OT Excel used as a database

[Chuck Wintle]

I want to setup an excel file as a database and was wondering if it possible to setup some dropdown l ists when the form is opened to add data....from what I see so far is that this will not work....but I am a relative newby at excel.

[Dennis Ford]

This is certainly possible in excel. The easiest way might be to use the "data validation" menu and select "list". This forces content of a cell to be selected from a list (you would need to put the list in a group of cells out of the way; another sheet possibly).
It could also be done with Visual Basic macros (almost anything possible here) but that will take some studying for a beginner.

[Eric DeSilva]

+1 on the data validation option, although I'm not sure you can dynamically add to the length of the list. Like many things in Excel, it is sort of hidden and hard to find.

Have you thought about whether a simple auto-filter might be able to help? It is sort of restrictive in terms of placement, but it does auto-populate.

[Greg Portland]

Sure, we do it all the time for lightweight databases. You want to look @ the list and table functions. You can get something pretty featured without having to rely on VB calls.