How to Extract the First Word of a String in Microsoft Excel

1. Click in the cell to the right of the one you want to edit. For example, click in B2 if you want to extract the first word from cell A2.
2. Enter the following formula and then press the 'Enter' key:=LEFT(A2,FIND(' ',A2)-1)This tells Excel to find the first word in the word string in cell A2 and to extract it to cell B2 for our example.
3. Copy the formula and apply it to all cells in the preceding column. To do that, hover your mouse over the black square in the lower right corner of the cell. When your mouse pointer changes to a plus symbol, click your mouse and drag down.

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How to Make Column A the X

1. Select the data you want to use for both the x- and y-axes by clicking and holding the mouse button while selecting the cells.
2. Select the 'Line' button from the chart options on the 'Insert' tab. Select the style of the line that you want to use. In the resulting graph, Excel will have drawn columns A and B as lines.
3. Right-click the graph. After a menu appears, click the 'Select Data...' option to open the 'Select Data Source' dialog. Both 'Series 1' and 'Series 2' are listed under the 'Legend Entries' list.
4. Click 'Edit' under the 'Horizontal Axis Labels' list to open the 'Axis Labels' dialog. Click the icon that displays a red arrow, and then highlight the column on the spreadsheet that you want to denote as the x-axis. In this example, this is all the numbers in column A. Click 'OK' when finished.
5. Select 'Series 1' in the 'Legend Entries' list. Click the 'Remove' button, and then click 'OK.' The x-axis now denotes the quantities in column A.

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How to Restrict Data Entered in Excel to a Specific Length of Text

1. Open the spreadsheet document you'd like to apply the text restriction to.
2. Click the 'Data' tab, then click 'Data Validation.'
3. Click 'Settings.'
4. Select 'Text Length' in the 'Allow' field.
5. Select 'Less than or equal to' as the rule type.
6. Enter the maximum number of characters you'd like to allow in the text field.
7. Select 'Ignore blank' to not count spaces and other blank characters toward the text limit. If spaces should count toward the limit, leave this unchecked.
8. Type an optional message that will be displayed to the user if she attempts to enter too much information in the 'Input Message' field.
9. Select 'Show error alert after invalid data is entered' to make sure the user receives a notification that his text was not entered.
10. Click 'Save' to save your document.

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How to Use Excel's Hyperlink Function

1. Know what the hyperlink function does. Hyperlink creates a shortcut or jump that opens a document stored on your computer's hard drive, the Internet or on a network server.
2. Follow the syntax of the Hyperlink function, which is =HYPERLINK (link_location, friendly_name). The parameter link_location refers to the area where the document to which you wish to link is stored. Make sure you include the entire address including http:// when linking to the Internet, or the full path when linking to a document on a drive. The friendly_name parameter is optional. It tells Excel what text to display for the hyperlink. If friendly_name is blank, Excel displays the link itself. Enclose both the link_location and friendly_name parameters in quotation marks.
3. Use the Hyperlink function. If you want to link to a picture on your C: drive and make a hyperlink in Excel that displays, 'Click here to see a picture of an elephant,' then use the following formula. =HYPERLINK('c:\My Pictures\elephant.jpg', 'Click here to see a picture of an elephant'). Don't put a period at the end of the equation. If you want to link to a website such as eHow, and you want the user to see the link address on which he's clicking, omit the friendly_name parameter like this: =HYPERLINK('http://www.ehow.com'). Again, don't include a period at the end of the equation.

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How to Remove a Cell Border

1. Select the cell or cells containing the border that you would like to remove. To select a single cell click directly on it, and to select multiple cells, click the left-mouse button and drag until all of the cells are selected.
2. Click the 'Borders' drop-down menu. The 'Borders' drop-down menu is located on Home tab's Font menu on the toolbar at the top of the window. It has an image of a four squares with dotted or solid lines, indicating cells and borders.
3. Click 'No Border' from the 'Borders' drop-down menu to remove the boarder from the cell or cells selected.

