Technology Q&A

Q. When I create a new customized workbook in Excel, I usually need to set up as many as a dozen worksheets in that file, some with similar formatting. Is there a way to set the formatting style for them all at once?

A. There is, and it’s very easy. You can create a style that affects all or just some of the sheets. If you want the style to affect all, right click on any worksheet tab to produce this screen:

Click on Select All Sheets and whatever formatting you set for that tab will affect all the others. If you want to affect only some sheets, hold down the Ctrl key as you click the appropriate sheet tabs to create a group. Then start your formatting.

To ungroup the selection (no matter whether you’ve previously selected all of them or just some of them), right click on any tab in the group and choose Ungroup Sheets.

Q. My version of Word contains a Close icon (for closing an open file). But in Excel, there’s just the word Close—no icon. What’s up? Do I have an economy version of Excel—one with limited icons?

A. No, all copies of Excel are that way. It must be an oversight by Microsoft. However, it’s easy enough to correct just by copying a Close icon from another application and pasting it into Excel. Icon copying is possible between all Microsoft applications.

In fact, as I was thinking about your question, it occurred to me that the solution opens some interesting possibilities for a handy and easy way to customize icon displays in any application.

Here’s how to add the icon in Excel, recognizing that this method can be adapted to other applications, too. First open Excel and click on Tools, Customize, and when the dialog box opens, click on the Commands tab and then on File. Scroll down to the word Close (notice there is no icon) and, using your mouse, drag the word to your toolbar.

Now open Word, and again click on Tools, Customize, and when the dialog box opens, click on the Commands tab and then on File. Scroll down to the Close icon and drag it to the toolbar.

Once it’s in the toolbar, right click on the icon, and in the screen that appears choose Copy Button Image.

Then switch back to Excel, put your cursor over the word Close and right click, again evoking the above screen. This time select Paste Button Image while your cursor hovers over the word Close and—presto!—the icon appears. Finally, click on Modify Selection, choose Default Style and click on Close to quit the dialog box.

This technique can be adapted if you want to customize other functions with an icon of your choice.

Q. Is there a way to change the format of Comments, which are attached like sticky notes to an Excel cell?

A. Yes, you can easily change the font and type style in individual Comments or, with a few extra steps, change the default setting for all ToolTips, which is what a Comment is.

To change an existing Comment format, put your cursor over the cell, which will show a red triangle to indicate the Comment’s presence, and right click. Select Edit Comment in the following menu:

	Now highlight the words you want to reformat and again right click. That will bring up this menu:

Click on Format Comment to bring up the menu below and proceed to format the text.

Although there is no way within Excel to change the default characteristics, you can make changes in Windows. However, any change in Windows will affect the ToolTips in all your other Microsoft applications. Here are the steps:

Minimize or close all applications and right click on any area of the desktop itself to evoke the Windows’ Context menu. Click on Properties.

That brings up the Display Properties menu.

Click on the Appearance tab, and in the Items drop-down list, select ToolTip and use the Font and Size controls to select the characteristics you want. Click on OK.

Q. I prepare model Excel spreadsheets for different groups of people who generally are not—how should I say it—financially or spreadsheet nimble. So when they see that dreaded #DIV/0 error they panic, even though I’ve explained to them that all it means is that Excel (or anyone else, for that matter) can’t divide a number by 0 and Excel shows it as an error by displaying #DIV/0. Is there a way to eliminate that error message?

A. Well, you can’t change the fundamental laws of mathematics, but you can program Excel to explain to novice users what they must do to correct the “error.” One easy way is to apply the IF() function so that if someone tries to divide a number by 0, instead of showing the dreaded #DIV/0, the cell’s message will read something like this: “Please enter a divisor other than 0.” The formula to do that is:

IF(DIVISOR = 0, “Please enter a divisor other than 0”, DIVIDEND/DIVISOR)

So, if you’re dividing B2 by C2, the formula would be:

=IF(C2=0,“Please enter a divisor other than 0”,B2/C2)

This is what it looks like in Excel—with and without the IF formula:

Of course, you can tailor the message to say something else.

Shortcuts A fast way to find a name in your Windows’ address books: Click on Start, Search (in Windows 98, it’s Find), People to open this window: Highlight People and enter the name (first, last or both) and your computer will search all the Windows databases for matches. Once the name is found, click on Add to address book and it does just that. To delete a file without it’s automatically going to the Recycle Bin, hold down the Shift key while pressing Delete. To return to the place in a document where you left off before saving, open the document and press Shift+F5. For a full list of all the Word commands, their descriptions and default shortcuts, go to www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/General/CommandsList.htm. The list is downloadable in Excel format.

Q. Sometimes I get e-mails that contain imbedded URLs. They’re really convenient because all it takes is a single click to get to the targeted Web page. How do you insert one into a document?

A. It’s easy to do—just insert them as hyperlinks. To do that, type the URL in your document or e-mail and highlight it. Select Insert, Hyperlink, and a dialog box pops up.

The URL will automatically appear in the Type the file or Web page name box. Click on OK and the hyperlink will appear in the document underlined and in color.