Shortcut Key to insert an em-dash?

[Fred Holmes]

How do I assign a shortcut key to insert an em-dash at the insertion
point while editing the contents of a cell? In order to automate
Insert => symbol => Special Characters => em dash (in Excel 2003 on
WinXP) (and earlier versions if possible). The "Special Characters"
menu doesn't show a keystroke shortcut for any of the special
characters listed.

I can't write a keystroke recording macro to do it, or at least, if I
try, I must start before selecting the cell and the insertion point or
the macro recorder is grayed out; and if I run the macro recorder the
code I get is ActiveCell.Text = "[the entire text in the cell]" which
isn't useful.

Autocorrest will do it (upon entering "--"), but then it happens all
the time, and I don't want it to happen all the time, just when I
actually want it. Yes, I can use "undo" but that seems like it should
be an unnecessary step also.

Many thanks,

Fred Holmes

 

[Rob Bovey]

Hi Fred,

You can hold down the Alt key while typing 0151 and get an em dash.

--
Rob Bovey, Excel MVP
Application Professionals
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