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How to Use Multiple Consolidation Ranges in Excel 2007

1. Launch Microsoft Excel from the 'Programs' or 'All Programs' menu. Click the 'Office Button' in the upper left corner of the program window and select 'Open.' Navigate to the file you wish to consolidate the ranges of, and select it. Click 'Open.'
2. Click the first worksheet of the range that will be consolidated to select it. Click the 'Home' tab. Select 'Insert' and then 'Insert Sheet' to insert a new sheet for your consolidated range. Double click the sheet name tab at the bottom of the program window to select it. Type a name of your choice. Press the 'Enter' key on the keyboard.
3. Click in the upper left cell of the area where you want the consolidated data to appear. Click the 'Data' tab in the 'Data Tools' group. Click 'Consolidate.' Click the downward pointing arrow to the right of the 'Function' drop-down box, and select the function you want to use to consolidate your data.
4. Click the select range button under the 'Reference' heading. Click the tab on the bottom of the worksheet with the first range to be consolidated. Select the range of cells to be consolidated. Notice that the range appears in the 'Consolidate -- Reference' box. Click the select range button to collapse it. Click 'Add' to add the range in the 'All references' list box. Repeat this step from the beginning for all worksheets.
5. Select 'Top row' under the 'Use labels in' heading, to have the column headings appear. Click 'Create links to source data' to have the data on the consolidated worksheet automatically update when the data on the other worksheets changes. Click 'Ok' to display the consolidated range.
6. Click the 'Office Button' in the upper left corner of the program window, and select 'Save' to save the file.

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How to Make a Check Box in Excel

Display Developer Tab
1. Click the 'File' tab on the Ribbon and select 'Options' from the left panel.
2. Click 'Customize Ribbon' to display two panes.
3. Click the box next to 'Developer' to select it in the right pane. Click 'OK.'
Make Check Box
4. Click the 'Developer' tab on the ribbon.
5. Click 'Insert' and select the check box. A cross will appear on the screen.
6. Click and drag to insert a box with a check box and text. Select the text next to the check box, delete it and insert your own text.
7. Right-click the check box you created and select 'Format Control' to format it. You can modify colors and lines, change its size or add protection.

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How to Create Links in Excel 2007

1. Click the cell (text box) where you want to insert the hyperlink.
2. Click the 'Insert' tab.
3. Click 'Hyperlink' in the 'Links' group.
4. Click 'Existing File or Web Page' under 'Link to.'
5. Enter the full website in the address box. Include 'http://' in the address.
6. Type the text that you want to display as the hyperlink name in the 'Text to display' box. This is so the person viewing the document sees the text that you chose, but it appears as a hyperlink. The web address will be hidden.
7. Click 'OK' when done.

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How to Calculate Tax Gratuity in Excel

1. Label your Excel spreadsheet columns, if desired. For example, you can type 'Sale' into cell A1, 'Tax' into cell B1 and 'Gratuity' into cell C1. You can choose your font type, size and style from the formatting toolbar. You can also choose to center your typing or justify it to the right or left. If the formatting toolbar is not showing, select the 'View' tab from the top then 'Toolbars' from the drop-down menu and select 'Formatting.'
2. Format the Excel worksheet to display how you prefer. For example, to format the second row to display a dollar sign and two decimal places, click on the '2' at the beginning of row 2. Select the 'Format' tab from the top, and in the drop-down box choose 'Cells.' From the 'Category' box, choose 'Currency,' and in the 'Decimal places' box, select '2.' In the 'Negative numbers' box, choose how you prefer negative numbers to display, then click 'OK.'
3. Enter the taxable sale amount into a cell in your Excel worksheet. For example, if your taxable sale amount is $30, enter '30' into cell A1. With the suggested formatting above, Excel will display '$30.00' in the cell.
4. Create a formula to calculate the correct amount of sales tax. For example, if your sales tax rate is 5 percent, enter '=A2*.05' into cell B2. This formula tells Excel to multiply — denoted by the asterisk symbol — the value in cell A2 by .05, which is the decimal value of 5 percent. Cell B2 should now display '$1.50.' This is the amount of sales tax you owe on a $30 sale at a 5 percent tax rate.
5. Create a formula to calculate gratuities at your desired percentage. For example, if you want to pay a gratuity of 20 percent, enter '=A2*.2' into cell C2. This formula instructs Excel to multiply the value in cell A2 by .2, which is the decimal value of 20 percent. Cell C2 should now show '$6.00' as your desired gratuity amount on a $30 sale at a 20 percent tip rate.

