland ~ k e ys to re turn to th e norm alvie w .

H ow do I h igh l
igh t a ce l
lbas e d on s pe cialconditions ?

Cond itionalForm atting

Th e re are m any occas ions w h e re you m ay w ant to h ave Exce lch ange th e
form atting of a ce l
land its conte nts de pe nding on th e val ue in th e ce ll. Th is coul d
be h andy to h igh l
igh t s e ctions of your s pre ads h e e t bas e d on diffe re nt s ce narios .

Sce nario –Bank Account Bal

ance
You m ay h ave a ce l lth at contains th e totalbalance of al
lyour bank accounts and
it ge ts h igh l
igh te d in ye l
low if th e balance fal
ls be l
ow $0.

Th e figure be l
ow s h ow s th e s pre ads h e e t w ith a “Ne t Val
ue ” > $0.00. Th e
form atting of th is ce l
lis in its norm alform at.

For financials e curity w e w ant Exce lto h igh l

igh t th e “Ne t Val
ue ” (ce l
lC9 ) w h e n
th e ne t val
ue am ount drops be l ow $0.00.

Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e ce l
lw e w ant to appl
y conditionalform atting to
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 2: Se l
e ct th e Conditional
Form atting m e nu ite m as s h ow n righ t

Ste p 3: Te l
lExce lw h at th e s pe cialform atting conditions are

Ste p 4: Pre s s th e
Form at b utton to
s e t th e form at of
th e ce l lw h e n th is
condition is m e t
Ste p 5: Pre s s O K to acce pt th e conditions and conditionalce l
lform atting

In th e Form at Ce l
ls dial
og box, pre s s th e O K button to acce pt th e conditionalce l
l
form at.

In th e ConditionalForm atting dial

og box, pre s s th e O K button appl
y th e
conditions .

Le t us as s um e th at w e w e nt out s h opping th at day and s pe nt $2,000 us ing Cre dit

Card 1 and update d ce l lC6 to re fl e ct th is ch ange . As you can s e e , th e Ne t Val
ue
h as droppe d be l ow $0 and th e ce l lautom atical ly h igh l
igh ts th is .
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

H ow do I cre ate an IF form ul

a?

IF State m e nts

Norm al ly w e calculate th e val

ue of a ce llbas e d on th e value in anoth e r ce l l
, for
e xam ple m ul tipl
y a value by 4 and put th at ans w e r in anoth e r ce l l
. O ccas ional l
y
w e w ant to cal cul
ate th e value of a ce l
lonly if a ce rtain crite ria is m e t.

Sce nario –Appl

ying an autom atic dis count on an invoice .
In th is e xam ple w e w ant to cre ate an invoice th at autom atical
ly appl
ie s a 10%
dis count if th e originalval ue of th e orde r e xce e ds $100.

Th e figure be l
ow s h ow s a s am pl
e invoice s pre ads h e e t. Each line (Line s 4, 5, 6
and 7) is individual ly tall
ie d and th e n s ubtotal
le d in Ce l lE9 .

Ste p 1: Se l e ct
th e ce llth at
w illcontain
th e conditional
cal culation (IF
s tate m e nt).

Click on th e E10
ce l
l.
 Ste p 2: Se le ct th e Pas te Function M e nu ite m
as s h ow n righ t

Ste p 3: Se l
e ct th e IF s tate m e nt from th e Pas te Function s e l
e ction b ox

In th e Pas te Function dial

og box, s e l
e ct “Logical ” from th e Function Cate gory and
“IF” from th e Function Nam e th e n pre s s th e O K button.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 4: Ente r th e conditionalform ul

a into th e Pas te Function h e l
pe r

H el
ping Note : You can m ove th e h e l pe r box around th e s cre e n by cl
ick -and-
dragging anyw h e re in th e gre y are a of th e box.

