Difference between revisions of "Documentation/FAQ/Calc"

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# Select the cells in which the title is to appear.<br>Do this by clicking in the first cell, then hold down the mouse button and drag the selection box across the last cell of your chosen area.
 
# Select the cells in which the title is to appear.<br>Do this by clicking in the first cell, then hold down the mouse button and drag the selection box across the last cell of your chosen area.
# Select '''Format - Merge Cells - Merge Cells''' (OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Format - Merge Cells - Define) or
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# Select '''Format - Merge Cells - Merge Cells''' (OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Format - Merge Cells - Define) or '''Format - Merge Cells - Merge and Center Cells'''
'''Format - Merge Cells - Merge and Center Cells'''
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Revision as of 08:58, 19 April 2007

Apr, 16 2007: Currently being edited by Frank, please refrain from changing.

Contents

Formatting

How do I insert superscript or subscript text in my spreadsheet?

All

Using the Menu

  1. Select the individual character(s) to be made superscript/subscript:
    • Click on the cell with the text
    • At the input line above the spreadsheet, select the characters to be altered
  2. Select Format - Character from the menu
  3. Click on Font Position
  4. Click Superscript or Subscript. You can optionally change the character reduction ratio but usually the default value will work fine.


Using the Keyboard

  1. Select the individual character(s) to be made superscript/subscript:
    • Click on the cell with the text
    • At the input line above the spreadsheet, select the characters to be altered
  2. For Superscript, press CTRL+SHIFT+P
    For Subscript, press CTRL+SHIFT+B


Notes:

  • Cell height may require an adjustment to accommodate the new character.
  • These commands also work for the word processor.



How can I wrap text within a cell?

All

To wrap text within a cell, or merged set of cells:

  • Select a cell or group of cells.
  • Right-click the selected area and go to Format cells..., or in the pull-down menus, go to Format > Cells...
  • Click on the Alignment tab.
  • Under the Properties section, tick Automatic line break.
  • Click OK.

Now the contents of the cell will be wrapped to fit the cell.



How can I use a dot (.) as decimal sign instead of a comma?

All

Some languages, like French, Italian, or German, use a comma as decimal separator. The appearance of numbers in Calc depends on the language settings. If you want to use the dot or decimal point as separator you need to switch the language for the corresponding cells to English:

  1. Select the corresponding cells (press CTRL+A to select all cells of a sheet)
  2. Select Format - Cells from the menu
  3. Select the Numbers tab and select one of the English variants from the Language list.

Notes:

  • If you use a dot in a language that uses a comma as decimal separator, Calc will not recognize the input as number.
  • The decimal sign used will change with the language. If you switch back to a language that uses the comma as separator, the displayed decimal separator will change accordingly.


If a cell is center-justified, and the text is wider than the cell, it automatically left-justifies. Can I fix this?

1.1.x

This is a known bug in OpenOffice.org 1.1.x that is fixed in the current version.



How do I use styles and formatting?

All

See How to Format a Spreadsheet.



How can I create my own sort lists?

All

Sometimes it is useful to use sort lists to control the order of your data, especially if the data is better sorted in an order that is not alphabetical or numerical.

Sort lists can be used to fill data into cells by "guessing" following values based on the value of a first cell. The most widespread example is the days of the week or names of the months:

Example:

  1. Insert "Jan" into a cell.
  2. Select this cell, then drag the black square at the lower right corner across other cells in the same row or column.
  3. The other names of the months will automatically fill into the selected cells.

To create your own sort list:

  1. Select Tools - Options from the menu.
  2. Click OpenOffice.org Calc and Sort Lists in the left column
    In OpenOffice.org 1.1.x, the option is called Spreadsheet instead of OpenOffice.org Calc.
  3. Click New on the right side of the window.
  4. Type your list in Entries box separating each word by a comma or a line break. Do not use spaces.
  5. Click Add after your list is complete to save your new sort list.



How do I add additional strings or characters to cell contents?

All

Use the CONCATENATE function to add strings or characters to cell contents:

  1. Go to an empty cell
  2. Enter =CONCATENATE("prefix";A1;"suffix") as the cell contents

"prefix" being any text you would like to add in front of the existing cell contents
A1 being the original cell
"suffix" being any text you would like to add after the existing cell contents

Example:

  • Original Cell "C5" with content "filename"
  • In a new cell, enter =CONCATENATE("my_";A1;".ods")
  • The new cell value will be "my_filename.ods"



How are notes within cells displayed?

