Excel Spreadsheet Tips to Customize Your Free Excel Spreadsheets

One size does not fit all when it comes to spreadsheets.

Learn some basic excel spreadsheet tips that will help you customize your accounting spreadsheets to suit your personality and particular needs.



In the following pages, you will learn how to make attractive headers, add and delete columns, add and delete rows, and add and delete accounts.

Note: I have excel 2007 and these instructions are conformed to that edition; however, even though the editing tools are not in the same place in the 2003 edition...the step-by-step instructions are general enough to use with any Excel version.

These instructions are also based on the latest version of my spreadsheets. I have been sending out my spreadsheets for over a year and I have made multiple changes to them. So the column, row, or cell numbers in your version may not match up with the numbers in the step-by-step guides.

If you are unable to modify your older version spreadsheets and would like the newest version, simply contact me and I will send them to you.

List of Instructions for Modifying Basic Accounting Spreadsheets:

• Click here to add and delete fund accounts on general ledger.
  
  
• Click here to add or delete fund accounts on the monthly and annual reports and to add and delete line accounts.

The regular spreadsheet can also be modified; however, because each page is linked to at least one previous sheet it is much more difficult to customize. So, if you have the time and the patience...

Here is a List of Step-By-Step Guides to Modify the Regular Accounting Spreadsheets:

• Click here to delete fund accounts in the general ledger.

• Click here to delete fund accounts in the monthly and annual reports.

• Click here to delete or add line accounts(Revenue and Expenses).

• Click here to add additional fund accounts to the general ledger.

• Click here to add additional fund accounts to the monthly and annual reports.

• Click here to add quarterly reports to your spreadsheets.

Basic Excel Spreadsheet Tips:

• Right click on tab.
• You can select rename or tab color to personalize.

Protect Data

Once you get your spreadsheets modified to suit you and your organization, you will want to protect all your hard work.

To prevent a user from accidentally or deliberately changing, moving, or deleting important data from a worksheet; you can protect your data and formulas in a certain worksheet or workbook elements, with or without a password, by following the steps listed below. You can remove the protection from a worksheet as needed.

Definition of a worksheet: The primary document that you use in Excel to store and work with data. Also called a spreadsheet. A worksheet is always stored in a workbook (your excel file).

By default, when you protect a worksheet, all the cells on the worksheet are locked, and users cannot make any changes to a locked cell. However, you can specify which elements users will be able to change when you protect the worksheet.

To protect the whole worksheet simply:

• On the Review tab, in the Changes group, click Protect Sheet.
• In the Allow all users of this worksheet to list, select the elements that you want users to be able to change.
• In the Password to unprotect sheet box, type a password for the sheet, click OK, and then retype the password to confirm it.

1. Select the worksheet that you want to protect.
2. To unlock any cells or ranges that you want other users to be able to change, do the following:
   • Select each cell or range that you want to unlock.
   • On the Home tab, in the Cells group, click Format, and then click Format Cells.
   • On the Protection tab, clear the Locked check box, and then click OK.
3. To unlock any graphic objects (such as pictures, clip art, shapes, or Smart Art graphics) that you want users to be able to change, do the following:
   • Hold down CTRL and then click each graphic object that you want to unlock.

     This displays the Picture Tools or Drawing Tools, adding the Format tab.

   • On the Format tab, in the Size group, click the Dialog Box Launcher(little box with arrow pointing diagonally left) next to Size.

   • On the Properties tab, clear the Locked check box, and if present, clear the Lock text check box.

4. Now lock the rest of the worksheet by clicking on the Review tab and in the Changes group, click Protect Sheet.
5. Then in the Allow all users of this worksheet to list, select the elements that you want users to be able to change
6. In the Password to unprotect sheet box, type a password for the sheet, click OK, and then retype the password to confirm it.
   
   Note: The password is optional. If you do not supply a password, then any user can unprotect the sheet and change the protected elements. Make sure that you choose a password that is easy to remember, because if you lose the password, you cannot gain access to the protected elements on the worksheet

Excel does not encrypt data that is hidden or locked in a workbook. To help keep confidential data confidential, you may want to limit access to workbooks that contain such information by storing them in a location that is available only to authorized users.

Return to Home page from Excel Spreadsheet Tips