excel2007.Tips.Net Welcome toExcel2007.Tips.Net

Helpful Links

Excel 2007 Home
Tips.Net Home

Ask a Question
Make a Comment

Cooking Tips
ExcelTips
Family Tips
Money Tips

Newest Tips

Changing a Link's Source

Using Conditional Formatting to Shade Rows

Editing by Moving and Copying

Making Sure Duplicate Names Aren't Entered

Applying a Conditional Format to a Full Row

Hiding Worksheet Tabs

Making Cells Flash

 

Specifying Enter Key Behavior

Summary: When you are entering data in a worksheet and you press Enter, it is the signal to Excel that you are done with the current cell. What happens next depends on a setting you make that indicates which way you want Excel to move the selection.

When you type information into a cell, it is normal to press the Enter key at the end of your entry. Excel allows you to specify exactly what should happen after you press Enter. Basically, you can specify that nothing happen (the cell into which you entered information remains the currently selected cell) or that a different, adjacent cell is automatically selected.

To make your specification, follow these steps:

  1. Click the Office button, then click Excel Options. Excel displays the Excel Options dialog box.
  2. At the left side of the dialog box, click the Advanced option. (Click here to see a related figure.)
  3. The first option in the Editing Options section of the dialog box is entitled After Pressing Enter, Move Selection. Either select or clear the check box, depending on whether you want the selection to move or not when pressing Enter.
  4. If you select the After Pressing Enter Move Selection check box, use the Direction drop-down list to specify the direction of the cell that should be selected.
  5. Click on OK.

Related Tips:

Find and Replace Almost Anything! An invaluable resource for learning how to harness the full power of Word's search and replace capabilities. You'll discover everything you need in order to master all the intricacies of finding and replacing elements of your document, including the super-powerful "wildcard searches" available in Word. Check out WordTips: Find and Replace today!