Selection · original practice scenario
Select cells carrying legacy notes
Put 12 in B2 and 18 in B4. Add a simple Note to each of those cells; leave B3 unannotated.
Start here: Worksheet containing simple cell notes, historically called comments, outside edit mode
Legacy notes and modern threaded comments are different features. This scenario does not certify a selection of every modern discussion thread.
Follow these instructions in your own desktop Excel workbook. This page explains the operation; it does not send commands to Excel.
Mac keys and context
The publisher uses the historical word comments. The Mac Fn+Control+Shift+O notation is withheld pending independent verification; no Mac binding is supplied here.
This catalog has no verified Mac binding for this operation. The steps below describe Windows. Choose Windows to use the walkthrough and recall controls.
Walk through the operation
- Return to a worksheet cell and leave the note editor.
- Use the listed combination to select annotated cells.
- Inspect B2 and B4 and verify that cell values were not edited.
Expected result: Annotated cells can be identified without reading each value; no-cells-found is a valid outcome on a sheet without matching annotations.
Related walkthroughs
- Extend a rectangular selection to a clicked cell
- Add a separate cell or range to a selection
- Select nonadjacent worksheet tabs
- Select adjacent worksheet tabs
Catalog updated 2026-10-18. US keyboard notation: + joins held keys; commas separate successive presses. Function keys may require Fn. Desktop instructions are separate from this browser's own keyboard shortcuts.