How do I remove a selected set of cells?

Yes, I keep all three users guides close by for ready access. These references are well done and have been extremely useful. For Numbers, my success rate is considerably lower, partly because my queries inevitably concern unsupported features. Thanks again for your prompt response to my questions. I have had a lot of success with Apple Discussions.

best regards,
Michael

Michael Force wrote:
Thank you for your attempt to help. This does not work for me, perhaps because I failed to fully understand what Yvan is trying to say. You are saying I need to delete cells at the bottom of the column,

It's not what I wrote.

Assuming that you want to remove cells C12 thru C14, I asked you to select cells C15 thru C9999999 then move the selected block to cell C12.
Old cell C15 will become cell C12
Old cell C16 will become cell C13
Old cell C17 will become cell C14
…

Your problem is different than the original one which was:

I want to delete a range of cells in a single column, say for instance 3 cells, and have the entire column shift up 3 cells.

and I'm not sure that the "Delete cells" function of Excel will do the trick.

I assumes (because you didn't give the complete info) that you want to remove cells C12 thru C14.
Select cells C15 thru C40, move the block to C12.

Old cell C15 will become cell C12
Old cell C16 will become cell C13
Old cell C17 will become cell C14
…
Old cell 40 will become cell C37
cells C38, C39, C40 will be empty.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE lundi 17 novembre 2008 11:59:29)

nonsensel

It is possible in Numbers and there are a couple of options. One requires three steps: 1) delete the selected cells, 2) copy the cells to the right that you want to shift, and 3) paste them in the newly vacated cells at the left.

Another is that you move a selected range of cells over the cells you wish to delete. You must be careful here, however, because the moved range of cells may not be large enough to cover all the cells you wish to delete, thus making it necessary to delete the excess.

pw

I want to delete a range of cells in a single column, say for instance 3 cells, and have the entire column shift up 3 cells. Anyone have any idea how I can do this in Numbers? I'm looking for a "delete cells" and "shift cells up" command. I can't find it anywhere. I'm beginning to wonder if yet another basic function of a spreadsheet is lacking in Numbers.

Thank you

This exact feature is missing.
We must select every cells below the last cell to remove then drag the block three rows higher.

I already posted a script fill the gap but it apply only on cells containing values, not formulas.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 16 novembre 2008 21:54:49)

Thank you for your attempt to help. This does not work for me, perhaps because I failed to fully understand what Yvan is trying to say. You are saying I need to delete cells at the bottom of the column, then shift the entire column up 3 before I can achieve deleting 3 empty cells higher up in the column? There are no available cells at the bottom of the column. Numbers somehow corrupted my column by adding spurious cells, now I need to remove them because the formulas now reference the wrong cells. There are 108 rows, but I need to fix this in only the top 40, the rest below here are fine. Shifting the entire column up would mess up everything. There is no "shift cells up" command?! Admittedly this is somewhat confusing so perhaps it is best to give up on my numerous attempts at using Numbers and reluctantly return to using Excel. Numbers can achieve so little as to be practically a gigaflop.

Thanks for trying. You seem to be on to something that may provide some help in the future. My problem remains the same; I failed to describe it accurately. What I really need is a function which shifts cells left, not up. Number for some reason corrupted my spreadsheet by adding empty cells. I don't have Time Machine and my Retrospect backup returns a TIFF of the file, not the actual file. However, that's another story. Anyway, on another note, can anyone recommend a "how to" book on understanding the mysterious and peculiar working of Numbers. I'm used to Excel (not a power user) and Numbers can be extremely baffling in how it does (or does not) do things.

regards
Michael

There is an excellent book an you already own it.

It is named "User Guide" and is delivered with every copy of iWork.



Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 18 novembre 2008 18:08:11)

I found a way do this, as with much of iWork, we need to consider non-'Office' ways of doing things, otherwise we would just be using Excel.

But after deleting the contents of the cells, I select the range of cells that should 'shift'. I move my cursor towards the edge of the this range (on any side) and the cursor becomes a 'hand'. Grab the edge of the range and drag it to the delete cells area; this will 'shift' the data ala Excel.

You could also just drag the 'range of cells' over the ones you intended to delete, and they will be replaced (deleted) in fewer steps.

Not as clean as Excel, but a way to accomplish the desired action.

Thanks, dv.