All

To create a Note for a cell

  • Select Insert - Note from the menu

To show a note permanently

  1. Right-click in the cell with the note
  2. Select Show Note



Why are my notes not showing for cells?

1.1.x

  • Make sure that Help - Tips from the main menu is marked


2.x

  1. Select Tools - Options from the main menu
  2. Select OpenOffice.org - General
  3. Make sure that Help - Tips is marked



I have a custom number format that I use, but Calc forgets it.

2.x

For Calc to remember the preferred number formats, add them to a template:

  1. Create a new empty spreadsheet document or open an existing template by selecting File - Templates - Edit from the main menu
  2. Add the number formats as required
  3. Select File - Templates - Save from the main menu
  4. Insert a name for the template and select a template category (e.g., My Templates)
  5. Click OK to save the template

To have them available with every newly created spreadsheet you need to make this template your default template:

  1. Select File - Templates - Organize from the main menu
  2. Select the template from the list of templates (double click the template categories to show all containing template files)
  3. Right-click the template file name and select Set as default template
  4. Click Close


How can I use conditional formatting?

Formats in each cell can be based upon defined conditions. This function can be accessed through the drop-down menus:

  • Select Format - Conditional Formatting...

In the dialog box that appears, enter the conditions that determine the formats and the desired formats for each condition. If more help is needed to understand the settings, click the Help button in the dialog box, and a new help window opens with a description of all the fields shown in the dialog box. The help file also shows the path to a sample file that uses conditional formatting for reference.



See Also




How do I wrap text within a cell in my spreadsheet?

All

To wrap text within a cell, or merged set of cells:

  1. Select a cell or group of cells.
  2. Right-click the selected area and go to Format cells..., or select Format - Cells from the main menu
  3. Click on the Alignment tab.
  4. Check the Wrap text automatically (in OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Automatic line break)
  5. Click OK.

Now the contents of the cell will be wrapped to fit the cell.



How do I disable the capitalized letter at the beginning of cells in Calc?

All

  1. Select Tools - AutoCorrect from the main menu
  2. Select the Options tab
  3. Clear any automatic option you want to disable (in this case Capitalize the first letter of every sentence)



How do I make a wide title cell extend across several columns in my spreadsheet?

All


  1. Select the cells in which the title is to appear.
    Do this by clicking in the first cell, then hold down the mouse button and drag the selection box across the last cell of your chosen area.
  2. Select Format - Merge Cells - Merge Cells (OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Format - Merge Cells - Define) or Format - Merge Cells - Merge and Center Cells



Opening and Importing Files, Microsoft Interoperability

Is it possible to open a Microsoft Excel file that is protected by a password in Calc?

1.1.x

With 1.1.x releases of OpenOffice.org, it is not possible to do this directly. Such a file can be opened from Calc only if you remove the password using the original application.


2.x

2.x versions of OpenOffice.org, will open the password protected file when the correct password was entered.



How do I insert external data into an existing Calc spreadsheet file?

2.x

You can insert tabular data from an external files into an existing Calc spreadsheet file as follows. A new sheet will be created for the inserted data.

  • Select Insert - Sheet From File and select the file with the data
  • If you have selected a text file with values separated by delimiters you will see an import dialog to set the corresponding options



See Also




How do I open a tab-delimited file in OpenOffice.org Spreadsheet? What if I have a different type of delimiter?

All

First, if your ASCII file is not already named with a .txt extension, rename it that way.

  1. Select File - Open from the main menu and browse to find and select the file.
  2. Select File type: Text CSV (.csv; .txt)

Note: This choice is near the bottom in the spreadsheet file types section of the list.

  1. Click Open.
  2. In the dialog that appears next, select the Separator options.

These are the characters or methods used in the file to separate the fields of data. The same methods must be specified in this box as those used in the file to import the data into a spreadsheet. After selecting the separator type, a preview of the data will be displayed in the Fields section. If the data visually lines up in columns, then the correct separator has been selected. If not, a different separator type may be used in the file. The goal is to match the correct character used as a separator in the file, so that the data will line up nicely in the visible cells.