Th e “Logical _te s t” fie l

d de te rm ine s w h at s pe cialconditions w e w ant to appl y. In
th is cas e , th e s pe cialcondition is w h e n th e s ubtotalfie l d (Ce l
lE9 ) is gre ate r th an
$100.00 (100).
In th e circum s tance s w h e re th e Logical _te s t is “True ” th e n th e “Val
ue _if_true ”
fie l
d is appl ie d. In th is cas e th e s ubtotalfie ld (E9 ) e xce e ds $100.00 (E9 =$270.40)
s o th e Logical _te s t is true and w e w ant to appl y a dis count of 10% to th e s ubtotal
am ount (form ul a = -10% *E9 ).

In th e circum s tance s w h e re th e Logical _te s t is “Fal

s e ” th e n th e “Val ue _if_fal se ”
fie l
d is applie d. In our form ul a w e w ant a dis count of $0.00 appl ie d w h e n th e
s ubtotalfie ld (E9 ) is l
e s s th an or e q ualto $100.00.

Pre s s th e O K button w h e n you are s atis fie d th at th e form ul

a is corre ct.

In our e xam pl e th e s ubtotalval

ue is $270.40, w h ich e xce e ds th e $100.00
th re s h ol
d s o a 10% dis count is appl ie d.

If for s om e re as on w e de cide d not to orde r any Exe cutive Gift Se ts (D 7=0) th e n

th e s ubtotaldoe s not e xce e d th e $100.00 th re s h ol
d and no dis count is appl ie d.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

H ow do I count th e ce l
ls th at onl
y m e e t m y crite ria?

CO UNTIF State m e nts

O ccas ional l
y you m igh t h ave a l is t of ite m s and you w ant to count h ow m any
tim e s ce rtain crite rion is m e t. For e xam pl e you m igh t w ant to count h ow m any
D avid’s th e re are in a l is t of Ch ris tian nam e s or count h ow m any purch as e s
e xce e de d $100.00.

Sce nario –Count h ow m any “fail

s ” occurre d in a l
is t of pas s /fail
e xam re s ul
ts
In th is e xam pl
e w e h ave a l
is t of s tude nts and th e ir pas s /failre s ul
ts of a re ce nt
e xam as s h ow n be low and w e w ant to count h ow m any s tude nts pas s e d th e e xam .
Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e ce l
lw e w ant Exce lto re turn th e num b e r of PASS
m ark s in.

Us e th e m ous e to cl
ick on Ce l
lB15 to s e l
e ct th e ce l
l.

Ste p 2: Se le ct th e Pas te Function

m e nu ite m as s h ow n righ t
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 3: Se l
e ct th e CO UNTIF s tate m e nt from th e Pas te Function s e l
e ction
b ox.

In th e Pas te Function dial

og box, s e l
e ct “Statis tical
” from th e Function Cate gory
and “CO UNTIF” from th e Function Nam e th e n pre s s th e O K button.
Ste p 4: Ente r th e re q uire d inform ation into th e Pas te Function h e l
pe r

H el
ping Note : You can m ove th e h e l pe r box around th e s cre e n by cl
ick -and-
dragging anyw h e re in th e gre y are a of th e box.

Th e “Range ” fie l d de te rm ine s th e range of ce lls Exce lw il

ll ook to pe rform th e
count in. W e can e ith e r us e th e m ous e to s e le ct th e range or m anual ly type th e
ce llre fe re nce s dire ctl
y into th e te xt box. In our e xam pl e th e ce l
lrange s tarts at
B4 and goe s dow n to B13.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

H elping Note : Ce l lrange s can be a s e le ction of ce l ls , a col

um n, row or box of
ce ll
s , or a pre -de fine d nam e d range . Ce llre fe re nce s can be of any type including
“re l
ative ” (e g B4), “abs ol ute ” (e g $B$4), m ixe d re fe re nce (e g B$4), and nam e d.

