2. Using Range Names

Although ranges enable you to work efficiently with large groups of cells, there are some disadvantages to using range coordinates:

• You cannot work with more than one set of range coordinates at a time. Each time you want to use a range, you have to redefine its coordinates.

• Range notation you’re intuitive. To know what a formula such as =SUM(E6:E10) is adding, you have to look at the range itself.

• A slight mistake in defining the range coordinates can lead to disastrous results, especially when you’re erasing a range.

You can overcome these problems by using range names, which are labels applied to a single cell or to a range of cells. With a name defined, ...

Get Formulas and Functions: Microsoft® Excel 2010 now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.