The General number format doesn't get a lot of love in Excel, but it does decide if a decimal point is needed in your numbers. As you had off into Custom Number formats, deciding if a decimal point is needed is somewhat dicey. Luckily, the General steps in to solve the problem in today's Learn Excel Podcast.
Transcript of the video:
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Learn Excel from MrExcel Podcast, episode: 1769 " Nbr. "General Format!
I love this job!
This is the greatest thing in the world because I get to discover stuff along with you.
The question came in at YouTube.
Someone wants to do Autofill and they want to have it fill Section 1, 1.1, 1.2, all the way down and then start over to 2.1, 2.2.
I said boy wouldn't be nice if the fill would just work right.
But no, no way, it's not going to do that.
Ah! Too bad but we can't fill these numbers here.
I'll give it the pattern 1, 1.1 and copy down.
And they will correctly get everything in.
We just need to get then the section.
Well, hey, that's no hassle at all.
We're going to take this set of numbers here.
I'll do [ CTRL+1 ], will go to Custom, and we will put in quotes whatever the text is.
Section, space and then 0.0.
Click Ok and we're done.
No, we're not because for section 1, we don't want the 1.0.
I don't want that zero to show up there.
Ah! darn!
[ CTRL+1 ] Custom, in quotes, section, space, zero point, pound sign or hash sign or number sign depending on what country you're in.
Click ok?
All right! Almost there.
Now, we don't get the zero, but we are getting the one point.
How annoying is that.
All right, let's try the question mark.
[ CTRL+1 ] Custom, In quotes, Section space and quote, zero point, question mark.
Question mark says, "Hey, only put the zero there if it's needed and if it's not needed, go ahead and leave the space As if there was a number there, that way everything lines up.
But I'm still getting the decimal points.
Oh no! How horrible is that and then I started to think about am I going to have to use conditional formatting?
Set up a rule that says if the mod of this cell comma 1 is equal to 0, then use one number format otherwise, use the default number format.
And before I went crazy and did all of that, I said, "Let's just try this crazy idea." Click writing before General.
Section, in quotes, space, quote and leave the General there.
This is dot document.
If you go to Excel help, there's no way.
They say this isn't going to work.
But just to fit them, not wanting to have to do the conditional formatting, I tried it. Click Ok!
Check that out.
You're actually used allowed to use the word General in your Custom number format.
And it will do what General does with the decimal point.
If it needs it, no decimal point.
If it doesn't need it there you go.
Being able to fill, it's kind of a two-step process.
Put in the 1, the 1.1 filled out and then use this custom number format.
Here, and you are good to go.
Oh! Hey, I want to thank your stopping by.
I will see you next time or another netcast from MrExcel.
Learn Excel from MrExcel Podcast, episode: 1769 " Nbr. "General Format!
I love this job!
This is the greatest thing in the world because I get to discover stuff along with you.
The question came in at YouTube.
Someone wants to do Autofill and they want to have it fill Section 1, 1.1, 1.2, all the way down and then start over to 2.1, 2.2.
I said boy wouldn't be nice if the fill would just work right.
But no, no way, it's not going to do that.
Ah! Too bad but we can't fill these numbers here.
I'll give it the pattern 1, 1.1 and copy down.
And they will correctly get everything in.
We just need to get then the section.
Well, hey, that's no hassle at all.
We're going to take this set of numbers here.
I'll do [ CTRL+1 ], will go to Custom, and we will put in quotes whatever the text is.
Section, space and then 0.0.
Click Ok and we're done.
No, we're not because for section 1, we don't want the 1.0.
I don't want that zero to show up there.
Ah! darn!
[ CTRL+1 ] Custom, in quotes, section, space, zero point, pound sign or hash sign or number sign depending on what country you're in.
Click ok?
All right! Almost there.
Now, we don't get the zero, but we are getting the one point.
How annoying is that.
All right, let's try the question mark.
[ CTRL+1 ] Custom, In quotes, Section space and quote, zero point, question mark.
Question mark says, "Hey, only put the zero there if it's needed and if it's not needed, go ahead and leave the space As if there was a number there, that way everything lines up.
But I'm still getting the decimal points.
Oh no! How horrible is that and then I started to think about am I going to have to use conditional formatting?
Set up a rule that says if the mod of this cell comma 1 is equal to 0, then use one number format otherwise, use the default number format.
And before I went crazy and did all of that, I said, "Let's just try this crazy idea." Click writing before General.
Section, in quotes, space, quote and leave the General there.
This is dot document.
If you go to Excel help, there's no way.
They say this isn't going to work.
But just to fit them, not wanting to have to do the conditional formatting, I tried it. Click Ok!
Check that out.
You're actually used allowed to use the word General in your Custom number format.
And it will do what General does with the decimal point.
If it needs it, no decimal point.
If it doesn't need it there you go.
Being able to fill, it's kind of a two-step process.
Put in the 1, the 1.1 filled out and then use this custom number format.
Here, and you are good to go.
Oh! Hey, I want to thank your stopping by.
I will see you next time or another netcast from MrExcel.