  1. When the data lines up, click OK.

Hints:

  • The characters used as a separators and delimiters will be visible, if you open the .txt

file in Writer and enable the hidden characters (View - Nonprinting Characters).



My formula from an Excel worksheet doesn't work!

This can be caused by many reasons, with the most common reason being that OpenOffice.org uses semi-colons (;) between arguments, instead of commas (,) like in Excel.



Why does Calc refuses to open my .txt file?

A text file with tabular values must be imported into Calc using .csv format. You cannot open it by double-clicking on the file name, unless it has the .csv extension, since a text file will automatically open in Writer.

If you want to open a .txt file with tabular data using Calc:

  • Rename the file so that it uses the .csv file extension.

or

  • Select File - Open from the menu and select Text CSV from the File type list.

This is quite a way down in the list so it is easy to miss. An easy way of navigating there is to press T several times when inside the list field until the filter name comes up.



See Also




Selecting, Copying, and Pasting

I want to select two cells that are not adjacent, but holding down the CTRL key does not seem to work. How can I perform this action?

1.1.x

In OpenOffice.org 1.1.x, if you click in a cell, it is not selected, but focused. To select a cell, you need to

  1. Click on a cell to focus it
  2. Hold down the SHIFT key and then click on the cell again to select it

After having done so, you'll be able to select multiple non-adjacent cells, by holding down the CTRL key as you select new cells.


2.x

In all 2.x versions, you can use the CTRL key to mark cells that are not adjacent.


What is the fastest way to copy a calculation to all rows?

To quote from the Shortcut Keys for Spreadsheets page in Calc Help: Help > Contents > shortcut keys; in spreadsheets: To fill a selected cell range with the formula that you entered on the Input line, press Alt+Enter. Hold down Alt+Enter+Shift to apply the cell format of the input cell to the entire cell range.


Saving and Exporting Files

Printing

Why does Calc print out all the sheets in the file?

All


By default, Calc is configured to do just that. But the setting can be changed so that only the current sheet is printed too:

  1. Select File - Print from the main menu
  2. Click Options
  3. Check the box Print only selected sheets for Document

To make the change permanent for all occurrences of OpenOffice.org Calc:

  1. Select Tools - Options from the main menu
  2. Select OpenOffice.org Calc - Print and check the box Print only selected sheets for Document

In OpenOffice.org 1.1.x, the entry is called Spreadsheets instead of OpenOffice.org Calc.



How can I print some, but not all, of the cells on a sheet?

All

  1. Select the cell(s) you want to print
  2. Select Format - Print Ranges - Define from the main menu

This sets the print range for that sheet to the set of selected cells.

Notes:

  • You can have different print ranges on each sheet.



How do I get Sheet1 to print as portrait and Sheet2 to print as landscape?

All

You can assign a different page style to each sheet. To print out different page orientations, you first create a new page style with the desired format options and then apply it to the corresponding sheet(s).

  1. Select Format - Styles and Formatting (in OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Format - Stylist) or press F11
  2. Click the Page Styles icon (2nd from the left) in the Styles and Formatting window (in OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Stylist)
  3. Right-click in the page style list and select New...
  4. In the Page Style window, give the new page style a descriptive name, such as Landscape Page
  5. Click on the Page tab and change the Orientation to Landscape
  6. Click OK to close the window
  7. Select the sheet that you want to print in landscape orientation
  8. Double-click the newly created page style (e.g. Landscape Page) to assign that style to the sheet.



How I do select a row (or rows) in my spreadsheet to repeat on every page when printed?

All


  1. Select Format - Print Ranges - Edit from the main menu
  2. Place the cursor in the input field on the Rows to repeat line
    • Enter the row number manually (e.g. $4 for row 4, $4:$6 for rows 4 to 6), or
    • Click on the icon to the right of the input field, then select a cell on the desired row from the spreadsheet.

Multiple rows can be specified dragging your mouse across a range of cells.

  1. Click OK.

Notes:

  • The row(s) specified here will be repeated on each print.
  • You will not see a visual change in the spreadsheet, only in the printed copies.
  • Use File - Page Preview to preview pages before printing.
  • You an only select multiple rows id they are consecutive.



