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Hey, Scripting Guy! I have a CSV file, and every time I open that file in Office Excel my numbers get converted to dates. How can I import numbers as numbers? -- JR Hey, JR. You know, just yesterday the Scripting Guy who writes this column learned about Yelo , an interesting little company based...

Hey, Scripting Guy! I’m new to Excel, and I was wondering how to change the color of a cell if specific requirements are met. I have a spreadsheet that has three columns of numbers; I’d like to add the numbers in each row and, if they total 100, set the text of a fourth column to “Yes” and color that...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I import a fixed-width data file into Microsoft Excel? -- RS Hey, RS. This column is being written on a Friday morning, and so far it’s been a very weird morning at that. For one thing, it’s not raining and – if you look closely – you can even see the sun. (It’s been awhile...

Hey, Scripting Guy! I have a column of data in Microsoft Excel that is formatted as MYYYY (12008 = January 2008) and MMYYYY (122007 = December 2007). I need to split these values into month and year, but I can’t figure out how to do that. Any suggestions? -- DW Hey, DW. Well, it’s finally beginning...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I cut a row from an Office Excel spreadsheet and paste it into the first unused row in another Excel spreadsheet? -- NC Hey, NC. We apologize if today’s column feels a little damp; as it turns out, those of us in the Seattle area are experiencing another one of the Puget...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I determine the value of the last cell in a range like C1:C10? -- MJdR Hey, MJdR. You know, just a few days ago word leaked that a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) press conference held to discuss the US government’s response to the recent spate of wildfires in...

Hey, Scripting Guy! We have a spreadsheet that includes numbers like this: 31738. However, this isn’t supposed to be a number, it’s actually supposed to be a date: 11/22/1986. How can I convert these numbers to dates and then, if needed, convert those dates back to numbers? -- TC Hey, TC. Yes, as...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I loop through a folder, open all the Excel files in that folder, then run a specified macro in each of those Excel files? -- BR Hey, BR. So, did you watch college football this past Saturday? In particular, did you watch as the Washington Huskies dismantled Boise State...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I add a background picture to an Excel worksheet? -- GA Hey, GA. You know, being the health-conscious type, each morning the Scripting Guy who writes this column eats some non-fat raspberry yogurt … right before he eats his daily doughnut. (But don’t worry: it’s a medically...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I copy selected columns from a CSV file to an Excel file? -- MdP Hey, MdP. One thing that people always worry about (and rightly so) is that one of these days the Scripting Guys will do something that tears a hole in the space-time continuum. Some of you might be concerned...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In an Excel spreadsheet, how can I change the color of a row if there is a date stored a particular cell in that row? -- GL Hey, GL. Some of you might have noticed that there was no Hey, Scripting Guy! column yesterday. Is that because the Scripting Guys are slacking off and shirking...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I delete all the worksheets in an Excel spreadsheet except for the first worksheet? -- NN Hey, NN. Please excuse any bloodstains that might appear on your screen; as it turns out, the Scripting Guy who writes this column was involved in an … incident … this past weekend...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I configure Office Excel to autosave every 5 minutes? -- KK Hey, KK. You know, that’s a good question. As it turns out, the autosave capability in Microsoft Excel – hey, wait a minute: do you realize what day it is? Today is the first day of the 2007 Winter...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I save an Office Excel chart as a picture? -- JB Hey, JB. You know, yesterday was a good day for the Scripting Guy who writes this column. If the phone rings at the Scripting House and if it’s for the Scripting Guy who writes this column, well, it’s never...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In an Office Excel spreadsheet, how can I change the color of the text if the value in column B minus the value in column A is greater than or equal to 10? -- EP Hey, EP. You know, before the Scripting Guy who writes this column started writing this column, he vowed that Hey...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I convert an Office Excel spreadsheet to XML? -- KE Hey, KE. We apologize in advance if today’s column seems a little rushed; at the moment, we’re sitting in an office, surrounded by boxes and packing crates and waiting for the movers to come in and clear...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I set Office Excel’s default file path to a user’s home directory? -- LL Hey, LL. We hope that the script we’re about to show you will answer your question; if it doesn’t, you might have to wait awhile before we can get back to you on it. That’s...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In Excel, how can I compare a list of names found in one column with a list of names found in another column? -- GS Hey, GS. You know, in general we Scripting Guys are charged with presenting people with facts; in turn, we’re really supposed keep our opinions to ourselves. However...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I convert a tilde-delimited file to Microsoft Excel format? -- JN Hey, JN. You know, to tell you the truth we’re beginning to rethink our approach to this column. After all, usually we tell people how easy things are, and how – without much effort – they can write a script...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I add a bunch of rows to an Excel spreadsheet and then stick a total row at the bottom? -- MW Hey, MW. Could we ask you a favor: is there any chance that you could write back later with this question? As you may or may not know, the University of Washington men’s basketball...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In Microsoft Excel, how can I display a date like 01/20/2006 using this format: 20060120? -- CM Hey, CM. Who do we make the check out to again? And for how much? Oh, sorry. After attending a parent meeting for the Scripting Son’s new baseball team the Scripting Guy who writes...

Hey, Scripting Guy! I seem to recall that there’s a way to “freeze” the display in Microsoft Excel any time you carry out a lengthy operation; that way the user doesn’t see anything change until the operation is complete. Do you have any idea how I can do that? -- IW Hey, IW. Do we have any idea of...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I rename a bunch of folders using a script? The old folder names are in the first column of an Excel spreadsheet and the new folder names are in the second column of an Excel spreadsheet. -- SF Hey, SF. Oh, and welcome to Hey, Scripting Guy! , your daily source for scripting...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I use Windows PowerShell to automate Microsoft Excel? -- MW Hey, MW. Yes, it’s true: the week of November 6-10, 2006 will be Windows PowerShell Week on TechNet, with the Scripting Guys presenting a series of webcasts (one each day, Monday through Friday) designed to introduce...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I copy a file 150 times and then rename each of those copies using a list of names found in an Excel spreadsheet? -- DF Hey, DF. You know, when we first started this column 2 years ago (must be time to mention the 500 th Hey, Scripting Guy! celebration again) our biggest...