Jan's Excel Basics (97- 2003): Format Rows

Step-by-Step: Format Rows

What you will learn:

to adjust row height with AutoFit
to adjust row height by setting font size
to adjust row height by dragging heading
to hide a row
to unhide a row

Start with: trips3.xls (saved in previous lesson)

Row Height: AutoFit

You will take advantage of the automatic resizing as you change the font size for the title.

Select Row 1.
With Row 1 selected, change the Font Size to 20 using the Formatting Bar. AutoFit automatically increases the row's height.
You don't have to change the height of the whole row to get the same effect. Increasing the font size of a single character in a cell in the row will work, too. AutoFit will increase the Row Height to match.
Double-click cell A1. You can now edit.
Select a single letter and apply Font Size 36 to it and click on a different cell. The whole row height changes.
Even blank spaces have a font size. If you have a height error that you cannot find, look at spaces and blank cells in the row.
Undo. Cell A1 is back to 20 points again.

Row Height: Drag

Position the pointer over the bottom edge of the Row 1 heading until it changes to the Resize Row shape. Click and hold to see the popup tip with the Row Height. Release mouse button.
Notice that the Row Height is larger than the Font Size that you set to 20 points. This creates the white space above and below the text.

If you drag by accident, you will resize the row height. Use Undo to reverse this, if necessary.
Select Row 2.
Position the pointer over the bottom edge of the Row 2 heading until it changes to the Resize Row shape.
Drag downward until the popup tip show a Height of 21.00. Release the mouse button.

Row Height: Dialog

Select Row 3, which is blank.
Right click on the selected row and from the popup menu select Row Height... (This command is also on the menu Format | Row... | Height... )

The Row Height dialog appears.
Type in a new height of 20 and click on OK. Row 3 is now 20 points in height.

Row Height: for Multiple Rows

Select Rows 5, 6,and 7 by dragging across the row headings.
While the three rows are selected, move the pointer over the bottom edge of any one of the selected rows until it changes to the Resize Row shape.
Drag downwards until the popup tip shows a height of 20.25.

Confusing effect: As you drag, the row headings resize but the rows do not until you release the mouse button.
Release the mouse button. All selected rows now have the same new height.

Row Height: AutoFit Multiple Rows

The spacing you just created will make the sheet too big if applied to all rows. You should return the rows to the AutoFit height. (Yes, Undo would work here, but you are practicing with Row Heights!)

Select Rows 5, 6, and 7 again if necessary.
Double-click the bottom edge of any one of the selected rows. The rows return to their AutoFit height.

Hide/Unhide rows

Sometimes you want to temporarily hide some rows to make the sheet easier to read. Or perhaps you have calculations in cells that you don't really need to see. They just need to be there. To hide rows without deleting them the row height needs to be 0.

These same procedures work with columns, too.

Select rows 18 through 23. These are trips that were not in the special anniversary offer.
Drag upwards until the Row Height tip shows a height of 0. Release the mouse.

Your rows have vanished! Notice how the numbers skip now in the row headings from 17 to 24. Sneaky!

To make these rows appear again is a bit trickier when the height is 0. You cannot select just these rows. There is no menu command for selecting particular rows.
Drag from row 17 to row 24, selecting the whole rows. You have selected also the invisible rows inbetwee: 18 through 23.
Double-click the bottom edge of the row headings in your selection. AutoFit returns all rows to the default height. Whew!
Save As trips4.xls .
How to handle a full disk

Excel Basics: Format Rows