$ function

  • Thread starter Thread starter Don
  • Start date Start date
D

Don

Can someone tell me the function of the $ when used in
the following context:
$a$4...as opposed to just....a4

I was pulling data from one sheet to another within the
same workbook and Excell put those dollar signs in on one
occurance. The sheet works as I want with or without
them but there must be a purpose for them.

I've tried to find this in Excell help but no luck at all.

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

Don
 
Type in absolute in help

the dollar signs make the cell reference absoluter, for instance if you type
in
= $A$2
in A1

copy and paste the cell into D1 and it will still refer to $A$2
now repeat and use
=A2

when you paste it into D1 it will change to =D2

same if you copy down/across a cell you will notice
that if the dollar signs are there it will still point
to the same cell while the relative reference will change
 
Hi Peo and Frank,

Well, I'm still a little confused here. What you say
makes sense and the link that Frank provided says the
same thing. However, I must have done something else
when I generated the original formula as a copy and fill
down the other day gave me a relative change not an
absolute cell reference......today, the same procedure,
is giving me an absolute cell reference.

What I have is a sheet (Data) and a sheet (Sheet1)...in
cell A1 of Sheet1 I clicked the = sign in the formula
bar, then switched to Data sheet and clicked on cell G3,
this gave me the formula =Data!$G$3 in A1 of Sheet1.
(I've done this other times on the same two sheets, as
well as many other sheets in this same workbook, and
Excell did not ever and won't now insert the $ when
generating the same formula) Then on Sheet1 I copied A1,
highlighted A2 Thru A25 and pasted. All the references
were relative, i.e. A25 had the formula =Data!$G$28.
Today I do the same copy and paste and I get the results
as you and Frank have explained, absolute references. I
must have done something, but sure don't know what I
did. Do you have any clues as what happened here?

Thanks to both of you for the quick reply. Hope someone
can tell me what I might have done.

Have a great day,

Don
 
Frank,

I left a lengthy response in reply to Peo's explanation.
Thanks for the link. That all makes sense but as I
explain in the above reponse, that's not what was
happening the other day. And, now I am confused...

Would sure like to know what I did.

Thanks again,

Don
 
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