Part I: Getting Started with Excel
To hide the contents of a cell, make the background color the same as the font text color. The cell contents are still
visible in the Formula bar when you select the cell. Keep in mind, however, that some printers may override this set-
ting, and the text may be visible when printed.
Even though you have access to a lot of colors, you might want to stick with the ten theme
colors (and their light/dark variations) displayed in the various color selection controls. In other
words, avoid using the More Color option, which lets you select a color. Why? First, those ten
colors were chosen because they “go together.” (Well, at least somebody thought they did.)
Another reason involves document themes. If you switch to a different document theme for
your workbook, nontheme colors aren’t changed. In some cases, the result may be less than
pleasing aesthetically. (See “Understanding Document Themes” later in this chapter for more
information about themes.)
Adding borders and lines
Borders (and lines within the borders) are another visual enhancement that you can add
around groups of cells. Borders are often used to group a range of similar cells or to delin-
eate rows or columns. Excel offers 13 preset styles of borders, as you can see in the Home
➪ Font ➪ Borders drop-down list shown in Figure 5.9. This control works with the selected
cell or range and enables you to specify which, if any, border style to use for each border of
the selection.
You may prefer to draw borders rather than select a preset border style. To do so, use the
Draw Border or Draw Border Grid command from the Home ➪ Font ➪ Borders drop-down
list. Selecting either command lets you create borders by dragging your mouse. Use the
Line Color or Line Style command to change the color or style. When you’re finished draw-
ing borders, press Esc to cancel the border-drawing mode.
Another way to apply borders is to use the Border tab of the Format Cells dialog box, which
is shown in Figure 5.10. One way to display this dialog box is to select More Borders from the
Borders drop-down list.
Before you display the Format Cells dialog box, select the cell or range to which you want
to add borders. Then, in the Format Cells dialog box, choose a line style and color and then
choose the border position for the line style by clicking one or more of the Border icons.
(These icons are toggles.)
Notice that the Border tab has three preset icons, which can save you some clicking. If you want
to remove all borders from the selection, click None. To put an outline around the selection,
click Outline. To put borders inside the selection, click Inside.
