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[Closed] More Excel Help...

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I have a table in Excel which is the result of an SQL query (which has a parameter that can change)

E.g.

Columns A, B, C, D

Sorted on Column D.

I would like to colour in each row based on the value in Column A.

[b]A B C D [/b]
c x x 1
d y y 1
c z z 2
e a a 2

So, rows 1 & 3 to have the same colour, and rows 2 & 4 to have their own colours.

I could do it with a bunch of conditional formatting rules, but it would have to be redone each time the table was refreshed.

Anybody got any bright ideas?


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 5:09 pm
Posts: 36
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probably solvable with NAMED RANGES.
ALthough why not just conditional formatting? Have you got loads of options in A?


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 5:15 pm
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Yes, loads of potential values in A.

Will conditional formatting stick around if I refresh the table? I wouldn't mind (too much) doing it once if it stuck...


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 5:17 pm
Posts: 36
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yes, conditional formatting is a format characteristic, so assuming the sql population is data only (or referenced) it shouldnt change any formats


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 5:18 pm
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Cheers. Job for Monday 🙂


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 5:20 pm
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Either that or vba to create a function for the sheet. It was beyond my abilities. Might have an example at work but can't promise


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 6:31 pm
 poly
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Be aware that there is an upper limit to the number of formats you can apply (changed with version of Excel too, to make it hard to predict!)


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 6:42 pm
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When they "improved" the conditional formatting function a few generations ago, they made it harder to manage, IMO. It always seems to create a gazillion separate rules to replace the one you create for a range. And it can go really screwy if you sort or move things around.

I'd favour a VBA approach here.


 
Posted : 24/03/2017 8:14 pm