Moving Around a Worksheet
This section describes various ways to navigate through the cells in a worksheet. Every worksheet consists of rows (numbered 1 through 1,048,576) and columns (labeled A through XFD). After column Z comes column AA, which is followed by AB, AC, and so on. After column AZ comes BA, BB, and so on. After column ZZ is AAA, AAB, and so on.
The intersection of a row and a column is a single cell. At any given time, one cell is the active cell. You can identify the active cell by its darker border, as shown in Figure 12-8. Its address (its column letter and row number) appears in the Name box. Depending on the technique that you use to navigate through a workbook, you may or may not change the active cell when you navigate.
Figure 12-8. The active cell is the cell with the dark border—in this case, cell C8.
Notice that the row and column headings of the active cell appear in different colors to make it easier to identify the row and column of the active cell.
Navigating with your keyboard
As you probably already know, you can use the standard navigational keys on your keyboard to move around a worksheet. These keys work just as you’d expect: The down arrow moves the active cell down one row, the right arrow moves it one column to the right, and so on. PgUp and PgDn move the active cell up or down one full window. (The actual number of rows moved depends on the number of rows displayed in the window.)
Tip
You can use the keyboard to scroll through the worksheet without changing the active cell by turning on Scroll Lock, which is useful if you need to view another area of your worksheet and then quickly return to your original location. Just press Scroll Lock and use the direction keys to scroll through the worksheet. When you want to return to the original position (the active cell), press Ctrl+Backspace. Then, press Scroll Lock again to turn it off. When Scroll Lock is turned on, Excel displays Scroll Lock in the status bar at the bottom of the window.
The Num Lock key on your keyboard controls how the keys on the numeric keypad behave. When Num Lock is on, Excel displays Num Lock in the status bar, and the keys on your numeric keypad generate numbers. Most keyboards have a separate set of navigational (arrow) keys located to the left of the numeric keypad. The state of the Num Lock key doesn’t affect these keys.
Table 12-4 summarizes all the worksheet movement keys available in Excel.
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| Up arrow | Moves the active cell up one row |
| Down arrow | Moves the active cell down one row |
| Left arrow or Shift+Tab | Moves the active cell one column to the left |
| Right arrow or Tab | Moves the active cell one column to the right |
| PgUp | Moves the active cell up one screen |
| PgDn | Moves the active cell down one screen |
| Alt+PgDn | Moves the active cell right one screen |
| Alt+PgUp | Moves the active cell left one screen |
| Ctrl+Backspace | Scrolls the screen so that the active cell is visible |
| Up arrow[*] | Scrolls the screen up one row (active cell does not change) |
| Down arrow[*] | Scrolls the screen down one row (active cell does not change) |
| Left arrow[*] | Scrolls the screen left one column (active cell does not change) |
| Right arrow[*] | Scrolls the screen right one column (active cell does not change) |
[*] With Scroll Lock on
Navigating with your mouse
To change the active cell by using the mouse, click another cell; it becomes the active cell. If the cell that you want to activate isn’t visible in the workbook window, you can use the scrollbars to scroll the window in any direction. To scroll one cell, click either of the arrows on the scrollbar. To scroll by a complete screen, click either side of the scroll bar’s scroll box. You also can drag the scroll box for faster scrolling.
Tip
If your mouse has a wheel on it, you can use the mouse wheel to scroll vertically. Also, if you click the wheel and move the mouse in any direction, the worksheet scrolls automatically in that direction. The more you move the mouse, the faster the scrolling.
Press Ctrl while you use the mouse wheel to zoom the worksheet. If you prefer to use the mouse wheel to zoom the worksheet without pressing Ctrl, choose Office Button 
Excel Options and select the Advanced section. Place a check mark next to the Zoom On Roll With Intellimouse checkbox.
Using the scroll bars or scrolling with your mouse doesn’t change the active cell. It simply scrolls the worksheet. To change the active cell, you must click a new cell after scrolling.