If you are like most computer users, you have a mountain of little notes to yourself about all of the things you haven't committed to memory. Sometimes we use "sticky notes" and attach these reminders on our monitor, the bookcase, and anything else within easy reach. (Don't attach your passwords please!)
Wouldn't it be nice to have some "sticky notes" to put inside a complex document like one of your Excel projects. You could put reminders to yourself (or others) what is happening in a particular formula or function. You could put reminders of dates when the data should be changed. These important ideas would be seen when a report was printed if you typed those reminders in a black cell. What if you could create almost "invisible" reminders that wouldn't be printed? You have the idea of what Cell Comments are all about.
Let's see how it works.
First we will look at a cell that already has some comments.
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| The cell with the red triangle in the upper corner has a comment. | The comment may be seen by pausing the mouse over the cell. |
To enter your own cell comment, first select the cell that should have the comment. Then select Insert + Comment.
This will let you enter in the text box the comment you wish to associate with the selected cell.
Cautions: Too many comments spaced very close together can cause problems with those of us with "mouse-pointing" deficiencies. Too much text in the comment section will cause a large text box to view your comments and obscure much of your spreadsheet. Think "lean and mean" rather than saying all you know about the cell.
If you can put comments in a cell, you have to be able to change your mind or edit the comment out. Deleting the contents of the cell doesn't remove the comments. That is, the Delete key won't remove the comments or the "red triangle". The best way to edit/delete the comments is from the Menu. Choosing Edit + Clear + Comments lets you delete your comments.
