Here are some techniques for creating sequences of data such as a column of serial numbers or successive dates using formulas and the Fill command in the ClarisWorks spreadsheet environment.
Sequence of numbers
1. Enter the starting number in a cell (A1)
2. Enter a formula in the cell below or to the right which adds 1 or some other increment to the starting cell (=A1+1)
3. Select and drag from the cell with the formula to the last cell you want to fill to.
4. Choose Fill Down or Fill Right from the Calculate menu.
Sequence of dates
1. Enter the starting date into a cell.
Follow steps 2-4 above. Then choose Number Format and choose one of the date formats. Otherwise, the dates will be in the form of a serial number.
To create a list of month names starting with January:
1. Enter the following formula into any cell:
=MONTHNAME(MOD(ROW(A1)-1,12)+1)
2. Select and drag from the cell with the formula to the last cell you want to fill to.
3. Choose Fill Down or Fill Right from the Calculate menu. (Substitute the COLUMN function for ROW if using Fill Right.)
4. The bullets in the value indicate that the cell formula refers to itself. To remove them, choose Display from the Options menu and turn off "Mark circular references."
To create a list of day names starting with Monday:
1. Enter the following formula into any cell:
=DAYNAME(MOD(ROW(A1),7)+1)
Follow steps 2-4 in the directions for month names.
To create the alphabet:
1. Enter the following formula into any cell:
=CHAR(64+MOD(ROW(A1)-1,26)+1)
2. Substitute "96"if you want lowercase letters.
Follow steps 2-4 in the directions for month names.
Note: The formulas for month names, day names and the alphabet all work by same method. The MOD function returns the remainder of a number and divisor. The number of occurrences of the unit (12 for months, 7 for days of the week, and 26 for the alphabet) is used as the divisor and ensures that the number which generates the name or character is always within the unit range, even if you fill down for hundreds of cells. The ROW or COLUMN function in conjunction with the way the Fill command increments cell references does the job of creating the sequence of data, regardless of what cell you begin with.