Excel 2000 in a Nutshell

Name

Edit → Fill

Synopsis

The Edit → Fill options fill the selected range of cells with the appropriate values based upon the value in the first cell in the range. With most of the fill options, Excel is basically just copying the value in the first cell (either the farthest right or top) and pasting it into the other cells in the selected range. These options work great if you want to use the same formula in each cell of a row or column, you can simply create the formula in the first cell and then use Edit → Fill to copy it into each of the remaining cells in the range.

If you select the Series option, Excel fills the cells in your selected range with values that create the type of series you specify. For example, you can create a series of dates that are exactly 15 days apart.

Edit → Fill → Down

Fills the cells in the selected range with the value of the top cell in the range. You can also select Ctrl+D. For example, in Figure 4-6, you can use the same formula in cell G3 to calculate the monthly totals by highlighting the range of cells and selecting Edit → Fill → Down. As Excel pastes the formula in each cell in column G, the formula is adjusted to sum the appropriate cells. For example, the formula pasted in cell G4 is =SUM(B4:F4).

Figure 4-6. Filling Cells with a Formula

Edit → Fill → Right

Fills the cells in the selected range with the value of the first cell on the left. You can ...