Th e “Crite ria” is a conditionals tate m e nt th at is s im il ar to th e conditional

s tate m e nt in th e IF s tate m e nt. In our cas e w e w ant to count th e num be r of ce l ls
w ith “PASS” in th e ide ntifie d range . Re m e m be r th at te xt fie lds are a s pe cials ort
of fie l
d and ne e d to s tart and e nd w ith inve rte d com m as .

Pre s s th e O K button w h e n you are s atis fie d th at th e form ul

a is corre ct.

Ste p 5: Re pe at s te p 4 to count th e num b e r of fail

s.

Se l
e ct Ce l
lB16.

Us e th e Pas te Form ul
a function and s e le ct “Statis tical
” from th e function cate gory
l
is t and “CO UNTIF” from th e function l is t.

Fol
low Ste p 4 above m ak ing th e Range = B4:B13 and th e Crite ria = “FAIL
”.

Pre s s th e O K button w h e n you are s atis fie d th at th e form ul

a is corre ct.
Finis h : Th e s pre ads h e e t now counts th e num b e r of pas s e s and fail
s from
th e l
is t.

Th e s pre ads h e e t w il
lnow l
ook s im il
ar to th e figure be l
ow .
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

H ow do I s um a s e t of num be rs th at m e e t m y crite ria?

SUM IF State m e nts

SUM IF is a function th at al low s you to add toge th e r val ue s from a l is t if a

nom inate d crite ria is m e t. For e xam pl e , you m igh t w ant to totalth e am ount of
h ours w ork e d by full-tim e e m pl oye e s out of a ge ne rall is t containing ful l-tim e ,
part-tim e and cas uale m pl oye e s .

Sce nario –Cal

cul
ate th e w innings from a l
is t of s ports b e ts .
In th is e xam pl
e w e h ave a s pre ads h e e t th at lis ts th e be ts place d on w h o w il
lw in
various te nnis m atch e s on th e w e e k e nd (Col um n A), th e am ount be t on th at
m atch (Col um n B), th e odds of w inning (Col um n C), and th e pote ntialw innings
(Col um n D ). At th e e nd of th e w e e k e nd w e w il
le nte r th e re s ul
ts of e ach m atch
and w e w ant Exce lto autom atical ly cal cul ate h ow m uch our w innings are .

Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e ce l
lth at w il
lcontain th e w innings re s ul
ts

Us e th e m ous e to cl
ick on Ce l
lF13 to s e l
e ct th e ce l
l.
Ste p 2: Se le ct th e Pas te Function
m e nu ite m as s h ow n righ t

Ste p 3: Se l
e ct th e SUM IF s tate m e nt from th e Pas te Function s e l
e ction
b ox.

In th e Pas te Function dial

og box, s e l
e ct “M ath & Trig” from th e Function Cate gory
and “SUM IF” from th e Function Nam e th e n pre s s th e O K button.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 4: Ente r th e re q uire d inform ation into th e Pas te Function h e l

pe r.

H el
ping Note : You can m ove th e h e l pe r box around th e s cre e n by cl
ick -and-
dragging anyw h e re in th e gre y are a of th e box.

Th e “Range ” fie l d de te rm ine s th e range of ce l ls th at Exce lw il le xam ine to as s e s s

th e crite ria. W e can e ith e r us e th e m ous e to s e l
e ct th e range or m anual ly type th e
ce llre fe re nce s dire ctl
y into th e te xt box. In our e xam pl e th e range s tarts at ce l l
F4 and goe s dow n to ce l lF11.

Th e “Crite ria” is a conditionals tate m e nt th at is s im il ar to th e conditional

s tate m e nt in th e IF s tate m e nt. In our cas e w e w ant to s e l
e ct al
lbe ts w h e re th e
te nnis pl aye r “W on” th e m atch . In our e xam pl e type in “W on” into th e Crite ria te xt
box.
Th e “Sum _range ”
fie ld te lls Exce l
w h ich ce l l
s to add
w h e n th e crite ria is
m e t for e ach ce l lin
th e range . To put it
in anoth e r w ay, w e
w ant to add
toge th e r th e
pote ntialw innings
(Col um n D ) for
e ach m atch “W on”
in Col um n F. In our
e xam pl e w e can
e ith e r us e th e
m ous e to s e l e ct
th e range or
m anual ly type in
D 4:D 11 into th e
Sum _range te xt
box.

