Sorting from the Ribbon
THIS SORTING METHOD IS incredibly easy. Simply click on any cell in the column (field) you want to sort by, and click the A-Z or Z-A sorting buttons on the Data tab. The buttons are shown in Figure 7-1, where you also see a list of cities sorted by their State field.
Figure 7-1. Sort your list by any field, simply by being in any cell in that column and using the two Sort buttons on the Data tab.
The A-Z button, which sorts in ascending order, is also known as a “Smallest to Largest” sort in Excel. Its companion, the Z-A button, sorts in descending order, and is known as “Largest to Smallest.” When sorting a field containing text, the sorts are easy to forecast—an A-Z sort will sort from A to Z. If you’re sorting a numeric field, a Smallest to Largest sort (A-Z) will place the lowest numbers at the top of the list, followed by numbers increasing in value. Figure 7-2 shows the same list of cities, sorted this time by Local Population, in Largest to Smallest (Z-A) order, which places the city with the highest population at the top of the list.
Figure 7-2. Sort numeric fields just as easily—from largest to smallest (as shown here) or smallest to largest.
