background color in Excel

[maradykstra]

Hello,

I saw the post on personal expense tracker. Option 1 looks really cool. I know how to do a background fill but how do you do that faded color from blue to gray? Here's the link below. Any help will be appreciated!


http://chandoo.org/wp/2010/07/16/download-expense-trackers/


Thanks.

 

[Hui]

The author has very cleverly used cell backgrounds and used a combination of Grey, Blue and Blue to Grey and Grey to Blue Gradient Fills

Easiest way to understand is to pick an individual column and go down cell by cell and look at the Cell Properties (Ctrl 1) and look at the fill effects in each cell


Alternatively you can setup a large bitmap outside excel in Photoshop/CorelDRAW etc and use that to define the background.

 

[maradykstra]

Wow...that sounds like a lot of work. I'm creating my first dynamic dashboard and am excited to finish it so I thought I'd try to get a slick background but I think white will do. Do you have a preference of what color background is best for a dashboard? Do you think adding a color will be more distracting. I'd have to stick with certain colors if I did a color background.

 

[Hui]

JaElle, Doesn't matter what we think


What does the audience you are presenting to want?

Do they have a corporate image/brand?

Try and stay consistent to that.

Discuss with others who may have done presentations or similar work before, look at recent reports or presentations


ps: In the Dashboard example you only have to setup about 5 different fills in 1 Column and then copy the column across

 

[maradykstra]

Those are very good points. I will consider those. Thank you. I will try and see if I can do a background color. It's always nice to give the audience options b/c sometimes they don't have a preference.


As always, thank you Hui!