Pre s s th e O K
button w h e n you
are s atis fie d th at
th e form ul a is
corre ct.
Ste p 5: Com pl
e te th e s pre ads h e e t b y s um m ing th e am ount b e t.

Now th at w e k now h ow m uch w e h ave w on on our be tte r w e w ant to com pl

e te th e
s pre ads h e e t by s h ow ing h ow m uch m one y w e original
ly be t.

Ste p 5a: Se l e ct
th e ce l
lw h ich w e
w ant to cal cul ate
th e totalb e tting
am ount

Cl ick on Ce llB13 as
s h ow n be l
ow .

Ste p 5b : Cl
ick on th e AutoSum b utton

By cl ick ing on th e
AutoSum button you
can ge t M S-Exce lto
autom atical ly cal cul ate
th e col um n above it.
Us e th is function w ith
caution and be s ure to
ch e ck th e range of ce l ls
it h as autom atical l
y
se le cte d. O nce you h ave
confirm e d th at th e
range is accurate th e n
pre s s th e Ente r k e y to
confirm th e form ul a.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Finis h : Th e s pre ads h e e t now autom atical

ly cal
cul
ate s th e w innings
b as e d on th e m atch re s ul ts .

Th e s pre ads h e e t w il
lnow l
ook am azingl
y s im il
ar to th e figure be l
ow .
H ow do I h ide s om e of m y w ork s h e e ts ?

H id ing and Unh id ing W ork s h e e ts

Som e tim e s it is us e fulto h ide w ork s h e e ts from th e norm als pre ads h e e t vie w .
Com m onl y w e h ide s h e e ts th at contain l ook up table s , de faul
t val
ue s and
cons tants th at w e w ant in a s e parate s pre ads h e e t but don’t w ant it to be printe d
or vie w e d in norm alus e .

Sce nario –H iding a w ork s h e e t from norm alvie w

O ur s am ple s pre ads h e e t contains a com pute r parts price l is t. W e m ay w ant to
h ave oth e r w ork s h e e ts to re fe r to th is price l
is t but w e don’t w ant th e price lis t
ope n for vie w ing and printing e ve ry tim e w e ope n our w ork book .

Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t w e w ant to h ide from vie w .

Se l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t w e w ant to h ide from vie w by cl
ick ing on th e w ork s h e e t tab
l
ocate d at th e bottom of th e w ork s h e e t.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 2: Se l
e ct “Form at |Sh e e t |H ide ” from th e m e nu.

Go to th e top of th e Exce lw indow and cl ick on “Form at” and th e n h igh l

igh t
“Sh e e t”, w ait and th e n cl
ick on th e “H ide ” m e nu.

Finis h : W ork s h e e t is now h idde n from norm alvie w .

Th e w ork s h e e t is now h idde n from vie w . Any re fe re nce s to th is w ork s h e e t w il

ls til
l
w ork h ow e ve r th e us e r w il
lnot be abl e to s e l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t from th e tabs at
th e bottom of th e w ork book . You w il lh ave to “unh ide ” th e w ork s h e e t to be abl e
to vie w and m ak e ch ange s .

Sce nario –Unh iding a w ork s h e e t for norm alvie w

Afte r w e h ave h idde n th e w ork s h e e t from Norm alvie w w e m ay w ant to m ak e
ch ange s to it. Th e norm alm e th od of doing th is is to unh ide th e s pre ads h e e t and
place it back into norm alvie w .

Ste p 1: Se l
e ct “Form at |Sh e e t |Unh ide ” from th e m e nu

Go to th e top of th e Exce l
w indow and cl ick on
“Form at”, th e n h igh ligh t
“Sh e e t”, w ait and th e n click
on th e “Unh ide ” m e nu.
Ste p 2: Se l
e ct w ork s h e e t to unh ide .

