Page 36 - Excel Workbook for Dummies

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Chapter 1: Entering the Spreadsheet Data 19
Instead of filling in these recognized data series with AutoFill, you can force Excel to
copy the entry you’ve made in the current cell by holding down the Ctrl key as you
drag the Fill handle. Excel indicates that it copied rather than filled a range by display-
ing a tiny plus sign to the side of the Fill handle mouse pointer.

Try It

Exercise 1-10: Entering the Same Entry and Using AutoFill
Open a new blank workbook, Book2, and then practice making the same data entry in
multiple ranges and using the Fill handle to create various data series in its Sheet1:

1. Enter today’s date, following the date format Oct-25-06, in the cell selection A1,
D3:F3, and B4:B6.
• Don’t forget to hold down the Ctrl key when you’re selecting the three
ranges in the cell selection.
• Be sure to complete the current date entry into all the cells of the selection
by pressing Ctrl+Enter.
2. Use AutoFill to create a data series with all 12 months in the cell range A8:A19
starting with January.
3. Use AutoFill to create a data series with the names of all the days of the week in
cell range C8:I8 starting with Monday.
4. Use AutoFill to create a data series with hours that go from 8:00AM to 8:00PM in
cell range C10:C22.

5. Use AutoFill to create a data series in cell range E10:H10 containing the headings
Qtr1, Qtr2, Qtr3, and Qtr4.
6. Use AutoFill to create a series in cell range E12:E21 containing 1st Team, 2nd
Team, 3rd Team, and so on all the way up to 10th Team.

7. Use AutoFill to create a data series in cell range G12:L12 that contains the name
of every other month starting with November and ending with September.
• Don’t forget that you need to indicate the every-other-month increment to
Excel (by entering January in cell H12 and then selecting the range
G12:H12) before using the Fill handle to create the data series.
8. Use AutoFill to copy the data entry Item 1 to the entire cell range G14:G19 (don’t
let this one get out of ConTRoL).

Copying a formula with the Fill handle

AutoFill is not only useful for filling in a data series or copying a static data entry to a
continuous cell range but also for copying a formula across a row or down a column of
a data table. When you copy a formula, Excel automatically adjusts the column and
row references in the copies so that they refer to the right data.

Don’t forget that Excel automatically uses the so-called relative column and row refer-
ences cell addresses in all formulas you create. If you ever need to override this so
that all or part of a cell reference is not adjusted in the copied formulas, you enter a $
(dollar sign) before the cell’s column letter or row number (you can have Excel do it
for you by pressing F4 while building the formula on the Formula bar).