Using colors in worksheet cells If you are doing a presentation using an Excel workbook, color can be a real asset. If you want to draw the audiences attention to a particular cell, telling them to look at the red or blue cell is particularly effective because they usually focus on it immediately. The color of the text and the fill color of the cell background can both be used to emphasize and de-emphasize particular cells on the worksheet. Strong colors draw attention and pale colors cause contents to fade into the background. Caution should be exercised in the application of colors. Using more than two or three colors on a worksheet can make the contents more confusing rather than less confusing. If your workbook will be presented using different media, e.g. printed on paper, on a digital projector, over the on a web page, be sure to test your colors in each media, and if possible using the exact equipment that will be used for the presentation. Some colors, like green, can be particularly tricky as different brands of media can make it look anything from yellow to brown. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 1Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

Using colors in worksheet cells - 1 The Formatting tool bar contains two buttons for setting the colors of cells: the Fill Color button sets the background color of the cell; and the Font Color button sets the text or foreground color. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 2Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

Changing the color of text in a cell To demonstrate the method for changing the color of cell entries, we will change the color of the text in cell B2 to blue. Second, click on the drop down arrow to the right of the icon on the Font Color tool button. Third, position the cursor over the Blue color swatch and click the mouse. First, select the cell whose color we want to change, B2. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 3Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

The cell with blue text Generally, our eye is drawn toward the item that is different. In this example, the difference between the blue text and black text is subtle. I think the blue color would cause us to notice the difference, but would not focus us solely on the cell. If we were using this information in a presentation, our audience can easily locate a reference to the blue text. Generally, our eye is drawn toward the item that is different. In this example, the difference between the blue text and black text is subtle. I think the blue color would cause us to notice the difference, but would not focus us solely on the cell. If we were using this information in a presentation, our audience can easily locate a reference to the blue text. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 4Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

Changing the background color of a cell To demonstrate the method for changing the color of cell entries, we will change the color of the background in cell A3 to light turquoise. Second, click on the drop down arrow to the right of the icon on the Fill Color tool button. Third, position the cursor over the Light Turquoise color swatch and click the mouse. First, select the cell whose background color we want to change, A3. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 5Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

The cell with a light turquoise background Changing the background color is a stronger and more dramatic effect than changing the font color. Even though light turquoise is not a strong color, it draws greater attention that the cell with the blue text. If we were using this information in a presentation, our audience can easily locate a reference to the turquoise cell. If we were comparing the figure in the turquoise cell to the figure in the blue font, the difference in color would facilitate the comparison. Changing the background color is a stronger and more dramatic effect than changing the font color. Even though light turquoise is not a strong color, it draws greater attention that the cell with the blue text. If we were using this information in a presentation, our audience can easily locate a reference to the turquoise cell. If we were comparing the figure in the turquoise cell to the figure in the blue font, the difference in color would facilitate the comparison. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 6Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

Removing the text color To remove the color from a text item and make it black again, we choose Automatic or default setting as the font color. Second, click on the drop down arrow to the right of the icon on the Font Color tool button. Third, click on the Automatic Color panel. First, select the cell whose color we want to change, B2. The text in the selected cell is returned to the default color, black. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 7Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

Removing the cell background color Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 8Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin To remove the fill or background color from a cell, we choose No Fill as the fill color. First, select the cell whose color we want to change, A3. Second, click on the drop down arrow to the right of the icon on the Fill Color tool button. Third, position the cursor over the No Fill (No Color) panel and click the mouse. The cell background displays white when there is no fill color for the background of the cell.

Changing text colors in the format cells dialog box We can set the font color using the Format Cells dialog box First, select cell B2 and open the Format Cells dialog box by selecting Cells from the Format menu bar, and click on the Font tab if necessary. Second, click on the down arrow next to the Color drop down menu. Third, select the color Blue from the drop down menu. Fourth, click on the OK button to apply the format. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 9Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin

Changing background colors in format cells dialog box We can set the cell background color using the Format Cells dialog box First, select cell A3 and open the Format Cells dialog box by selecting Cells from the Format menu bar. Click on the Patterns tab. First, select cell A3 and open the Format Cells dialog box by selecting Cells from the Format menu bar. Click on the Patterns tab. Second, select the color Light Turquoise from the color palette. Third, click on the OK button to apply the format. Using colors in worksheet cells, Slide 10Copyright © 2004, Jim Schwab, University of Texas at Austin