Technology Tip Number 60
Excel in 1, 2, 3 Order

The 60th technology tip!  You have successfully completed 1/3rd of the total number of tips?  That means that if you started at the beginning, and you've been reading every tech tip and doing every activity you have completed 5 hours of free computer training!  Congratulations, but you're not done yet!

In celebration of the 1/3rd mark, today's technology tip will be a real easy one.  Today we will simply show you how to automatically number a column in Excel.

Did you ever want to number a column but you didn't want to type all thenumbers in?  Here's the easy way to do it:

Open up a blank Excel worksheet and type in the numbers 1 and 2 the cells where you want to start numbering a column.  Next, highlight the cells with the numbers 1 and 2 in them and grab the bottom right hand corner of the highlighted box.  When your pointer turns into a small black cross left click and hold the button down while you drag the highlighted area down the column.  Drag down until you have covered the area where you'd like the ordered numbers to appear then let go of the button.  The numbers 1 and 2 established the pattern that you want the computer to follow down the row.  When you let go you should see the pattern has been repeated through all the cells you have selected automatically:

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PRACTICE ACTIVITY:  In the example above you established the pattern for the numbering in the column by putting numbers in the top two cells.  Try using the same method to create these patterns in Excel:

TO KEEP ON LEARNING:  To learn more shortcuts to common tasks in Excel try searching the internet for:

Excel tips and tricks
Creating Sequences in Excel
Numbering in Excel

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