The whole Excel workbook may be pasted when you paste only the copied cells into another program (232866)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Office Excel 2003
  • Microsoft Excel 2002
  • Microsoft Excel 2000
  • Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
This article was previously published under Q232866

SYMPTOMS

If you double-click a range of cells that have been copied from a Microsoft Excel workbook and then pasted into another program, such as Microsoft Word or Microsoft Outlook, the contents of the wholee workbook may be visible, not just the copied cells.

This may cause a problem if the workbook contains information that you do not want others to see.

CAUSE

This problem may occur if you paste the copied cells as a Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object.

RESOLUTION

To prevent this problem, make sure that you paste the copied cells in a format other than an Excel Worksheet or an Excel Worksheet Object. One method of doing this is to use the Paste Special command, as in the following example:
  1. In Excel, copy the range of cells that you want to appear in another program.
  2. Switch to the other program, and then put the insertion point where you want the copied cells to be pasted.
  3. On the Edit menu, click Paste Special.
  4. In the list of formats, select one of the following:
          Unformatted Text            Bitmap
      Unformatted Unicode Text    Picture
      Formatted Text (RTF)        Picture (Bitmap)
      HTML                        Picture (Metafile)
      Text                        Picture (Enhanced Metafile)
    Note Do not select either Microsoft Excel Worksheet or Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object.

  5. Click OK.
The copied cells are pasted into the program. If you double-click the pasted cells, other cells and worksheets in the workbook are not visible.

MORE INFORMATION

When you copy a range of cells in Excel, you can paste the cells into another program using several different formats, including text, HTML, and pictures.

You also have the option of pasting the cells as a Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object. The worksheet object contains all of the data from the workbook, not just the cells you copied. As a result, you can view all of the cells in the workbook.

If you click Paste on the Edit menu in another program, the copied cells may be pasted as a Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object. For this reason, it is recommended that you use Paste Special and select one of the formats listed earlier if you want to ensure that only the copied cells are visible when you paste them into another program.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:7/27/2006
Keywords:kbnewfile KB232866
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