Can I link cells so that copying one copies all?

[Guest]

I am tracking registrations for classes in an Excel sheet. Each class has
multiple pieces of information - title, date, time, location, etc. - in
separate columns. Is there a way to link the cells so that when I enter (for
example) the course title the other information is automatically pasted?

 

[Otto Moehrbach]

What you want to happen can happen but not with linked cells. You say you
have data of title, date, time, location, etc. so I gather that you have
multiple rows of this data. Is that right? When you say "enter the course
title", where do you enter it? Then you say you want the "other information
is automatically pasted." Pasted where? HTH Otto

 

[Guest]

Let me try to explain better. I use a worksheet to track registrations for
courses - which i know would be better served by using a relational database
but i don't know how to set one up. Essentially, each row is one person's
registration for one course, and the columns contain the individual pieces of
information about the course itself and the registrant.

When I get a new registration form, I enter it in the first blank cell at
the bottom of the sheet. The first column is the "course title", and as all
the titles are unique, when i get a few letters in the sheet automatically
completes the title in the cell. It will do the same for each additional
piece of information. However, I'm wondering if there's a way for it to tie
the data together such that when it completes the "course title" it brings
along the additional course information - this way cutting down on human
error so that I don't mistype a class time, location, etc.

Ultimately, this spreadsheet is used to generate a confirmation letter, so
if there's another way I can do this so that it comes out clean in Word, I'm
happy to hear. Please feel free to ask for additional information - I'm sure
I'm not using the right language for this but I'm relatively technoligically
ignorant.

 

[Guest]

It sounds to me like you could either use some vlookup formulas or
index/match formulas. If you use a Course # that may be easier to use for
the lookups (and one of the things it looks up could be the course title.

Either use help to find out how to use these formulas or show a sample of
how your data is laid out and someone will more than likely provide an
example for you.

 

[Otto Moehrbach]

You can do this with VBA or with VLookup formulas as Kevin suggests. Either
way, I highly recommend that you use Data Validation in the course title
cells from which to select the course title. This way, the course title
will always be spelled correctly. Errors pop up with the slightest spelling
mistake, whether you go with VBA or the VLookup formulas. HTH Otto