Split and merge table cells

November 7 2006 09:30:00 AM Add/Read Comments [3]
After reading a recent post by Lotus Business Partner Ben Langhinrichs on merging and splitting table cells, I decided to write today's tip since I don't think everyone knows about these features.

Let's look a table with 3 rows and 3 columns as our starting point.
Image:Split and merge table cells             

If I select adjacent cells spanning multiple columns
Image:Split and merge table cells

and choose Table - Merge Cells
Image:Split and merge table cells

Lotus Notes will combine the contents into a single cell.
Image:Split and merge table cells

You can do the same thing for cells that span rows.
Image:Split and merge table cells

You can even select cells spanning rows and columns at the same time.
Image:Split and merge table cells

After you have merged cells, if you wish you can "Split" them back into their original table format. (original # of columns and rows)

I use merged table cells all the time to format data.  For example, to create a layout similar to a two-column newspaper, create a 3 row by 2 column table, then merge the cells in the top and bottom rows as seen below.

Image:Split and merge table cells