Your First Open Office Spreadsheet - Part 2 - Formatting -1

Hi People

To continue with our 'Car Mileage' project in Calc (part of the free OpenOffice.org suite), let's now turn our attention to some basic formatting of the spreadsheet. Formatting is the changing of the appearance or reaction of the columns, rows or cells affected by the formatting.

Column Formatting

Firstly, for the widening of the columns. To do this simple move your mouse pointer to the join, between the column headers, on the right hand side of the columm header, you want to widen. The pointer will turn to a double headed black arrow (the points are at either end of the horizontal bar). 

 Now press and hold down the left mouse button (whilst the pointer is still the double headed black arrow) and move the mouse to the right on the right hand side of the column header. This will widen the column (moving the mouse pointer to the left narrows the column). 

You will have noticed the tool tip pop up indicating the width of the column (this changes as you widen or shorten the column width).

Here is a short cut to setting the column to the maximum width to show the longest entry in the column. Again move the mouse pointer to the right hand side of the column you want to set (double black arrow). Now quickly double click and the header will respond to widen or shorten the width of the column to display the longest entry in that column.

Another shortcut to adjust the width of a number of columns together (and have the same width).

Choose your start column header and hold down the left mouse button, now move the mouse pointer over the column headers until you have reached the last one in the group you want to adjust.

From here it is a simple 'double black arrow' routine (as described above) and the columns respond accordingly once the mouse button has been released.

Just to recap to highlight a column, simply left click on its column header (the one with the letter in it), the column and its header now turn blue indicating that it highlighted. For a range of columns, hold down the left mouse button while the mouse pointer is on the first column header in the range and move the mouse pointer to the last column header, you will now have a sequence of blue highlighted columns.

 Try the double click column adjustment to a range of highlighted columns, magic, they all respond to the maximum length entry.

Now rows are somewhat similar to columns (except they are across the spreadsheet instead of down ), so you can now use the above to do a little experimenting with the rows. Make sure you have the original spreadsheet saved, then play with the rows and columns. Do not save it if you are playing unless you use the 'save as' option from the File menu and CHANGE the filename – just add play to the name and save.

Further formatting can be applied to complete columns.

We are going to format the following columns to the settings that follow the column letters:

Column   Settings
A            Date, centred across the cell
B            Number (no decimal places)
C            Currency (this is number and two decimal places + a currency symbol)
D            Number (with one decimal place)
E            Currency
F            Number (no decimal places)
G           Currency, in bold font
H           Number (with 2 decimal places)

So, to get the column A to show dates in date format, left click the column header, to highlight it.

Now without moving the mouse pointer, right click and select 'Format Cells …' , then select the 'Numbers' tab by left clicking on the tab name.

There are a number of selections and entry points here. Under the 'Category' heading, follow the list down to 'Date' and left click on it. Now on the 'Format' heading left click on the most appealing data format for you (though we suggest the dd/mm/yy - shown as 31/12/99 - format for now).

The box to the left bottom, shows a sample of the format chosen, so try several and watch it change, then return to the dd/mm/yy format by left clicking it.

Please left click on the 'Alignment' tab, to shown the column alignment settings. Under 'Horizontal' area within the 'Text alignment' section, left click on the blue'V' at the left hand end of the box which probably shows 'Default'. From the drop down list, left click on 'Centre'.

Left click the 'OK' button, this will return you to the spreadsheet, with the A2 cell text centres and no other shown differences, but try this left click in cell A3, type in exactly 12/03 and press enter, whatever date format you chose will show up. If it was the 'dd/mm/yy' format, then the /10 will be added to the end, also the date will be centred in the cell.

We will continue this formatting in the next item - with a picture of how it should look at this point.

Until then people, any questions, queries or comments, please leave them in the comments section below

Prometheus1618

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