I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

Hi Arno,

Perhaps, size the cell appropriately, add a box border and set the cell's
font to martlett. Then entering a lower case letter a or b will show a tick
symbol. For a negative symbol, try using a lower case r.

---
Regards,
Norman



"Arno Rite" wrote in message
...
I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

AFAIK, no--not if you don't want to use either of the options you mentioned.

tj

"Arno Rite" wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson

Excellent solution, Dave! This works great! Thanks a million for this!

Now if the developers at Microsoft would make simple and common tasks like
this straightforward to begin with, we could actually do more work and less
figuring out how to make things work they way they're supposed to!

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson

Not sure what AFAIK means (All Fools Are Into Kites). Like I told my son,
give me an acronym and I'll murder it for you. :)

Anyway, tjtjjtjt, you may want to see Dave Peterson's response. He's got
this figured out!

"tjtjjtjt" wrote:

AFAIK, no--not if you don't want to use either of the options you mentioned.

tj

"Arno Rite" wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

Norman, Thanks for the response. Great solution.

"Norman Jones" wrote:

Hi Arno,

Perhaps, size the cell appropriately, add a box border and set the cell's
font to martlett. Then entering a lower case letter a or b will show a tick
symbol. For a negative symbol, try using a lower case r.

---
Regards,
Norman



"Arno Rite" wrote in message
...
I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

AFAIK = As Far As I Know.

http://www.hiddenlab.com/acronym/

If you see others that look funny.

Arno Rite wrote:

Not sure what AFAIK means (All Fools Are Into Kites). Like I told my son,
give me an acronym and I'll murder it for you. :)

Anyway, tjtjjtjt, you may want to see Dave Peterson's response. He's got
this figured out!

"tjtjjtjt" wrote:

AFAIK, no--not if you don't want to use either of the options you mentioned.

tj

"Arno Rite" wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson

Dave,

When I try to enter the alt-2052; nothing appears in the text box. Any
guesses ast to what I might be doing wrong? I've tried pasting in ü;ü;ü;ü
from at text file, and from the Windows character map, but those don't seem
to have the desired effect.

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson

alt-0252, not alt-2052

Don't forget to format the cell as wingdings.

Roger T. wrote:

Dave,

When I try to enter the alt-2052; nothing appears in the text box. Any
guesses ast to what I might be doing wrong? I've tried pasting in ü;ü;ü;ü
from at text file, and from the Windows character map, but those don't seem
to have the desired effect.

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson


--

Dave Peterson

Thanks Dave. That works. Turns out I had two problems:

1. The alt key on my laptop is not configured like that of most "regular"
keyboards. When I press the alt key, no text is written to the screen. I
attached an external one to work around this problem.

2. I didn't understand that the checkmark only shows up AFTER the user
presses the enter key.

So now I have another question: How do I sum (count) the number of boxes
checked in a column?

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

alt-0252, not alt-2052

Don't forget to format the cell as wingdings.

Roger T. wrote:

Dave,

When I try to enter the alt-2052; nothing appears in the text box. Any
guesses ast to what I might be doing wrong? I've tried pasting in ü;ü;ü;ü
from at text file, and from the Windows character map, but those don't seem
to have the desired effect.

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson


--

Dave Peterson

I see the u-umlaut in the formulabar as soon as I let go of the alt key. The
checkmark appears in the cell, then, too.

if there's nothing else in that range:
=counta(a1:a10)

If there might be someother stuff in that range:
=countif(a1:a10,char(252))

Roger T. wrote:

Thanks Dave. That works. Turns out I had two problems:

1. The alt key on my laptop is not configured like that of most "regular"
keyboards. When I press the alt key, no text is written to the screen. I
attached an external one to work around this problem.

2. I didn't understand that the checkmark only shows up AFTER the user
presses the enter key.

So now I have another question: How do I sum (count) the number of boxes
checked in a column?

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

alt-0252, not alt-2052

Don't forget to format the cell as wingdings.

Roger T. wrote:

Dave,

When I try to enter the alt-2052; nothing appears in the text box. Any
guesses ast to what I might be doing wrong? I've tried pasting in ü;ü;ü;ü
from at text file, and from the Windows character map, but those don't seem
to have the desired effect.

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson


--

Dave Peterson


--

Dave Peterson

Excellent! Thanks for your help!


"Dave Peterson" wrote:

I see the u-umlaut in the formulabar as soon as I let go of the alt key. The
checkmark appears in the cell, then, too.

if there's nothing else in that range:
=counta(a1:a10)

If there might be someother stuff in that range:
=countif(a1:a10,char(252))

Roger T. wrote:

Thanks Dave. That works. Turns out I had two problems:

1. The alt key on my laptop is not configured like that of most "regular"
keyboards. When I press the alt key, no text is written to the screen. I
attached an external one to work around this problem.

2. I didn't understand that the checkmark only shows up AFTER the user
presses the enter key.

So now I have another question: How do I sum (count) the number of boxes
checked in a column?

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

alt-0252, not alt-2052

Don't forget to format the cell as wingdings.

Roger T. wrote:

Dave,

When I try to enter the alt-2052; nothing appears in the text box. Any
guesses ast to what I might be doing wrong? I've tried pasting in ü;ü;ü;ü
from at text file, and from the Windows character map, but those don't seem
to have the desired effect.

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson


--

Dave Peterson


--

Dave Peterson

My keyboard wouldn't work. I had to copy paste the umlaut u's.

ü;ü;ü;ü

Otherwise, that wouldn't work with my keyboard.

Still, this is a great tip!

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson

You sure you used the NumPad and not the number keys above qwertyuiop?

Or are you using a laptop?


Gord Dibben MS Excel MVP

On Mon, 27 Nov 2006 10:49:02 -0800, Paperback Writer
wrote:

My keyboard wouldn't work. I had to copy paste the umlaut u's.

ü;ü;ü;ü

Otherwise, that wouldn't work with my keyboard.

Still, this is a great tip!

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson

I am using a Dell USB keyboard on a desktop computer. I did use the numeric
keypad. It wouldn't work.


"Gord Dibben" wrote:

You sure you used the NumPad and not the number keys above qwertyuiop?

Or are you using a laptop?


Gord Dibben MS Excel MVP

On Mon, 27 Nov 2006 10:49:02 -0800, Paperback Writer
wrote:

My keyboard wouldn't work. I had to copy paste the umlaut u's.

ü;ü;ü;ü

Otherwise, that wouldn't work with my keyboard.

Still, this is a great tip!

"Dave Peterson" wrote:

One more option:

Maybe just give the cell a custom format.

Format the cells by:
selecting them
format|cells|number tab|custom category
In the "type:" box, put this:

alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252;alt-0252

But hit and hold the alt key while you're typing the 0252 from the numeric
keypad.

It should look something like this when you're done.
ü;ü;ü;ü
(umlaut over the lower case u separated by semicolons)

And format that range of cells as Wingdings.

Now, no matter what you type (spacebar, x, anyoldtextatall), you'll see a check
mark.

Hit the delete key on the keyboard to clear the cell.

If you have to use that "checkmark" in later formulas:

=if(a1="","no checkmark","Yes checkmark")

You can just see if the cell is empty.

Arno Rite wrote:

I want a cell to be formatted as a checkbox. I don't want to use form or
activex controls. Is this doable?

--

Dave Peterson