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How to Count How Many Times a Word Appears in Excel

1. Open the Excel document containing the text that you want to analyze. Select the first cell that contains the text. Hold down the 'Shift' key and select the last cell that hold your text. This will create a selection box around all of your text. Press 'Ctrl' 'C' to copy this information to the clipboard.
2. Click on a new worksheet at the bottom of the spreadsheet. If all the worksheets are currently being used, press the new worksheet button, which is located directly to the right of the last worksheet.
3. Select cell 'B1' on the new worksheet. Press 'Ctrl' 'V' to paste the information to this sheet. Select the letter 'B' above the pasted information to select the entire column.
4. Click on the 'Data' tab and then select the 'Text to Columns' button. This will bring up a small wizard window. Select 'Delimited' on the first page of the wizard and click 'Next.' Click on 'Space' from the given options and click 'Finish.' Each word of the text will now have its own cell.
5. Select cell 'A1.' Enter in the following formula: =COUNTIF(B:Z, 'x') where 'Z' is the last column that contains text and 'x' is the word you are searching for. Press enter and the number of times that word appears in the text will be shown in cell 'A1.' Select cell 'A2' and enter in the following formula: =COUNTIF(B:Z, 'x?') to also count instances of the word that are followed by a piece of punctuation.
6. Select cell 'A3' and enter in the following formula: =sum(A1, A2) to get the final count of how many times the word appears in the text.

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How to Create Checkbook Registers in Excel

1. Launch Excel 2007. Select the Insert tab.
2. On the Insert tab, click 'Table.' In the create table dialog box enter =$A$1:$G101 in the 'Where is your data?' field. Check the 'My table has headers' box then click 'OK.' Excel will create a table with seven columns and 101 rows.
3. Create labels for your checkbook register on row 1. Beginning with cell A1, replace each generic label with the following labels: Check No., Date, Transaction Description, Statement, Payments, Deposits, Balance. The balance label should be in cell G1.
4. Format the check register rows by first turning off the filters, which are automatically turned on when you create tables in Excel. To remove the filters, click the Data tab then click 'Filter.' Click the Design tab to begin color banding your rows and the balance column. In the table style options, check Last Column. Header Row and Banded Row should have a check. If they do not, place a check in the header and banded row boxes.
5. Format the check register columns by first clicking the Home tab then select column A and B. Click 'Center' in the alignment grouping. Select column C then click 'Format.' Select Column width and enter 35---or any any width you prefer. Select column E, F and G. In the number groupings, select Accounting Number format. With E, F, and G still selected, click 'Format' and increase the width of the selected columns.
6. Enter beginning balance and balance formula. Type 'Beginning Balance' in cell C2 and enter your beginning balance amount in cell G2. In cell G3 enter the following formula: =IF(AND(ISBLANK(E3),ISBLANK(F3)),'',G2-E3 F3). Copy this formula to cells G4 to G101.

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How to Make an Amortization Table in Excel

1. Click on the 'Office' button in Excel 2007 and select 'New.'NOTE: If you do not have Excel 2007, click the 'Excel Amortization Schedule Template' link in the 'Resources' section below to download and save the amortization template. Continue to Step 4.
2. Scroll and select 'Schedules' on the left side of the template window.
3. Double-click to select and open the Amortization Schedule template that you want to use.
4. Input the 'Loan amount,' 'Annual interest rate,' 'Loan period in years,' 'Number of payments per year,' and 'Start date of loan.'
5. Press the 'Enter' key to complete each entry and see the Amortization Schedule automatically calculate in the table below.

