How to use Excel 2007 tables - Part 1

“Tables” may be new to Excel 2007, but hark back to a similar feature in Excel 2003 known as Lists. An Excel 2003 list could be created by right-clicking on a cell within the block of cells and choosing the Create List option. Like an Excel 2007 table, an Excel 2003 list has a totals row that can be toggled on or off, and automatically expands to incorporate data added immediately beneath or to the right of the list. A chart linked to the list will automatically reflect additional rows added to the list. Excel 2007 tables build on these list features. To create a table you need to ensure that the data you want to turn into a table is in a suitable format. Generally each column will contain a different field of data and each row a separate record, very much like a database table. You can click on any cell in the block of data and choose the Table option from the Tables section of the Insert ribbon tab, or the Format as Table option from the Styles section of the Home ribbon tab. You will be asked to confirm your data area and whether it has headers. The Insert, Table option will turn the area into a table and apply a default format; the Format as Table option will allow you to choose from a gallery of table formats.