How do I print my spreadsheets?

<this should really rather be in a Howto>

In general, the best way to print large spreadsheets is to first preview the print output, then adjust the print settings to arrive at the desired effect. The following mini-procedures explain the main options for printing spreadsheets.

Previewing the print area:

  • With the spreadsheet open, go to File > Page Preview in the drop-down menus.
  • In the window that appears, use the navigation buttons on the tool bar to view the print. If the spreadsheet is too large for one page, some columns may appear on additional pages.
  • To close the preview window, click the Close Preview button to the right of the navigation buttons on the toolbar.
  • Make adjustments to the print settings, then preview again. Repeat until the print displays in the desired format.

Note: This command will allow you to see the current page number assignments for the data that you want to print. This is especially useful when only a portion of the spreadsheet is to be printed, or when several print ranges are associated with one Calc file. Formatting the page:

  • With the spreadsheet open, go to Format > Page... in the drop-down menus.
  • In the dialog that appears, select the Page tab.
  • Set the paper size.
  • Specify the Orientation of the page: click on the checkbox next to Portrait or Landscape.
  • Adjust the margins, if needed.
  • Set the table alignment to align the table to the page.
  • Click OK, or click other tabs in this box to acess more formatting options.


Adjusting the page breaks:

  • With the spreadsheet open, select View > Page Break Preview.
  • Place the cursor exactly on top of one of the (blue) page edge lines, then drag each edge to adjust the page boundaries as desired.
  • To toggle this view off, select View > Page Break Preview.

Note: If everything appears gray, this means that no print ranges are defined. If a print range is defined, the printing area will show up with a white background with a blue outline at the page boundary. A gray 'Page N', where 'N' is the page sequence number for the sheet, will appear in the middle of the print area. If no range is defined for printing, follow the instructions below.

Setting the area to be printed:

  • Go to the desired sheet.
  • Click and drag to select (highlight) the area of the sheet to be printed.
  • In the drop-down menus, go to Format > Print Ranges > Add.
  • Repeat the above steps for each sheet of the file to be printed.

Adjusting the printout to fit onto one page:

  • With the spreadsheet open, select Format > Page...
  • In the dialog that appears, select the Sheet tab.
  • In the lower right corner of the dialog, there is a Reduce/enlarge printout scale control. Enter a value that you think will make the data fit on the page.
  • Click OK.
  • Use Page Preview (instructions above) to see a preview of what will print. Readjust if necessary.

Adjusting the maximum number of pages on which the print should fit:

  • With the spreadsheet open, select Format > Page...
  • In the dialog that appears, select the Sheet tab.
  • At bottom of the dialog there is a scale control labeled, Fit printout on number of pages. Click the checkbox next to it; then enter the desired number of pages for the printout.
  • Click OK.
  • Use Page Preview (instructions above) to see a preview of what will print. Readjust if necessary.

Printing only a portion of the spreadsheet (a range of rows or columns):

  • In the spreadsheet where the data lives, click and drag the mouse over the cells to select (highlight) the rows or columns to be printed.
  • Select Format > Print Ranges.
  • In the print dialog that appears, click the checkbox next to Edit... at lower left.
  • Click OK.

Note: Printing a selected range of data is also controlled by print scaling. If the data selected does not fit on the desired number of pages, adjust the Scale using either of the scaling procedures above (scale by percentage or by number of pages allowed).

Editing the print range:

  • With the spreadsheet open, select Format > Print Ranges > Edit.
  • In the print dialog that appears, look at the Print range setting. It is probably set to user defined and shows a range of cells.
  • Adjust the cell definition in the range of cells, or select None to clear the print range.
  • Click OK.
  • If there are no settings, or they are cleared, use one of the other methods shown to set your print ranges.

Printing a spreadsheet in the middle of the paper:

  • With the spreadsheet open, select Format > Page...
  • In the dialog that appears, select the Page tab.
  • In the Table alignment section, select (or deselect as desired) the boxes next to Horizontal and Vertical. A visual of the table alignment settings will show in the small graphic on the same page as these parameters.



See Also




Charts

How do I extend the range of data shown in my chart after I add new data to my spreadsheet?

All

  • Select a new range and drag the selection onto the chart.
  • You can also select the chart, right-click, and then choose Modify Data Range.



