By Byron "Buzz" Merrick, Training Specialist, University of Maryland, Baltimore (Published October 4, 2004)

“Auto” Excel

Auto Filter: Organizes your Excel data quickly and easily. Hides rows that do not have the information you desire. Displays drop-down arrows for each column, giving you a “pick list” of the values in that column. Choose a value and Excel will “filter” your sheet to show only the information you want. Can be done with multiple columns (headings). (Under Data, Auto Filter in the Menu Bar). This is by far the simplest and easiest tool ever created for data analysis!!! Try it…

Auto Calculate: An Excel tool that automatically calculates a formula and displays the results for a selected range of cells – Right Click anywhere on the status bar and choose from: SUM, Average, Min, Max, Count, Count Nums. The result will display in the Status Bar. Select another range of cells to see a new calculation automatically display. Change the Function by right clicking.

Auto Sum: Automatically begins a formula and proposes a range to add (sum) cells. Can be done for columns and rows. This combined with Auto Fill, can cut down the time you spend creating totals. After entering the data that needs to be “summed”, click in the cell where the formula will live and click the Auto Sum button – it the one that looks like the Sigma symbol. Excel will propose a formula and allow you to select (or type) other cells if you wish. Press enter to finish.

Auto Fill : Used to copy formulas (=B4+C4) or “series” (Jan, Feb, or Mon, Tues, etc.). Enter a formula and then grab the Fill Handle (black dot on the bottom right corner of a cell) and drag the fill handle to the desired location. Fill Series automatically completes a list and can also be used for custom lists.

Auto Complete: Excel “remembers” the contents of cells you’ve already typed in a column, so once you’ve typed something, it will “complete” the entry after you type just a couple of keystrokes in a cell below. A “pick list” of previously typed entries is available by right clicking on a cell and choosing “Pick From List”.

Outlook Can Be a Drag

Drag a Contact to your Inbox (to create an email message to that contact).
Drag a Calendar Item to your Inbox (to email the event to another person).

“Steal the Data, Not the Chart” for PowerPoint

Creating a chart in Excel and then copying to PowerPoint is problematic because Excel chart colors will not change to complimentary colors when you change your PowerPoint presentation colors (or design). Instead, select and copy your data in Excel and paste it into your PowerPoint Chart Wizard. Using the “Title and Chart” layout for a new slide, double click the icon to create a new chart, select and delete the data that is in the PowerPoint Chart datasheet and then paste your Excel data into it (using Control + V). Now your chart will always look great!

Buzz Merrick designs and teaches end user computer classes for the University of Maryland, Baltimore, specializing in databases and Microsoft products, especially Excel. He can be reached at bmerrick@umaryland.edu.

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