excel question

Question

Trying to add decimal sums to 2 places in columns I used auto add but was told it was wrong. Any ideas? ferkel

abach · Answer

I'm not sure what you mean by adding decimal sums and auto add. Could you give more information please?

ferkel · Answer

To Abach. I'm simply enterting dollars and cents (decimal figures) in the cells in each column, Help says click on an empty cell under the last entry and use 'auto add' (the peculiar bacward z symbol) then enter. i do this but nothing happens and I get an error message.ferkel

volvogirl1 · Answer

I don't know what the backward z symbol is and I couldn't find "auto add" in my excel97 help.

But to add a column of numbers using the auto sum....

go to the empty cell at the bottom of the list.

press ALT + = (just the ALT and equal sign, not the + sign)

this will outline the area to add up

press enter key

Christine

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ferkel · Answer

Thankyou, I did what you said. Nothing hppened! No highlighting, nada. Mine is a later Excel, possibly 2003. The backwa. Ferkelrd z icon is 'autosum' but it doesn't work

ferkel · Answer

Thankyou Christine I just found I pressed the wrong 'alt gr.' When I pressed 'alt' it produced the same result as I get with my auto sum, namely an error message. Ferkel

volvogirl1 · Answer

So did you get it to work? I couldn't tell from your last post. I still don't understand what the backward z (Oh I see now, the icon on the toolbar!)

And what the 'alt gr' means. Just curious.

Christine

Why didn't the AutoSum Icon work for you? Just click on it, it should outline with a dashed line the area to add. Then hit enter.

Message Edited by volvogirl1 on 04-19-2007 11:56 AM

abach · Answer

If you mean you want to Auto Add by summing values, then AutoSum is the task to use. The icon looks like this   When clicked, you'll see the marquee and references to the cells, like this   If this does not work, what is the error message?

ferkel · Answer

Dear Christine, no it did NOT work, just produced the same error msg I get when I follow Excel help. Where do I go next for advice? ferkel

ferkel · Answer

Thankyou allan I did precisely that and get the following:   The formula you typed contains an error -For information about fixing common problems click Help [done so] -To get assistance in entering a function click OK then click function on the INSERT menu [did so when I tried putting $1.22 in function agruments as figure No 1 it produced a red 'invalid'] -If you are not trying to enter a formula avoid using an equal sign (=) or minus sign (-) or precede it with a single quotation mark (') [Dont understand this!]   Grateful any help ferkel

RoHe · Answer

Are you sure the cells where you're entering this data are formatted and as either Number, Currency or Accounting, and not as Text or something else? Wrong format is a common reason why Autosum gives this kind of error message.

BTW: That 'backwards Z' you mentioned is actually the Greek letter sigma, which in mathematics is used as shorthand to mean "Sum".

Ron

ferkel · Answer

Thanks for the advice, and I took the opportunity to open a new book, reset the format insert the dollars and centsin the cells  but ALAS I still get that same error message. Ah the advantages of a classical education or is merely that Americans get to know the odd Greek letters because of their fraternities?! Regards Ferkel,

RoHe · Answer

Open Excel and click Help>Detect & Repair. Follow the prompts and have your Office CD handy. No fraternity brother here. Just lots of years working in the lab. Ron

ferkel · Answer

Did that, it went through a XP small business set up, did NOT ask for CDs (which I had handy) when I  eurned to my spreadsheet alas same problem! Regards Ferkel.

abach · Answer

Ferkel   Can you send the file to me? I'll look at it and see if I can solve the problem.   abach@absupportweb.com

ferkel · Answer

Thankyou. On its way1 ferkel

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