Wednesday, October 1, 2008

How to align my objects better? - let "snap" be your friend.

In my earlier post about creating a Likert scale (as well as in subsequent posts about scale-creation), I mentioned that you could use the grids on the Excel spreadsheet to help align the Option Buttons that you create.

However, you may notice that no matter how you try to align them, it just doesn't quite work - some of them still look out of line. Even then, lining up the buttons against the gridlines is a tedious exercise and increases the incidence of short-sightedness. I have the glasses to prove it.

Excel can force the borders of your Option Buttons (or check-boxes, sliding bars, buttons - collectively called Controls) to snap against the gridlines.

In Excel 2003, this is easy:

  • Bring up the "Drawing" toolbar (right click on an existing toolbar; tick "Drawing)
  • Click on "Draw"; then choose "Snap" --> "Snap to Grid".

A tiny bit trickier in Excel 2007:

  • First you need to draw some kind of shape on your sheet. A circle, square, what-not. You can delete it later.
  • Select that shape. That brings up the "Drawing Tools" command in the Ribbon. Go to Drawing Tools --> Format --> Arrange --> Align.
  • Choose "Snap to Grid".
  • Remove the shape you created.

Now, when you move your Control, you see that it turns into a dotted box, which would snap against the gridline when you move close to it.

Stay a step ahead,

Alex.

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