How to rid far right columns that won't go away

[Gates Is Antichrist]

I just made a discovery after many years with the proverbial "worksheet from hell" where you can't get rid of the far right columns. Delete columns, clear, whatever - and those columns are as unslayably persistent as Amway recruiters used to be. And as bad as having it, was having to hear gloating proclamations of solutions from tiny-brained wipers who just read a book on Excel and think they know something. Some were even smart thinking("You must have a format mark somewhere. How about a dependency. Print area?"), and many an insult to intelligence ("Are you sure you don't have a 'space bar' blank anywhere? You know, you can't tell from looking at it." "You have to save the file" "You have to close the book and reopen" "You have to close Excel and reopen") Shut up, you numb-n #%$#^!!

Well I've made a breakthrough. It's so stupid I simply must share it

Just put something ... anything ... in all of column A. Problem solved. Save, and it's permanently solved.

Now this is beautiful: you can INSERT a column A & fill it with the letter X !! Save it (or with PUP alt-P-W-R); presto.

An embarrassingly stupid discovery, yes, but it does seem to work - at least for me, and with XL03. Hope this solves your worksheets from hell too. If not, reply or PM me because I am in lifelong war with this nemesis.

 

[Gary Drumm]

Here is a solution

This works for both columns to the right, and when needed, for rows beneath
1. Find the last column you have data in, and then move to the right one more column
(select that column).
2. Simultaneously press Ctrl + Shift + the Right Arrow key, and this will select every column to the right of that last column.
3. Go to Edit, and select Clear All.
4. While everything is still highlighted, from Edit, select Delete.
5. That should remove all of the unwanted columns, for good.
6. Save it, and check it out in Print preview to be sure.

For rows below, same type of operation.
1. Go to the last row you want to keep, and then move down one more row.
(select that row)
2. Simultaniously press Ctrl + Shift, + the Down Arrow key, and it will select all of the rows, all the way down to 16,000 whatever.
3. Next, go to Edit and select Clear All
4. While in Edit, now select Delete,
5. All of the rows, all the way down are deleted.
6. Save it and try Print Preview to be sure.

It works for me,
Good luck,
Gary

 

[Gates Is Antichrist]

Gosh, never thought of that, Gary. Thanks so much! What can I say, to an answer like that!

 

[njimack]

An even easier option is to open a new workbook and copy the offending columns from this new book to your existing workbook.

Then you can delete the columns and the used range resets as it should.

 

[Gates Is Antichrist]

Agreed. Just no fun with tons of worksheets, and it's tough to duplicate every detail - print areas, row heights, etc.