Error Handling and Troubleshooting

Why does deleting filtered rows remove other rows too?

All

When using Calc filters, selections that span a range of cells include filtered and hidden rows. Deleting a range of rows with a filter enabled will delete all rows in that range, whether they are visible or hidden, not just the visible rows.

To select multiple rows individually, select the first row, then use CTRL+Click to select each additional row.



What do each of the error codes (Err:NNN) in OpenOffice.org spreadsheets mean?

All

See here for a list of error codes

Note:

  • a '###' in a cell is not an error, but an indication that the column is too narrow to display the data properly.



See Also




Why do I see the formula text and not the result of the formula?

All

  • Make sure that all formulas will start with the equal sign (=)

If your formula starts with the = character, check that the options are set to not view the formula:

  1. Select Tools - Options from the main menu
  2. Select OpenOffice.org Calc - View (in OpenOffice.org 1.1.x: Spreadsheet - View)
  3. Make sure that the Formulas Option under Display is not checked



How to get proper Calc Help files for OpenOffic.org 2.0.1 for Windows?

2.x

Update to the latest release. The problem is fixed.



I see '###' in a cell that formerly held data. How can I see my data again?

All

When the content of a cell is too long to be displayed in a single cell, it will be clipped at the standard width and height of the cell itself. The rest of the content is simply hidden.

  • Go to the heading row and drag one of the column edges until it is wide enough

to display your data properly if the cell content is a number; or

  • Double-click on the cell if the cell content is text and a little red triangle

appears on the right side of the cell to signal that this is an overflowing one.



Miscellaneous

What's the maximum number of rows for a spreadsheet file?

1.1.x

The OpenOffice.org 1.1.x versions were able to handle a maximum of 32,000 rows. Update to the current version to solve this issue.

2.x

The limitations of the OpenOffice.org 2.x Calc versions are

  • maximum number of rows: 65,535
  • maximum number of columns: 256
  • maximum number of sheets: 256

Notes:

  • When referencing to external documents in formulas or when creating sceanrios, hidden helper sheets are created that reduce the available number of sheets.



How can I start OpenOffice.org Calc instead of Writer?

All

Pass -calc as an argument on the command line when executing openoffice.org to start OpenOffice.org Calc:

ooffice -calc



Is there a way to add times that total greater than 24 hrs?

All

Yes. Select a format code with the hour symbols in square brackets, like [HH]:MM.

  1. Select the cell you want to apply the format to
  2. Select Format - Cells from the main menu
  3. Select the Numbers tab
  4. Set the Category to Time
  5. Select one of the formats with hours > 24, for example [HH]:MM:SS
    you can also select the Format Code line and enter the format yourself
  6. Click OK.

Now when you add the times from cells with this format together, you will get the true sum of hours and minutes. Otherwise, the sum will reset to zero each time 24 hours is reached.



How can I see the row and column captions as I scroll through a sheet that is larger than my display?

All

There are two ways to obtain this result:

Mode 1 (with a single row or column caption): Freeze the caption.

  1. Click on the cell just below and to the right of the row and column that will contain your caption.
  2. Select Window - Freeze from the main menu.

If you have either row captions or column labels, you can create a cross freezing by clicking on the uppermost left side cell that does not contain a caption. For example, in a sheet with single row and column captions, choose the B2 cell. The position of all cells above and to the left of the cell where the Freeze was activated will be frozen.

Mode 2 (with multiple row or column captions): Split the sheet.

  1. Click on the cell just below and to the right of the row and column that you want to contain your caption.
  2. Select Window - Split from the main menu.

The sheet window will be split. The result is different from Mode 1 because you can scroll all sections of the split window, showing the caption according to your needs.

There is another (almost hidden) way to split a sheet window:

At the top of the right scroll bar and at the right of the bottom one, you can see little black lines. When the mouse is over one of these zones, the mouse pointer changes into a dragging icon.

  1. When this icon shows, click and hold down the left mouse button to display a border line in the grid of cells.
  2. With the mouse, drag the line on the grid to the row or column that will contain your caption.
  3. Release the mouse button. The sheet will be split at this border.



Where can I find more documentation for Calc?

