Assume that the contents of cells A1 to A5 of a Microsoft Excel worksheet are 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 respectively and the rest of the cells are empty. Selecting A1 to A5 and clicking on the ‘AutoSum’ button will display 15 in the ____ cell

1. B1
2. A6
3. A1
4. A5

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Solution

How AutoSum Works

Using AutoSum

Other AutoSum Functions

AutoSum Shortcuts

Solution

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Correct option is B. A6

In Microsoft Excel, the AutoSum button is a convenient tool that automatically calculates the sum of a range of cells and displays the result in a neighboring cell. If you have the contents of cells A1 to A5 as 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 respectively, and you select the range A1 to A5 and click on the AutoSum button, the sum (15) will be displayed in cell A6.

How AutoSum Works

The AutoSum button uses the SUM function in Excel to add up the selected range of cells. When you click the AutoSum button, Excel automatically generates a formula using the SUM function and places it in the adjacent cell below or to the right of the selected range.

In this case, since you have selected a vertical range (A1:A5), Excel will place the formula in the cell below the range, which is cell A6.

The formula generated by the AutoSum button will look like this:

=SUM(A1:A5)

This formula tells Excel to add up the values in cells A1 to A5 and display the result in cell A6.

Using AutoSum

To use the AutoSum button in Excel, follow these steps:

1. Select the range of cells that you want to calculate the sum for. In this case, select cells A1 to A5.
2. Go to the Home tab on the Ribbon.
3. In the Editing group, click on the AutoSum button (it looks like the Greek letter Sigma: Σ).
4. Excel will automatically generate a formula using the SUM function and place it in the appropriate adjacent cell (A6 in this case).
5. Press Enter or click outside the cell to confirm the formula. The sum of the selected range (15) will be displayed in cell A6.

Other AutoSum Functions

While the AutoSum button is primarily used for calculating the sum of a range of cells, it can also perform other basic calculations, such as finding the average, counting the number of items, finding the maximum and minimum values, and more. To access these additional functions, click on the drop-down arrow next to the AutoSum button and select the desired function from the list.

Here are some other functions available through the AutoSum drop-down menu:

• Average: Calculates the average of the selected range of cells using the AVERAGE function.
• Count Numbers: Counts the number of numeric entries in the selected range of cells using the COUNT function.
• Max: Finds the maximum value in the selected range of cells using the MAX function.
• Min: Finds the minimum value in the selected range of cells using the MIN function.

For example, if you wanted to find the average of the range A1:A5, you would select the range, click on the drop-down arrow next to the AutoSum button, and choose the “Average” option. Excel would then generate a formula using the AVERAGE function and place it in cell A6, like this:

=AVERAGE(A1:A5)

AutoSum Shortcuts

You can also access the AutoSum functionality using keyboard shortcuts. The default keyboard shortcut for AutoSum is Alt + = (press the Alt key and the equal sign key simultaneously). This will automatically insert the SUM function for the selected range of cells or the range adjacent to the active cell.