Excel Swim Log Template?

I would love to have one. I can't figure out how to get Excel not to convert time times into "time" (i.e. time of day). Actually if I just knew how to do that, then I'd be set.

Let me know if anyone gets one of these. Chris Stevenson and the Virginia LMSC web guy are wizzards. maybe one of them could provide this? Ideally track your times over time and in different events, with graphs, all on one page!!!

Go to (i.e., highlight) the Cells you want to format. Click on Format.........Cells.......... Choose "Custom" then find one that looks like mm:ss.0 In the input type box add another zero to it mm:ss.00 and it works. I'm doing this with Excel 2000 (your version might be a bit different but these are the steps.) Good Luck Yep, this is what I do. I would add a few comments: -- My own personal preference is to use the "m:ss.00" format for times greater than 60 seconds and "ss.00" for times under one minute. -- If you input a number in this format (eg as "1:43.89"), Excel will automatically understand that you mean a time. But it won't give you enough decimal places, so change the format as described by Ahmed to display the hundreds. You can do this for an entire column of empty cells (click on the top heading of the column to select all of them before applying Custom Formatting) then you don't have to keep changing the format. -- Say you do a time of 32.11 in a 50 free. If you input "32.11" in a cell that is formatted to display "m:ss.00," you will get "38.24.00" displayed. WTF? Excel assumed that you meant "32.11 days" and not seconds and then dutifully displayed it as m:ss.00 (with rollover, 0.11 days is 2 hours, 38 minutes and 24 seconds past midnight). So be sure to include the zeros: input it as "0:32.11." -- You might find it convenient to record a macro and then assign it to an icon and/or shortcut key. Start the macro recording, change the format as Ahmed described to your liking, and then stop recording. At some point Excel should prompt you for a shortcut key and a macro name. Remember the name: you can assign it to a button on your toolbar -- the exact procedure depends on your version of Excel (search thru the Help). I actually did this twice, with one button that displays minutes and one that doesn't. Good luck!

Yeah, that's what I do, but it doesn't entirely work. I set up the cell with that formatting, and then type in "0:52.41" and hit enter. I click on the cell again in the the box right below the toolbars (where you input formulas) it says "12:00:52 AM". WTF?!?

I would love to have one. I can't figure out how to get Excel not to convert time times into "time" (i.e. time of day). Actually if I just knew how to do that, then I'd be set. Go to (i.e., highlight) the Cells you want to format. Click on Format.........Cells.......... Choose "Custom" then find one that looks like mm:ss.0 In the input type box add another zero to it mm:ss.00 and it works. I'm doing this with Excel 2000 (your version might be a bit different but these are the steps.) Good Luck

I would love to have one. I can't figure out how to get Excel not to convert time times into "time" (i.e. time of day). Actually if I just knew how to do that, then I'd be set. If you are putting your times in a column, say, then you highlight that column and then click Format, click Cells and, finally, highlight Text in the new window that opens and click OK to implement the change in format. That will force the entries to take what you type in, so 10:45.47 should appear as just that instead of defaulting to time of day. It will probably automatically left justify so, if this annoys you, you can change the justification in the column. This works with my version of Excel which is from MS Office 2000. I have both a daily training log and long-term record of all my master's swims in Excel and haven't had any problem.

I like Ahmed's solution better than mine. It involves fewer steps to make it work I think.

Yeah, that's what I do, but it doesn't entirely work. I set up the cell with that formatting, and then type in "0:52.41" and hit enter. I click on the cell again in the the box right below the toolbars (where you input formulas) it says "12:00:52 AM". WTF?!? The value is correct but the formatting is wrong. Follow Ahmed's instructions: go to "format cells" (Ctrl+1 is the shortcut key), then go to the "Number" tab and the "Custom" category (where it is may depend slightly on your Excel version). Type in "m:ss.00" in the "Type" box. Ahmed's instructions are probably more clear than this. Excel stores all times and dates as serial numbers (basically, days as a decimal number). Changing the formatting doesn't change the value of the serial number, only how it is displayed. What you are seeing is the number you input in the "time" format, or "h:mm:ss AM/PM". You just need to change the type of formatting to "m:ss.00", it is still the same number either way (0.000606597222222222 to be exact!).

When you guys get this idiot-proofed, would you send me a copy of the file as an attachment and email it to me? I would be thoroughly grateful. Chris, what would really be cool is if there were a way to not only keep you absolute times over the years, but also your age-graded times a la the british site. that way, instead of seeing a long slow decline to the boneyard, with the occasional dead cat bounce thrown in during years of exceptional effort, you could have a more flat, and possibly even ascending, line pointing towards Ancient Swimmers Heaven! Jim Thornton Jamesthornton1@comcast.net

Chris, what would really be cool is if there were a way to not only keep you absolute times over the years, but also your age-graded times a la the british site. that way, instead of seeing a long slow decline to the boneyard, with the occasional dead cat bounce thrown in during years of exceptional effort, you could have a more flat, and possibly even ascending, line pointing towards Ancient Swimmers Heaven! :lolup: The Ancient and Honorable Society of Crones/Chronuses.