want to sort by RO#

  • Thread starter Thread starter lil'bit
  • Start date Start date
L

lil'bit

I have a large spreadsheet with many columns and rows with names
dates, ro #'s, purchases, costs, totals, etc. I am a first-time use
for two days now using Excel 2003 and so know very little as yet. Eac
row starts out with the ro #, and continuing across in same row i
date, next is name, then purchase, etc. I would like to sort all thi
by ro #. How do I go about this and still have the relevant informatio
attached to the correct RO? All help is mightily appreciated. :
 
Hi lil'bit!

First back up your file as sorting badly can be a danger to health.
Next, I'd recommend you insert a new column with consecutive record
numbers so that you can always get back to what you had. Here,

put a heading Record for that new column
put 1 in the first cell of your new column adjacent to the first data
then select the cells in that column adjacent to the rows you have in
the table
Edit > Fill > Series
OK

Now select all of the data inclusive of row headings and then:

Data > Sort
Select the column with RO #'s
Choose between ascending or descending
Make sure that the sort dialog "knows" that you have row headings
OK

Check immediately and if you have gone wrong, undo should be
available.

--
Regards
Norman Harker MVP (Excel)
Sydney, Australia
(e-mail address removed)
Excel and Word Function Lists (Classifications, Syntax and Arguments)
available free to good homes.
 
Hello Norman

Thank you so much. My brain was fried trying to figure this out and you
saved the day. You gave such wonderfully precise instructions and it
all worked except that it changed my totals at the bottom of the
columns. I made a test sheet to practice with that has five lines
including the totals line. I used auto-sum to total each row and each
column. Why is this program changing only the totals at the end of
columns? Also after sorting, the cells with totals have a little green
notch in the upper left corner?
 
Hi lil'bit!

Thanks for thanks and pleasing that you're working on a test sheet.
Such problems often arise with sorting and you can very quickly
destroy months of work!

My guess (and it's only a guess) is that it's autosum because if I

Use (e.g)

=SUM(A2:A100)
and
=SUM(A2:H2)

Select all rows excluding total at the bottom
Select select all columns excluding total at the end
Data > Sort etc.

I still get the unchanged totals.


--
Regards
Norman Harker MVP (Excel)
Sydney, Australia
(e-mail address removed)
Excel and Word Function Lists (Classifications, Syntax and Arguments)
available free to good homes.
 
Hi Norman.
I don't think I understood your directions very well this time. I
doesn't seem to work to get the correct totals. However, totalin
(I)after(/I) sorting does the trick. Thank you very much for all you
help. It is really encouraging to find people like you when pulling ou
your hair isn't working. ;) Btw, is there a re-do button? Can't see
to find that. Thanks again
 
Hi lil'bit

Re:
Btw, is there a re-do button? Can't seem to find that. Thanks again.

There is usual a button on the standard toolbar and you can put one
into the Edit (usually) menu

View > Toolbars > Customize > Commands
You'll see the redo button under Edit and you can drag it to a toolbar
or to the edit menu.

Happy New Year.

Saw the New Year in at Sydney Harbour. If you see it on the news,
you'll probably see me there!
--
Regards
Norman Harker MVP (Excel)
Sydney, Australia
(e-mail address removed)
Excel and Word Function Lists (Classifications, Syntax and Arguments)
available free to good homes.
 
Norman, you're my hero. :cool:

But one thing? Which one of the thousands at Sidney Harbor are you?
Happy New Year.
 
Hi lil'bit!

I was the one who'd had just a little too much to drink.

--
Regards
Norman Harker MVP (Excel)
Sydney, Australia
(e-mail address removed)
Excel and Word Function Lists (Classifications, Syntax and Arguments)
available free to good homes.
 
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