# Excel formatting questions **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 17, 2010, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-formatting-questions/554079 "2010-09-17T13:44:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2010, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-formatting-questions/554079/1 "2010-09-17T13:44:23Z")
Among other uses, I often use Excel (2007) as a glorified calculator. There are a couple modifications I’d really \* really \* like to make to the template. Format like a non-glorified calculator. I want it to show commas by default. Pick up almost any calculator and type 123. It shows 123. Put in 1234, and it will show 1\*\*,\*\*234. That’s probably easy. Next, I’d really like it if it showed decimals only when it needed to. I know how to override and set it to a particular number of places, but I’d like to return to the simplicity of the calculator again. If a calculation doesn’t use decimal places in its answer, don’t use them. If it uses two, automatically use two, and so on. Lastly—and I assume most problematic—I want some easy way of telling it to display a result only if a cell (or group of cells) is populated. Say I have a few columns to hold data and one column to perform a calculation on those columns. By dragging the formula down 20 or 30 rows, I can see results as soon as I populate the data cells. To keep things mildly visually tidy, I start the formula with =if(A1\>0,[formula],""). That’s not a whole lot to type, but it’s an occasional PITA. Is there an easier way of accomplishing the same thing? Set Excel to show a value only if the result will be non-null or not return an error? My uses may be simple, but a basic calculator won’t do. If Excel can’t do it, is there a simple, free spreadsheet alternative that will?