Se l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t nam e from th e Unh ide dial og box. In our cas e w e w ant to
se l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t nam e d “H ide W ork s h e e t Exam ple ”.

Pre s s th e O K button to unh ide th e w ork s h e e t.

Finis h : W ork s h e e t is now vis ib l

e in th e norm alvie w .

Th e w ork s h e e t can now be s e e n in th e norm alvie w and s e l

e cte d us ing th e tabs
at th e bottom of th e w ork book .
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

H ow do I l
ook up ans w e rs in anoth e r tabl
e?

LO O K UP Fu nction

It is ofte n us e fulto cre ate a s pre ads h e e t w h e re th e us e r s im pl

y e nte rs s om e
inform ation and Exce lth e n l ook s up th e re q uire d inform ation and re turns th e
re s ult.

Sce nario –D e te rm ining th e e xam s tandard for s tude nts

Th is e xam pl e h as a l is t of s tude nts (Col
um n A) and th e ir e xam re s ul
ts (Col um n B)
e nte re d by th e us e r. W e th e n w ant Exce lto l
ook at th at re s ul
t and de te rm ine if it
is a fail, pas s or dis tinction s tandard.

Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e Ce l
lyou w ant th e re s ul
t to b e in

Us e th e m ous e pointe r and cl

ick on th e ce l
lw h e re you w ant th e re s ul
t to be
s h ow n.

Cl
ick on Ce l
lC4.
Ste p 2: Se le ct th e Pas te Function
m e nu ite m as s h ow n righ t

Ste p 3: Se le ct th e LO O K UP s tate m e nt from th e Se l

e ct a Function
se l
e ction b ox

In th e Pas te
Function dial og
box, s e le ct
“Look up &
Re fe re nce ” from
th e Function
Cate gory and
“LO O KUP” from
th e Function Nam e .

Pre s s th e O K
button to confirm
your s e l e ction.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 4: Se l
e ct th e de s ire d LO O K UP function from th e “Se l
e ct
Argum e nts ” dial og b ox.

M icros oft Exce lw il

lpre s e nt you w ith a “Se l e ct Argum e nts ” dial
og box. Th is is
be caus e th e LO O KUP function can be us e d in diffe re nt w ays . W e ne e d to te l lExce l
h ow w e w ant to us e th e LO O KUP function s o it can pre s e nt us w ith th e m os t
us e fulPas te Function h e l pe r for our ne e ds .

In our e xam pl
e w e w ant to s e l
e ct th e th re e -argum e nt h e l
pe r. Cl
ick on
“look up_value ,l
ook up_ve ctor,re s ult_ve ctor” row .

Pre s s th e O K button to confirm your s e l

e ction.

Ste p 5: Ente r th e re q uire d inform ation into th e Pas te Function h e l

pe r.

H el
ping Note : You can m ove th e h e l pe r box around th e s cre e n by cl
ick -and-
dragging anyw h e re in th e gre y are a of th e box.

Th e “Look up_val ue ” de te rm ine s w h ich ce llExce lw illl ook in to de te rm ine th e

s e arch val ue . W e can e ith e r us e th e m ous e to s e l
e ct th e ce l
lor m anual l
y type th e
ce l lre fe re nce dire ctl y into th e te xt box. Note th at th is is a s ingle ce l l
. In our
e xam pl e w e w ant to us e th at l ine s re s ul
t ce l
l(Ce llB4) as th e l ook up val ue .

Th e “Look up_ve ctor” is th e range of val ue s th at Exce lcom pare s th e

“Look up_val ue ” to. W e al w ays s tart w ith an “{ “ brack e t, th e n th e l
ow e s t num be r,
ne xt num be r, ne xt num be r untilw e re ach th e m inim um val ue of th e h igh e s t
group, th e n e nd th e l
is t w ith a “}” brack e t. For our e xam pl e w e e nte r
“{ 0,0.5,0.75}” into th e “Look up_ve ctor” te xt box.

