When working on larger datasets in Excel, it is very challenging to keep track of specific rows or columns. While Excel has features like manually tracking rows and columns using multiple methods, it is time-consuming and requires a lot of technical knowledge. Eagles Tools introduces the Cell Focus feature under the Data Cleansing group to make data analysis and navigation effortless. This tool allows you to highlight rows, columns or even both and you can also customize the focus color to suit your preference. Additionally, you can also select multiple cells using control keys to highlight more areas simultaneously. Below, we’ll walk through each feature step-by-step.
Features of Cell Focus
1. Cell Focus (Row and Column)
The Cell Focus feature highlights both rows and columns of the selected cells, creating a cross-section for better visibility.
How to Use:
- Click the Cell Focus button in the Eagles Tools ribbon under the Data Cleansing group to toggle the focus mode.
- Select any cell in your worksheet and the row and column of the selected cell will be highlighted automatically.
- To highlight multiple rows and columns, hold down the Ctrl key and select additional cells. The rows and columns of those cells will also be highlighted including the previously selected cells.
- To turn off your Cell Focus, click on the Cell Focus button.
Pro Tip: Using this feature when analyzing your data trends across multiple rows and columns will save you lots of time and reduce errors.
2. Row Focus
The Row Focus feature highlights the entire row of the selected cells and helps you track your data horizontally across multiple columns.
How to Use:
- Click the Row Focus button within the Cell Focus menu to enable row focus mode.
- Select any cell whose row you want to highlight and the entire row will be highlighted automatically.
- To highlight multiple rows, hold down the Ctrl key and select additional cells in different rows.
- To turn off Row Focus, click again on the Row Focus button under the Cell Focus menu.
Best Use Case: It is ideal when you want to compare data horizontally, such as reviewing the performance of individuals, monthly figures or also comparing products.
3. Column Focus
The Column Focus feature highlights entire columns of the selected cells which makes it easy to track your data vertically in multiple rows.
How to Use:
- Click the Column Focus button within the Cell Focus menu to enable column focus mode.
- Select any cell whose column you want to highlight and the entire column will be highlighted automatically.
- Hold the Ctrl key and click additional cells to highlight multiple columns.
- To turn off Column Focus, click again on the Column Focus button under the Cell Focus menu.
Best Use Case: A helpful feature to analyze data vertically such as sales trends, customer data or time-based comparisons.
4. Change Color for Focus
The Change Color for Focus feature allows you to change the highlight color for all the above 3 scenarios. This ensures optimal visibility or matches your personal preferences.
How to Use:
- Click the Change Color for Focus button under the Cell Focus menu.
- Choose your desired color from the color picker dialog box and also increase/decrease the shade color for focus highlights.
- Click OK and future highlights will be as per the selected color.
Pro Tip: Experiment with contrasting colors to ensure the focus stands out against your existing dataset.