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Getting the time down to the second in Excel

The Tip of the Night for September 4, 2021 discussed setting an Excel spreadsheet to track the time used by each side during a trial, with formulas to add up multiple time ranges for each party. In order to get precise results, it's important to enter the time accurately. Rather than manually keying in the time, or using the SHIFT + CTRL + ; shortcut to enter the current hour and minute, consider using a macro which will enter the hour, minute, and second. This simple vba code, available here :


Sub TimeStamp()

ActiveCell.Value = Time

ActiveCell.NumberFormat = "h:mm:ss AM/PM"

End Sub


. . . while create a function that will allow you to enter the time more precisely with a shortcut you select.



. . . go to the Developer tab and click on Macros. Click on Options and select a letter to be used with the CTRL key



When the shortcut is pressed the time down to the second will be entered in the selected cell.



Sean O'Shea has more than 20 years of experience in the litigation support field with major law firms in New York and San Francisco.   He is an ACEDS Certified eDiscovery Specialist and a Relativity Certified Administrator.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the owner and do not reflect the views or opinions of the owner’s employer.

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