Th e re are a num be r of rul

e s th at th e Look up function us e s .

Rul e 1: In th e cas e s w h e re th e “Look up_val ue ” is s m al

le r th an th e l
ow e s t val
ue in
th e “Look up_ve ctor”, th e re s ul t w il
lby “# N/A e rror”.

Rule 2: If an e xact m atch is not m ade th e n th e re s ul

t w il
lbe th e l
arge s t val
ue in
“Look up_ve ctor” th at is l
e s s th an or e q ualto th e “l
ook up_value ”.

H el
ping Note : M icros oft Exce ls tore s pe rce ntage s as a de cim al(0.00) num be r.
Exam ple re s ul
ts of 0% to 100% e q uate to a de cim alrange of 0.00 to 1.00.
Th e “Re s ul t_ve ctor” is th e range of val ue s th at Exce lw il ll
ook at to re turn th e
re s ult. If “Look up_val ue ” is th e s am e as th e th ird ite m in th e “Look up_ve ctor” l is t
th e n Exce lw il lre turn th e th ird ite m in th e “Re s ult_ve ctor” lis t. For our e xam pl e,
w e e nte r th e th re e grade s th at w il lbe re turne d, { “Fail”,”Pas s ”,”D is tinction”}.

Pre s s th e O K button to confirm your s e l

e ction.
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 7: Copy th e e q uation to al

lth e re q uire d re s ul
t ce l
ls.
Us e th e m ous e and cl ick on Ce l
l
C4 to s e l
e ct th e e q uation w e
w ant to copy.

Copy th e ce l
lby e ith e r

M e th od 1) pre s s ing Ctrland C at th e s am e tim e , or

M e th od 2) pre s s ing th e copy button in th e tool

bar.

Se le ct th e range of ce l l
s from
C5 to C10. You can do th is
w ith th e m ous e by cl ick -and-
h olding th e m ous e on ce l lC5
and th e drag-and-re l e as e th e
m ous e ove r ce llC10. Th e
s cre e n w il
llook s im il
ar to
figure to th e righ t.

Now pas te th e ce l
linform ation into th e h igh l
igh te d range . You can do th is by
e ith e r

M e th od 1) pre s s ing Ctrland Vat th e s am e tim e , or

M e th od 2) pre s s ing th e pas te button in th e tool

bar.
Finis h : Th e s tandard w il
lb e s h ow n as s oon as th e re s ul
ts are e nte re d b y
th e us e r.

Th e s pre ads h e e t w il
lnow l
ook s im il
ar to th e figure be l
ow .
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

H ow do I fre e ze h e adings s o I don’t l

os e th e m w h e n I
s crol
laround?

Fre e z e Pane s

M S-Exce lis a us e fultoolfor pre s e nting data on a page . Th e re com e s a point

w h e re th e data be ing pre s e nte d doe s fit on th e s cre e n and w e h ave to s crol l
dow n and acros s to s e e th e inform ation. If you s crol ldow n e nough th e n it
be com e s difficul t to k now w h at h e adings re l ate to e ach colum n. Th e s am e appl ie s
to row h e adings w h e n w e s crol lrigh t. Th e w ay to go about th is is to te l
lM S-Exce l
to fre e ze th e h e adings s o th at w h e n you s crol loff th e page you can s tills e e th e
h e adings . Th is is cal le d “Fre e ze Pane ”.

Sce nario –Form atting a l

arge tab l
e to m ak e it e as y to re ad
You m ay h ave a l arge tim e s h e e t s ys te m th at lis ts th e pe opl
e involve d in a proje ct
dow n th e le ft-h and s ide and th e h ours w ork e d acros s th e page . W e w ant to
form at th e page s o th at th e us e r can s crol lle ft and righ t, as w e l
las up and dow n
and s til
ls e e th e w e e k s h e adings and th e te am m e m be rs nam e .

