Section C.2. Edit Menu

C.2. Edit Menu

The Edit menu has the commands you need to edit worksheet data. It includes the standard copy and paste tools, the invaluable Undo and Repeat commands that let you reverse mistaken edits, and the Find and Replace commands for hunting for important bits of information in a large worksheet.

C.2.1. Undo

Use this command (or the handy shortcut Ctrl+Z) to reverse the last edit you made. You can also repeatedly apply Undo to reverse a whole series of changes. Excel automatically changes the menu text to reflect the last change that you made. For example, if you delete the content in a cell , the menu text will say Undo Clear. For more information about this timesaving tool, see Section 2.2.5 (in Chapter 2).

C.2.2. Repeat

Use this command to repeat your last change. For example, if you hit Ctrl+B to add bold formatting to a cell, you can move to a new cell and use this command (or the handy shortcut Ctrl+Y) to apply bold formatting again. Excel modifies the menu text to reflect the last change you madefor example, after applying bold formatting, the menu text says Repeat Font. The Repeat command is also useful for reapplying a change you reversed with Undo. In other words, if you make a change, and then reverse it with Edit Undo, you can reapply it by selecting Edit Repeat immediately (before making any other changes). For the full lowdown on Undo and Repeat, see Section 2.2.5 (in Chapter 2).

C.2.3. Cut

Edit Cut (shortcut key: Ctrl+X) marks the currently selected cells for a cut-and-paste operation. Excel doesn't actually remove the cell content until you use Edit Paste to insert the data somewhere else. In the meantime, the cell selection is surrounded with a scrolling marquee border.

C.2.4. Copy

Edit Copy (shortcut key: Ctrl+C) copies the currently selected cells to the clipboard. To place them in a new home, move to a new cell, and select Edit Paste.

C.2.5. Office Clipboard

The Clipboard task (Edit Office Clipboard) appears on the right side of the Excel main window and shows the content of the Office clipboard. Unlike the Windows clipboard, the Office clipboard can store multiple pieces of information at once. However, it's only accessible inside Office applications like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. For detailed information about the Clipboard task, see Section 3.2.3 (Chapter 3).

C.2.6. Paste

This command (shortcut key: Ctrl+V) inserts the most recently copied content from the Windows clipboard. This might include a selection of cells, or it can include content you've copied from another program (like text or a picture).

C.2.7. Paste Special

The Paste Special dialog box (Edit Paste Special) lets you decide how to insert items stored on the clipboard. You can use the Paste Special dialog box in two different ways. First, if you're copying a cell selection, the Paste Special dialog box lets you paste only a selection's content (without formatting), or paste the results of a formula (rather than the formula itself). These options are described on Section 3.2.4 (Chapter 3). Second, if you're copying something from another application, the Paste Special dialog box lets you convert the content into another format (for example, you might change a Visio diagram into an ordinary picture). The Paste Special dialog box also lets you choose to create an embedded or linked object that you can edit using the program that created the content originally. For more information about exchanging information between Excel and other applications, and using linking and embedding, see Chapter 22.

C.2.8. Paste as Hyperlink

This little-used feature can help you add links between documents written in different Office applications. To try it out, copy a line of text in a Word document, and then select Edit Paste as Hyperlink in an Excel workbook. Excel adds the text you copied as a hyperlink, so that if you click that text, the linked document opens in Word. Of course, in order for this to work reliably, you can't change the location or name of the Word document at all. For more information about creating your own hyperlinks , see Section 24.3.1 (Chapter 24).

C.2.9. Fill

The Fill menu lets you use Excel's AutoFill feature to create a whole column or row of values based on just one or two cells. AutoFill is commonly used to create series of sequential numbers , months, or days (or just as a shortcut when copying text). For example, if you enter the values 1 and 2 in cells A1 and A2, and then you select the range of cells from A1 to A10, you can use Edit AutoFill Series to fill in the full list of numbers from 1 to 10. For more information about mastering AutoFill, as well as understanding its limitations, see Section 2.2.3 (Chapter 2).

C.2.10. Clear

You can choose an option from this menu to clear the currently selected cell or a selection of cells. Use All to remove everything (formatting included), Formats to remove formatting information (but leaving the content untouched), Contents to remove the cell content (but leave the formatting in place), and Comments to remove any attached comment (see Section 21.2 in Chapter 21 for more about Comments).

C.2.11. Delete

This command removes the content from the current cell or currently selected range of cells. The formatting remains unchanged (to remove formatting, use the Edit Clear command instead).

C.2.12. Delete Sheet

This command deletes the current worksheet. This change is permanentUndo can't get your worksheet back, so make sure it's a change you really want to make.

C.2.13. Move or Copy Sheet

The Move or Copy Sheet dialog box (Edit Move or Copy Sheet) lets you copy a worksheet from one open workbook to another. For a step-by-step look at how this works, see Section 5.1.4 (Chapter 5).

C.2.14. Find

Edit Find opens the Find and Replace dialog box with the Find tab selected. Using this window, you can search for any particular value in your workbook. Click Find Next to jump to the next match. Page Section 5.2.1 (Chapter 5) has details.

C.2.15. Replace

Edit Replace opens the Find and Replace dialog box with the Replace tab selected. Using this window, you can replace occurrences of one value with another. Just enter the "Find what" and "Replace with" values and click Replace (to change one value at a time) or Replace all (to update the entire worksheet). Page Section 5.2.4 (Chapter 5) shows you how this works.

C.2.16. Go To

The Go To dialog box (Edit Go To) lets you jump to a specific cell by entering its address (for example, G481), and clicking OK. The Go To window is described on Sidebar 1.3 (Chapter 1).

C.2.17. Links

If your workbook contains at least one link to another document, you can use this command to show the Edit Links dialog box. This dialog box lets you change whether linked documents are updated automatically or manually, and you can also change the link to point to a different document (which is useful if the original source document has moved or been renamed ). The Edit Links dialog box comes into play in two situationswhen you're linking to other Excel workbook files (see Section 7.3.3 in Chapter 7), and when you're linking to objects created by other applications (see Chapter 22).

C.2.18. Object

This command is available if you select a linked or embedded object in your worksheet. Depending on the selected object, the menu text changes slightly. For example, if you select a Word object inside an Excel worksheet, the menu text says Document Object. You can then choose an option from the submenu, including Edit (to modify the document using the menu and toolbars from the program that created it), Open (to modify the document by launching it in a separate window), or Convert (to change the document to another supported type of content, like a picture). For more information about linking and embedding, see Chapter 22.