Q I often import data into Excel from various applications, including Access. I've found that values are sometimes imported as text, which means I can't use them in calculations or with commands that require values. I've tried formatting the cells as values, with no success. The only way I've found to convert the text into values is to re-enter the data. Is there an easier way to make these conversions?

A I've had similar problems with imported values, as well as with numbers that are entered with a leading apostrophe (1-2-3's symbol for left-aligning an entry).

Here's a simple way to convert these cells to values. Select any empty cell, enter the value 1, and choose EditûCopy. Select all the cells that need to be converted, then choose EditûPaste Special. In the Paste Special dialogue box, select Multiply, then click OK. This operation multiplies each cell by 1, and in the process converts the cell's contents to a value.