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How to Delete Duplicate Rows in Excel

1. Select the entire spreadsheet by dragging an outline around it with the mouse. Click the 'Data' tab, then click the 'Advanced' button in the 'Sort Filter' box.If you are using Excel 2002 or 2003, click 'Data,' 'Filter,' 'Advanced Filter.'
2. Click the radio button labeled 'Filter the List, in Place' and check the box labeled 'Unique Records Only.' Click 'OK.' All of the duplicate rows will be hidden.
3. Select the entire spreadsheet, and then press the 'Ctrl' and 'C' keys on the keyboard to copy the selection.
4. Press the 'Ctrl' and 'N' keys on the keyboard simultaneously to create a new workbook.
5. Click in the top-left cell (A1) of the new workbook, and press the 'Ctrl' and 'V' keys on the keyboard to paste the spreadsheet into it. All duplicate rows will be gone from the spreadsheet.

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How to Create a Simple Report in Excel

1. Launch Excel with a new, blank workbook.
2. Click the 'Insert' tab and choose the 'Header Footer' icon in the Text group. Type a name for your report in the text field at the top of the report that appears.
3. Click 'Go To Footer' in the Navigation group on the Design tab. Type a report footer or click one of the choices in the 'Header Footer Elements' group such as 'Page Number' or 'Current Date' to insert that information in the footer.
4. Click any of the data cells where it says 'Click to Add Data' and then click 'Normal' in the Workbook Views group on the View tab.
5. Type some data labels into the first row and first column of the spreadsheet and press 'Tab' to save the cell and move to the next column or press 'Enter' to save the cell and move to the next row.
6. Point the mouse cursor at the small line between the column letters until the cursor turns into a vertical line with two arrows pointing in opposite directions. Click and hold the mouse button and slide the column width to adjust it as needed. Release the mouse button when the column width is the right size for the data.
7. Click in any cell to enter data into that cell and press 'Tab' to save the cell and move to the next column or press 'Enter' to save the cell and move to the next row.
8. Point the mouse at the top-left corner of a range of cells that contain data that should be grouped together. Click and hold the mouse button down and drag the cursor to the lower-right corner of the data and release the mouse button to highlight (or 'Select') the range of cells. Right-click on any cell in the highlighted range and click 'Format Cells.'
9. Select a number format from the 'Category' list on the 'Number' tab of the 'Format Cells' dialog box. Select from choices for the alignment of the data within the cells on the 'Alignment' tab.
10. Change the selected font size and typeface and apply a font color or attribute from the 'Font' tab. Create a border for the selected data on the 'Border' tab. Click 'OK' when finished formatting the selected cells and repeat for other ranges of data on the spreadsheet.
11. Select a range of cells containing data and labels for the data if desired. Click 'Other Charts' from the 'Charts' group of the 'Insert' menu and click 'All Chart Types' to display a list of all available charts. Click any of the listed charts and click 'OK' to create a dynamic chart of the selected data automatically. Note that the chart automatically updates to reflect any changes made to the data in the selected region.

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How to Print an Excel Spreadsheet With Background

1. Open Microsoft Excel and open the spreadsheet you want to add the background to.
2. Select the 'Insert' tab in Excel's main window and select the 'Header Footer' option.
3. In the new view, position you mouse under the word 'Header' and click within that box.
4. Click the 'Picture' button located on the now showing 'Design' toolbar. Navigate to and select the picture you want to use as a background.
5. You will see text similar to '[Picture]' in the header box. This is the place holder for your image.
6. Select the 'Format Picture' button on the Design toolbar. In the window that appears, adjust the size of the image using the Height and Width input boxes or by using the Scale input boxes. When you are finished click anywhere inside the spreadsheet to exit out of the header display. Your picture will appear to the size you just adjusted it to.
7. Click the Microsoft office logo in the top left corner of your window and select the 'Print' option followed by 'Print Preview.' If the picture looks fine with its current size, you can finish by printing your spreadsheet.

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