This seems a recurring question in this forum, but it too quickly gets closed with an “answered” tag, which is, in my opinion, wrong (the closest question I found was created in 2015 : [Calc] - Alternative to "Format As Table" feature in Excel 2007/2010/2013).
=> So, I’m re-opening the topic once again.
This Excel feature is really a key one for a spreadsheet management tool such as… Excel… or Calc !
We are using those tools to manipulate data, organized in tables.
That’s the core feature of those tools…
Before Excel introduced the “format as table” feature, we had to do all the stuff “by hand”. AND TO MAINTAIN IT when the table content was changing. Very uncomfortable and time consuming…
Today, with this feature, it is very simple to:
- organize dynamic data in table (named range, easier references in external vlookup,…)
- create a footer with smart formulas (sum, subtotal,…), that remains a footer, whatever you add/remove in the table and that don’t get sorted in the table content flow…
- add new lines in the range (simply press tab key at the end of the table)
- get formulas automatically created in the columns (limit risks of mistake)
- use explicit column titles as names in the formulas (simplify writing and maintenance)
- get a consistent auto formatting (such as alternate colors for rows,…) whatever sort/insert/delete action you can do on the table itself
- …
Is there any target to get this replicated in Calc ?
For sure, from a user perspective, this is not an “advanced” feature of Excel (even if technically, it could be a real pain to implement !)… It gets used by many “basic users” nowadays, and is dramatically missing from Calc.
Any hope to get this in the roadmap ?
Thanks,