Internal OpenOffice.org resources:

External resources:

Internal OpenOffice.org mail lists where you can find information about Calc:

External mail lists and forums where you can find information about Calc:

Please write to let us know if there are other Calc related resources that should be shown in this list.







How do I rotate a column title so that it fits above my very narrow column?

There are a few options. Follow these instructions:

  • Select the cells where you wish to rotate the text.
  • From the pull down menu, go to Format > Cells...
  • In the dialog that appears, click on the Alignment tab.

In the Text Direction section of the Alignment box, try these options:

  • Click on the button labeled ABCD. (Letters on the button are arranged from top to bottom.) This box will arrange your title with the first character at the top of the cell, the second character underneath it, as shown in the label on the button. Click OK to see the effect.
  • Alternatively, drag the little dot on the circle to the bottom of the circle (or enter 270 in the Degrees box). This will rotate the text in the selected cell by 270 degrees. Click OK to see the effect. Experiment with placement of the dot to learn more.

How do I create a chart in a spreadsheet that is automatically updated when the data is changed?

Follow these steps:

  • From the pull down menus, select: Tools > Options.
  • In the left column of the dialog that appears, select: Spreadsheet > General.
  • On the page that appears, in the Updating section under Update links when opening, click the checkbox next to Always.

Note: This is a global setting and will affect all spreadsheet charts and linked information from spreadsheets. If this is not desirable, click the checkbox next to On request. With this selected, a dialog box will pop up when each file with links to a spreadsheet is opened, where you can choose whether or not to update the item with newer information from the linked spreadsheet.



See Also


How do I extend the range of data shown in my chart after I add new data to my spreadsheet?

How do I protect cells in my spreadsheet?

Cell protection is active for all cells by default. If only certain cells are to be protected, this setting must be turned off.

  • Select the entire spreadsheet. (A quick way is to click the little gray box above row 1 and to the left of column A.)
  • From the pull-down menus, select Format > Cells.
  • In the dialog that appears, select the Cell Protection tab.
  • Uncheck the box next to Protected to remove the protection on all cells.

To select a range of cells to protect, or to select non-adjacent cells to protect:

  • Hold down the Ctrl key while clicking on the non-adjacent cells to highlight the ones that are to be protected.
  • When all of the desired cells are selected, in the pull-down menus, go to Format > Cells...
  • In the dialog that appears, select the Cell Protection tab.
  • Click on the box next to Protect.
  • Click OK.

Once the cells are marked for protection, the protection option must be enabled at the sheet or spreadsheet level:

  • From the pull-down menus, select Tools > Protect Document > Sheet or Tools > Protect Document > Document.
  • In the dialog that appears, provide a password , then confirm it by typing it again.
  • Click OK.
  • The protected cells will now be uneditable.

How do I output my spreadsheet data as an ASCII, delimited text file?

Follow these steps:

  • From the pull down menus, select: File > Save As...
  • In the Save as dialog that appears, select File type Text CSV (.csv; .txt) from the list of spreadsheet file types.
  • Click to enable the box next to Edit filter settings.
  • Click Save.
  • In the Export of text files dialog box that pops up, enter the field and text delimiters of your choice. The default Field delimiter is [Tab]. The Text delimiter is the character that will surround any text entries in your spreadsheet, to keep each phrase together as an entity, when the file is exported into ASCII format.

Some of the rows in my spreadsheet are hidden. How do I see all the rows?

The Show command will cause all rows or columns in a selected area to be visible on the display.

  • Select the area of the spreadsheet where rows are hidden. To select the entire spreadsheet, go to Edit > Select All in the pull-down menus, or use the Control-A keystroke

combination.

  • To show all rows, select: Format > Row > Show.
  • Similarly, to show all columns, select: Format > Column > Show.
  • After the area is selected, Show also appears in the right-click menu, if only columns or rows are hidden.

How do I format cells in OpenOffice.org Spreadsheet so that the rows number automatically?

One method (this example assumes that you wish to put your row numbers in column A):

  • Enter the formula =row(a1) in cell A1.
  • Extend the cell by dragging the bottom right corner all the way down column A.

Note: If you add or insert new rows, you will have to copy the formula to the new cells.


How can I use cells from different Calc files?

