Microsoft Excel Managing Data Cells and Ranges 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does Paste Special > 'Values' do?
- Pastes everything
- Pastes only calculated results, removing formulas and formatting (Correct answer)
- Pastes only formatting
- Pastes with conditional formatting
Correct answer: Pastes only calculated results, removing formulas and formatting
Paste Values strips formulas and formatting, leaving only the result.
Paste Special (Ctrl+Alt+V) also offers: Formulas, Formatting, Column Widths, Comments, Validation, and math operations.
Question 2: How do you name a range of cells?
- Right-click > Name Range
- Select range, type name in Name Box, press Enter (Correct answer)
- Home tab Name button
- Names assigned automatically
Correct answer: Select range, type name in Name Box, press Enter
Select cells, click the Name Box (left of formula bar), type the name, press Enter.
Rules: start with letter/underscore, no spaces, max 255 chars, case-insensitive. Benefits: readable formulas, easier navigation.
Question 3: What is the difference between deleting contents and deleting cells?
- No difference
- Contents clears values but keeps cells; deleting cells removes them and shifts neighbors (Correct answer)
- Deleting cells is permanent
- Contents removes formatting
Correct answer: Contents clears values but keeps cells; deleting cells removes them and shifts neighbors
Delete key clears values; Right-click > Delete removes the cell and shifts adjacent cells.
Clear offers: All, Formats, Contents, Comments, Hyperlinks. Delete (Ctrl+-) prompts: shift left, shift up, entire row, entire column.
Question 4: What does Flash Fill do?
- Fills with random data
- Detects patterns in your data entry and fills remaining cells (Correct answer)
- Applies fill animation
- Applies fill color quickly
Correct answer: Detects patterns in your data entry and fills remaining cells
Flash Fill recognizes patterns from examples you type and auto-fills the rest.
Ctrl+E or Data > Flash Fill. Works for extracting substrings, combining text, reformatting. Creates static values, not formulas.
Question 5: How do you use Go To Special to select specific cell types?
- View > Go To Special
- Ctrl+G then 'Special' to select by type (formulas, blanks, constants) (Correct answer)
- Home > Select Special
- Only available in VBA
Correct answer: Ctrl+G then 'Special' to select by type (formulas, blanks, constants)
Press Ctrl+G, click Special, then choose criteria like formulas, blanks, or constants.
Options: Comments, Constants, Formulas, Blanks, Visible Cells Only, Conditional Formats, Data Validation, Precedents, Dependents.
Question 6: What does Text to Columns do?
- Converts column charts to text
- Splits one column into multiple based on delimiter or fixed width (Correct answer)
- Converts text numbers to numbers
- Wraps text in cells
Correct answer: Splits one column into multiple based on delimiter or fixed width
Text to Columns splits text using delimiters or fixed character positions.
Two methods: Delimited (comma, tab, space) or Fixed Width. Bonus: running it without a delimiter can fix numbers stored as text.
Microsoft Excel Managing Data Cells and Ranges 2
What does Paste Special > 'Values' do?