Th e figure be l ow s h ow s th e s pre ads h e e t in a norm alform at. W ith th is de faul t

vie w , th e us e w ould not be abl e to s crol lrigh t and s til
ls e e th e re s ource nam e
conne cte d to e ach w e e k .
Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e firs t ce l
lw h ich contains data

For th e fre e ze pane function to w ork , you ne e d to te l lM S-Exce lw h at is a h e ading

and w h at is data. To do th is you m us t s e l e ct th e ve ry firs t ce llw h ich contains data
in it. Exce las s um e s th at e ve ryth ing above and to th e l e ft of it is a h e ading for th e
tabl e.

Cl
ick on Ce l
lB5 as s h ow n be l
ow .

Ste p 2: Se le ct “W indow |Fre e ze

Pane s ” m e nu ite m from th e m e nu
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Finis h : Th e W ork s h e e t w il
lnow h ave b l
ack l
ine s s ignifying th e l
ocation
of th e h e ading

Th e row and col um n h e adings are now froze n. Th is allow s th e us e r to s crol

lallth e
w ay to th e righ t and al lth e w ay dow n th e bottom of th e tabl e and be s til labl
e to
vie w th e re s ource nam e s and w e e k s w ork e d.

H elping Note : If you w ant to unfre e ze th e colum ns and row h e adings th e n go to

“W indow |UnFre e ze Pane s ”. Th is w illtak e th e tabl
e back to its de faul
t s tate .

H elping Note : You can fre e ze jus t th e top row s by s e l e cting th e firs t row w ith data
in it and th e n us ing th e fre e ze function. Th is m e th od doe s not fre e ze and
col um ns . Th e s am e principl e can be us e d to fre e ze colum ns but not row s .
H ow do I m ak e m y W ork s h e e t tabs col
ourful
?

Ad d ing Col
ou r to W ork s h e e ts

It is ofte n nice to add a touch of col our to your w ork s h e e ts . As a ne w function to

M S-Exce l2003, you are now abl e to e as il
y col
our individualw ork s h e e t tabs . For
e xam pl e , you m ay w ant to col
our a s um m ary w ork s h e e t bl ue to h igh l
igh t its
im portance to th e us e r.

Sce nario –Cre ating e xcite m e nt on a b l

ank w ork s h e e t
O ur s am ple s pre ads h e e t h as a bl
ank w ork s h e e t w ith a dul
lgray tab. In th is
e xam pl e w e w il
lch ange th e col our from gray to a m ore e xciting col our.

Ste p 1: Se l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t tab w e w ant to ch ange th e col
our of

Se l
e ct th e w ork s h e e t tab w e w ant to ch ange th e col our of by cl
ick ing on th e
w ork s h e e t tab l
ocate d at th e bottom of th e w ork s h e e t.

Ste p 2: Se l
e ct th e ch ange Tab Col
our dial
og b ox

M e th od 1: Righ t-Cl ick on th e

w ork s h e e t tab w e w ant to ch ange
th e col our of, as s h ow n be low .

M e th od 2: Se l
e ct “Form at |
Sh e e t |Tab Col or… ” from th e
m e nu
 M icros oft Exce l2003 Trick s 'n Tips

Ste p 3: Se l
e ct th e col
our on th e col
our pal
e tte ch art

Se le ct th e col our you w ant to ch ange th e

w ork s h e e t tab to on th e Form at Tab Col or
dial og box (s h ow n be l ow ). In th is e xam pl
e,
w e w ant th e tab to be gol d in col our.

Finis h : Th e W ork s h e e t tab is now th e col

oure d

Col oure d w ork s h e e t tabs l

ook diffe re nt de pe nding on th e ir s e l
e ction s tate . Th e s e
tw o “l
ook s ” are s h ow n be l ow .

Se l
e cte d W ork s h e e t Tab Vie w :

Back ground W ork s h e e t Tab Vie w :