In Calc, if you fill in adjacent cells with incremented numbers, then select both cells and drag, Calc will auto-populate with the series, as in columns C and D here:
I have tried doing this with letters – “a”, “b”, > select, drag … – but it just repeats “a b a b a b” instead of incrementing the series.
So, can Calc do with letters what it does with numbers?
Not out of the box, but it can easily be set up.
To get this facility, go to Tools > Options... > LibreOffice Calc > Sort Lists. It should look something like this:
Click on the New button on the upper right, and list the letters of the alphabet in the “Entries” box, one per line:
a
b
c
d
etc....
When you’re finished, Click Add, then, OK. Now when you fill adjacent cells – whether in rows or columns – with “a”, “b”, then select them and drag, the series will be auto-incremented and -populated. Obviously this process can be used to set up whatever sequence you like, which is nice to know!
It’s nice but it doesn’t allow us to make sequences with skipped letters such as “a, c, e, g, i, etc…”. Isn’t there a way to have this?
It’s nice but it doesn’t allow us to make sequences with skipped letters such as “a, c, e, g, i, etc…”. Isn’t there a way to have this?
this is the better solution! - pls. accept it and move it to the top.
this is the better solution! - pls. accept it and move it to the top.
This solution should be default in calc.
Hallo
Incrementing from a up to amj by Formula:
=LOWER(SUBSTITUTE(ADDRESS(1;ROW();4);"1";""))That is extremely cool. 
Thanks! Not a solution this non-expert calc-user could have found, though!
Could you supply some commentary? I can work out some, but not all. “LOWER” makes it lowercase; “SUBSTITUTE” takes the “ADDRESS” and transforms it … but I’m not quite sure how the "1";"" fit in!
Hallo
**SUBSTITUTE**s "1" by "" ( empty strings )
Hi
Why not simply:
=CHAR(ROW(A97))
Regards
Hmm… It doesn’t work for dragging across rows, only down columns. (Same for the solution from @karolus too, it seems.) But elegant for columns!
Of course: it was the question illustrated by the screenshot.
For column:
=CHAR(COLUMN(CS1))
But no confusio:n in my mind this is not a better solution than the sort list
Ah! I tried =CHAR(COLUMN(A97)) which of course did not work. Thanks for the added solution!
I like this simple and elegant answer!
pierre-yves samyn:
Why not simply:
=CHAR(ROW(A97))
because that’s binding the letters to the row numbers … and thus not universal.