You can open the source file, select and copy onto the clipboard (CTRL + C) the desired cells and then in the target file you should select a target cell and choose Edit > Paste Special from the Menu Bar and enable the link option in the choice shown in the dialog box that opens. A more direct way to do this is to write a formula of the following kind in the formula bar or in a target cell:
=DDE(soffice; YourFilePath; SourceSheetName.SourceCellName) Example: =DDE(soffice;c:\myfile.sxi;MySheet.A1)

How I change the order of sheets in my spreadsheet?

The simplest method to move a sheet is to grab its tab with the mouse, click on the tab with the mouse and hold the mouse button down, then drag the tab to its new position amongst the other tabs in the workbook. There are other methods to move (or copy) sheets too:

  • Select the sheet you want to move.
  • While still positioned over the sheet tab, click the right mouse

button to access the context menu, then choose Move/Copy Sheet..., or in the pull-down menus go to Edit > Sheet > Move/Copy...

  • In the Move/Copy dialog that appears, be sure that the check box

labeled Copy is not set unintentionally. Place a tick at Copy only if you wish to copy the sheet instead of move it.

  • Specify where to move the sheet in the Move/Copy pop-up box.

Select an open document from the drop down menu labeled To document. Choose the position of the sheet in that document from the drop-down menu labeled Insert before.

  • Click OK.

How can I rename a sheet?

  • Select the sheet to be renamed.
  • While still positioned over the sheet tab, click the right mouse button to access the context menu, then choose Rename Sheet....
  • Enter the new name.
  • Click OK.

How is a variable date inserted into a spreadsheet cell?

Insert a function into a cell by following these instructions:

  • Select the cell that will hold the function.
  • From the pull-down menus, select Insert > Function.
  • Pick Date&Time as the Category.
  • Double-click theToday function for the current date, or double-click the Now function for the current date and time.
  • Click OK. The cell should now contain the selected function.

How are thick lines or borders created around my cells?

Creating a border:

  • Select the cells where you wish to apply a border.
  • From the pull-down menus, select Format > Cells... then click on the Borders tab.
  • In the Line Arrangement section, under Default, click on the icon that best shows the style of border you wish to use, or
  • Under User Defined, select custom border styles by clicking on the individual lines shown bordering four 'dummy' cells.

Changing the width of a border:

  • In the Line section, under Style, click on the desired line for your border, and
  • Under Color, choose the desired color for your border.


How do I insert a page number in the form of 'Page 1 of N' on each page of a spreadsheet?

Page numbers can be inserted into the header or footer sections of a spreadsheet. These will be visible only in the Page Preview mode and on the print. The page numbers will not be visible on, nor are they related to, the calc sheets themselves. The page numbers reflect the defined print areas of the workbook. To insert page numbers, follow these instructions:

  • From the pull-down menus, select Edit > Headers & Footers...
  • Select either the Header tab or the Footer tab.
  • Click in the area where the page number blurb will display (Left, Center, or Right) to place the cursor inside the box.
  • Type Page, then add one space character.
  • The available data fields are represented by a row of icons below the left, center, and right input areas. Click on the document icon with ONE number sign [ # ] to insert the page number field.
  • Type a space, of, and another space.
  • Click on the document icon with TWO number signs [ ## ] to insert the page total field.
  • Click OK.

Note: The data fields available int the header and footer settings are the only data fields and formats available in spreadsheets.

A large OpenOffice.org spreadsheet was converted from another application. Some of my rows are missing! What happened?

OpenOffice.org spreadsheets supports 65536 rows (32000 in releases 1.x), maximum. Spreadsheets converted from other applications that contain more than 65536 rows will be truncated.

Hint: Split large spreadsheets from other applications into smaller worksheets, so that each has fewer than 65536 rows prior to converting them. A range containing fewer than 65536 rows will convert correctly.



See Also


What is the maximum number of cells in an OpenOffice.org spreadsheet?

The maximum number of rows per sheet is 65536 (32000 in releases 1.x). The maximum number of columns per sheet is 256. The maximum number of cells per sheet is 16,777,216. The maximum number of sheets per workbook is 256, which altogether makes it 4,294,967,296 cells per workbook, theoretically. Most certainly the machine doesn't have enough addressable memory available to put content in all cells.

Where this can be a hindrance:

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