Fran,

To sum the first N rows of a column, use

=SUM(OFFSET(A1,0,0,B2,1))

Where A1 is the first cell to sum and B2 contains the number of cells.

To sum the first N columns of a row, use

=SUM(OFFSET(A1,0,0,1,B2))

Where A1 is the first cell to sum and B2 contains the number of cells.


--
Cordially,
Chip Pearson
Microsoft MVP - Excel
Pearson Software Consulting
www.cpearson.com
(email on the web site)


"Fran McConville" wrote in
message ...
I'd simply like to sum the first n values in a column or row, where the
value
of n is in a separate cell. ie if I enter '3', it will sum only the first
three values in the range, if I enter '8' it will return the sum of the
first
8 values in the range. TIA for any help