Google Sheets Tips

If you like me, really like using Google Sheets, you may find this list of tips on Fast Company helpful.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90334451/27-incredibly-useful-things-you-didnt-know-google-sheets-could-do

I especially liked the following:

13. Perform fast calculations in any number-oriented spreadsheet by highlighting a bunch of cells and then looking in the lower-right corner of the screen. By default, Sheets will show you the sum of the numbers you’ve selected. You can then click the box with that info and tell it to show the average, the minimum or maximum, or the total count of numbers involved–and once you make that change, your selection will stick and remain the new default for any future calculations you perform.

15. Tap into Google’s artificial intelligence and let Sheets perform different types of data analysis and create complex charts for you. Hover your mouse over the starburst-shaped icon in the lower-right corner of the screen, and you’ll see the word “Explore” appear. Click that button, and Sheets will pop up a panel of info related to your data. You can highlight specific rows in your spreadsheet to change its focus, and you can hover over any item it presents to find options for adjusting it or inserting it directly into your sheet.

24. Sheets has the capability to create QR codes that’ll pull up whatever URLs you want when they’re scanned. Type your URL into a cell (with “http://” or “https://” in front of it), then use the following function with your own cell number in place of “A2”:

=image(“https://chart.googleapis.com/chart?chs=150×150&cht=qr&chl=”&A2)

The QR code will instantly appear and be available to copy, share, or manipulate in any way your heart desires.

25. Here’s a handy little Sheets function for tracking trends across numerical data: Create a heat map to highlight highs and lows and make it easy to see things like sales or web-traffic success patterns. Select whatever range of data you want, then look for the “Conditional formatting” option within the Format menu. Click the “Color scale” tab at the top and assign a color to both “Min value” and “Max value.” The effect will work best if you use a light version of a color for the former and a dark version of the same color for the latter.

27. Ever find yourself scrolling through a list of responses in different languages? Sheets can identify any language used in a spreadsheet and even translate it into your own native tongue on the spot. To detect a language, use the following function (with the appropriate cell number in place of “A1”):

=DETECTLANGUAGE(A1)

You can also enter in a word in place of a cell number, if you want:

=DETECTLANGUAGE(“queso”)

Google will give you a two-letter code telling you the language that was used. To translate, meanwhile, use the following command–with your own word or cell number in place of “A1″ and the code for whatever language you want to translate into (if it’s anything other than English, as referenced below):

=GOOGLETRANSLATE(A1,”auto”,”en”)

Assez facile, non?

The full list:
https://www.fastcompany.com/90334451/27-incredibly-useful-things-you-didnt-know-google-sheets-could-do