Linking Formulas in Excel 2007

With Karen S. Sieczka

What is linking and why do I need to know this?

Linking means carrying over from another place and using it in a calculation on the active sheet.

Linking formulas keeps you from having to look up a number and then typing it into the sheet.

Tech Talk Linking formulas is also known as 3-D referencing

What are the applications for linking formulas?

Carry over the 12 months data into a summary sheet

Bring last year’s totals to start this

year’s info

Take cash on hand balance from one month to the next

What could you use linking for?

So, how do I get data from here ………. To this summary sheet over here? By linking formulas!

Linking Basics…

Tell me more!

Always start where you want the result to end up.

Notice that US is the active cell.

Tech TalkTo make a cell active, click on it!

Type an equal sign (=) into the active cell.

Now, click on 1st Quarter sheet tab to access the information we want to carry over to our summary.

Here is the information we want to carry back to the summary.

Just click on the cell to select it.

After clicking our selection, the computer highlights it with the dashed frame and also adds it to the formula bar.

We’re almost done. Press the Enter key and…

Tech TalkYou can also use

the green checkmark next

to the formula bar instead of

pressing Enter

As soon as you press Enter, Excel closes out the formula and takes us back to the Summary sheet with the results we carried over from the 1st Quarter sheet.

In just a few clicks…

We carried information from here… …To here!

The wrap up…how to use linking formulas…

Click on cell where you want data to go

Type = to activate linking process

Click on sheet tab

where your data to retrieve is located

Click the cell to

select the data you

want to link

Press the Enter key

Done!

Quick Quiz on linking formulas

1. Which of the following can you use linking formulas to do?a) Create a macrob) Carry over data from one sheet to anotherc) Total the numbers in a column

2. Always start the linking process by:a) Clicking on the last tab in the workbookb) Making the cell you want the result in your active cellc) Typing an equal (=) sign in the cell

3. The last thing to do in the linking process is:a) Press the Enter keyb) Click the Enter checkmark next to the formula barc) Either a or b

Answers:

1. b, 2. b, 3. c