Use the Fill Handle to extend a series. Episode 429 shows you how.
This blog is the video podcast companion to the book, Learn Excel from MrExcel. Download a new two minute video every workday to learn one of the 277 tips from the book!
This blog is the video podcast companion to the book, Learn Excel from MrExcel. Download a new two minute video every workday to learn one of the 277 tips from the book!
Transcript of the video:
Hey, welcome back to the MrExcel netcast, I'm Bill Jelen.
Let's talk about the Fill Handle today.
The Fill Handle is a great tool anytime you need to create a brand new worksheet from scratch.
Let's say that you type the word January in cell A1, select that cell and then, the Fill Handle is a little square dot in the lower right hand corner of the cell.
Grab that Fill Handle and drag, and Excel will fill in the months of the year.
You go too far, it starts over again at January.
The Fill Handle is pretty smart, it handles months, handles days of the week, so you can type in Monday, they'll fill in the days, it handles Q1 or Quarter1, or Qtr1 and it's smart enough to start over again at quarter 4 if you go too far.
It handles today's date, if you use Ctrl+; to put in today's date and then drag, the Fill Handle will fill in the next day, the next day, the next day.
Now, the Fill Handle is really smart, you would think that would be able to handle this next one.
If I type the number 1 in cell E1 and drag the Fill Handle, what would you think that I would get?
You would think I would get 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, but unfortunately Microsoft gives me 11111.
Thanks, Microsoft.
It turns out that many people know the trick, if you put in the 1 and the 2, and then drag the Fill Handle, Excel will extend the series, but a better way to go is just to put into 1 and then Ctrl + drag the Fill Handle and Excel will automatically extend that series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Hey, thanks for stopping by, we'll see you next time for another netcast from Mr Excel.
Let's talk about the Fill Handle today.
The Fill Handle is a great tool anytime you need to create a brand new worksheet from scratch.
Let's say that you type the word January in cell A1, select that cell and then, the Fill Handle is a little square dot in the lower right hand corner of the cell.
Grab that Fill Handle and drag, and Excel will fill in the months of the year.
You go too far, it starts over again at January.
The Fill Handle is pretty smart, it handles months, handles days of the week, so you can type in Monday, they'll fill in the days, it handles Q1 or Quarter1, or Qtr1 and it's smart enough to start over again at quarter 4 if you go too far.
It handles today's date, if you use Ctrl+; to put in today's date and then drag, the Fill Handle will fill in the next day, the next day, the next day.
Now, the Fill Handle is really smart, you would think that would be able to handle this next one.
If I type the number 1 in cell E1 and drag the Fill Handle, what would you think that I would get?
You would think I would get 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, but unfortunately Microsoft gives me 11111.
Thanks, Microsoft.
It turns out that many people know the trick, if you put in the 1 and the 2, and then drag the Fill Handle, Excel will extend the series, but a better way to go is just to put into 1 and then Ctrl + drag the Fill Handle and Excel will automatically extend that series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Hey, thanks for stopping by, we'll see you next time for another netcast from Mr Excel.
