This tutorial covers basic information for entering data into an Excel spreadsheet. Click on the links below to read specific information.
Plan your spreadsheet - Before you start to type
Plan Your Spreadsheet
Plan Your Spreadsheet
Before you begin entering data into a spreadsheet it is a good idea to do a bit of planning before you begin to type.
Entering your data into a spreadsheet is always a three step process. These steps are:
- Click on the cell where you want the data to go.
- Type your data into the cell.
- Press the ENTER key on the keyboard or click on another cell with the mouse.
Speeding up data entry
Many people use the mouse when moving around their spreadsheet. Using the mouse, though, is the slow way of doing anything on a computer. It's fine if you have only a small amount of data to enter or if you're not in a hurry.
To speed up your data entry use the keyboard. Below is a list of keys that you can use when you want to quickly enter your data.
- Enter key: enters the data and moves the active cell highlight down to the next cell in the current column.
- Tab key: enters the data and moves the active cell highlight to the next cell in the current row.
- Arrow keys: enters the data and moves the active cell highlight to the next cell in the direction of the specific arrow key pressed. For example, if the up arrow is pressed, the active cell highlight moves up to the next cell in the current column.
- Esc key: cancels the current data entry.
Cells and Cell References in Excel
Cells and cell references in Excel
Cell Facts
- Data is stored in cells in an Excel spreadsheet.
- Each small rectangle in a spreadsheet is a cell.
- A cell is the intersection point of a column and a row.
Column and Row Facts
- Columns run vertically in a spreadsheet and are identified by a letter.
- Rows run horizontally and are identified by a number.
- There are 65,536 rows, 256 columns, and over 16 million cells in a worksheet.
Cell Reference Facts
- To keep track of all these cells, each cell has a cell reference or address.
- A cell reference is a combination of the column letter and the row number.
- The active cell reference is shown in the name box above column A.
Using AutoComplete to Enter Data
Using AutoComplete to Enter Data
- Excel’s AutoComplete feature is intended to simplify the task of data entry.
- When entering labels down a column, if you begin typing text that has previously been entered, Excel will display a black box containing the previous entry in the cell you are entering data into.
- If you want to reenter the same text, press the Enter key and Excel enters the text for you.
- If you are entering a different label, continue typing and the AutoComplete box will go away.
Limitations of AutoComplete are:
- It only works for data being entered in columns - it will not work if you are entering text across a row.
- It only works for columns of continuous data. As soon as an empty cell is left in a column, AutoComplete is interrupted.
Turning Off AutoComplete
If you do not want to use the AutoComplete feature:
- Click on Tools > Options in the menus to bring up the Options dialog box
- Click on the Edit tab
- Remove the checkmark from the Enable AutoComplete for cell values option box.
Types of Data in Excel
Types of data in Excel There are three different types of data in Excel:
- labels
- values
- dates/times
A label is an entry that is usually used for headings, names, and for identifying columns of data. Labels can contain letters and numbers. By default, labels are left aligned in a cell.
A value contains numbers and can be used in calculations. By default, values are right aligned in a cell.
Date/time data is just that, a date or the time entered into a cell. By default, date/time data is right aligned in a cell. Sometimes dates are combined with numbers and considered to be values instead of a separate type of data.
Moving around the spreadsheet
- Home key: moves the active cell highlight to column A without changing rows.
- Ctrl + Home keys: moves the active cell highlight to cell A1.
- Ctrl + End keys: moves the active cell highlight to the last cell of the spreadsheet containing data.
- Ctrl + Down Arrow keys: moves the active cell highlight to the last row of the spreadsheet without changing columns.
- Ctrl + Up Arrow keys: moves the active cell highlight to the first row of the spreadsheet without changing columns.
- Ctrl + Page Down keys: moves the active cell highlight to the next sheet of the spreadsheet.
- Ctrl + Page Up keys: moves the active cell highlight to the previous sheet of the spreadsheet.
Editing Cells in Excel
Change Complete Cell Contents
- Click on the cell, type over the existing entry, and press the ENTER key on the keyboard.
- Method 1
- Click on the cell to make it the active cell.
- Click on the data in the formula bar.
- Delete the part to be changed and type in the new data.
- Press the ENTER key.
- Method 2
- Double click on the cell.
- Edit the part of the cell you want to change.
- Press the ENTER key.
In the example above, the highlighted numbers 5 and 6 in the formula bar can be removed by hitting the DELETE key on the keyboard and replaced with different numbers.
