Concepts


Why does the computer sort some of the data but not the rest of it?

Tool Menu

The Sort... command on the Data menu is used to sort rows (or columns) of data in your spreadsheet. To sort data in your spreadsheet you must first highlight the data to be sorted. Only the data in the cells within the highlighted region are sorted. If you want to sort the whole row you need to highlight the whole row.

If there are adjacent cells with data that aren't included in the region you highlighted, you will be presented with the following dialog box:

The second option (Continue with the current selection) should be selected if you want to sort only the data you have highlighted. Data in the same row but outside the highlighted region will be left unchanged. The first option (Expand the selection) should only be selected if you want to expand the highlighted region to include adjacent cells with data. In most cases if you get this warning and you realize you have not completely highlighted the data you want to sort, it is better to select cancel and reselect the data to be sorted. This guarantees the selected region will be exactly what you want.


Copyright 1996 by the Curators of the University of Missouri