Creating a table
A table is used to organize information into an easy-to read format. A table displays information in horizontal rows and vertical columns. The insertion of an arrow and a column creates a cell in which we can enter data or other information.
| A | B | C | D | |
| 1 | Cell A1 | |||
| 2 | ||||
| 3 | ||||
| 4 | Cell C4 |
A letter and a number, called a table reference, identify cells in a table. Columns are identified from cells left to right beginning with the letter A, and rows are numbered from top to bottom beginning with the number 1. The table reference of the top most cell is A1. Tables are effective way of presenting information.
Words include different methods we can use to create tables. One method (Table/Convert Text to Table) will quickly convert text that is arranged in columns into a table. Another method is Table Insert /Table commands to create a simple table consisting of the same number of rows and columns. Finally, Table/Draw Table is used to create any type of table but is most useful for creating complex tables that contain cells of different heights or varying number of columns per row. The insert Table drop-down menu displays a grid in which we specify the number of rows and columns for the table. Moving the mouse pointer over the grid highlights the boxes in the grid and defines the table size. The dimensions are reflected in the bottom of the grid.
In case we want to add some contents to the table we can modify the table by inserting rows above or below and columns to the left of the selected or to the right of the selected one. To enhance the appearance of the table, we can apply many different formats to the cells. This is similar to apply different formatting to the document.
Sorting a table
To quickly arrange the references in alphabetical order, we can sort the list. Word can quickly sort paragraphs in alphabetical, numeric, or date order based on the first characters in each paragraph. The sort order can be ascending (A to Z or 0-9). The rules used while sorting are
| Sort by | Rules |
| Text | First items beginning with punctuation marks or symbols (such as !@#&) are sorted. Second, items beginning with numbers are sorted Dates are treated as three digit numbers Third, items beginning with letters are sorted |
| Numbers | All characters except numbers are ignored. The numbers can be in any location in a paragraph |
| Date | Valid date separators include hyphens, forward slash (/), commas, and periods. Colons (:) are valid time separators. If unable to recognize a data or time. Word replaces the item at the beginning or end of the list depending on whether we are sorting in ascending or descending order. |
Inserting rows or columns to a table
The following steps have to be taken for adding a column or row in a table
- Select the same number of rows or columns as the number of rows or columns we want to insert
- On the Tables and Borders toolbar, click the arrow next to Insert Table, and then click the Insert command we want
There are other ways to do the above task like we can also use the Draw Table tool to draw the row or column where we want. For quickly add a row at the end of a table, click the last cell of the last row, and then press the TAB key and to add a column to the right of the last column in a table, click just outside the rightmost column. On the Table menu, point to Insert, and then click Columns to the Right.
