Excel 2010
Introduction
For novice Excel users
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Creating a Basic Worksheet
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Definition of Spreadsheet
Explore the User Interface and the Ribbon
Navigate and Select in Excel
How to find help
Definition:
A spreadsheet is a paper or electronic document that
stores various types of data in a tabular format
User Interface
Reference
Name Box
Formula Bar
Status Bar
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The Ribbon
Command Tab
Description
Home Used for performing clipboard operations and basic text/cell
formatting
Insert Used for inserting tables, charts, illustrations, text, and links
Page Layout Used for specifying page settings, layout, orientation, margins,
and other related options
Formulas Used for creating formulas with built-in functions that are
categorized by the type of calculations you need to perform
Data Used to establish connections with external data sources and
import data for use within Excel worksheets
Review Used during the review of Excel worksheets and provides tools
such as spell checker, thesaurus, and translator
View Used to hide or display gridlines in a worksheet, and provides
options to control the display of the worksheet and the application
window
The Status Bar
View Buttons:
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Normal
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Page Layout

Page Break
Zoom Commands:
Increase Zoom
Zoom slider
Decrease Zoom
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Screen Tips
A ScreenTip is descriptive text that is displayed when
you position the mouse pointer on a command or
control in the interface.
An Enhanced ScreenTip uses a larger block of descriptive
text than a ScreenTip. Enhanced ScreenTips can
contain a link to a Help topic. Most of the buttons and
features in Excel have associated Enhanced ScreenTips.
User Activity
Task
1. Explore the File
Tab
2. Explore the Ribbon
3. Explore the
Microsoft Office
Status Bar
Steps
a. Open Excel
b. In the top-left corner of Excel, click the File tab
c. The File tab has a variety of options available –
similar to other Microsoft Office applications
d. Click the File tab, or any other tab to return to
your worksheet
a. Select the Page Layout tab
b. Notice that the Page Layout tab consists of the
Themes, Page Setup, Page Background,
Paragraph, and Arrange groups
c. In the Page Setup group, place the mouse pointer
over the Margins button to view its screentip
d. Select each of the other tabs in the Ribbon to
view the commands
a. Place the mouse pointer over each of view
buttons to the left of the Zoom slide to view its
description
b. On the Zoom slider, click the Zoom in button
c. Notice that the zoom percentage has increased to
110%
d. Click the Zoom Out button
e. Notice that the zoom percentage has reverted to
100%
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Navigation Tips
Worksheets contains columns and rows that intersect to form a grid – where these
columns and rows intersect is called a CELL
Columns are
identified by
letters:
A through XFD
Columns
for a total of 16,384
available columns
Rows are identified
by numbers:
Rows
Cell
1 through
1,048,576
for a total of
1,048,576 available
rows
Reference
Name
Box
=
Column
Letter
+
Row Number
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Data Selection
Selection
Action
A single cell Click the cell
The contents of a Double-click the cell to place the insertion point inside the
cell cell, and then double-click again to select the contents of the
cell. You can also select the cell, and then select the contents
of the formula text box
A contiguous range A Contiguous range consists of cells that are all adjacent.
of cells Select the first cell in the contiguous range, press and hold
Shift, navigate to the last cell in the range, and then click the
last cell to select the full range. You can also click and drag
from the first cell to the last cell to select the range.
A non-contiguous A Non-Contiguous range consists of cells that are not adjacent.
range of cells Select the first cell in the range, press and hold Ctrl, navigate
to the next cell in the range, and click the next cell. You can
combine the Shift+Click and Ctrl+Click methods if preferred.
An entire Click the Select All button immediately
worksheet below the filename.
You can also press Ctrl+A
A particular cell If you know the Reference Name of a cell, you can type it in
the Reference Name box and go directly to that cell.
When you open
Excel, a new, blank
worksheet appears
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From here you can open an
existing worksheet by selecting the
File tab and then either:
Open
or choose a file from
your Recent list
Or…to start a new worksheet
using the blank worksheet,
simply start typing your data
into a cell
Navigation options:
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You can click in the cell in which you
would like to add data
Press Enter to move down one cell
Press Tab to move right one cell
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If you have a blank Excel program
instead of an empty worksheet,
click the File tab and select New
Make sure
that Blank
workbook is
selected in
Available
Templates –
click Create
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User Activity
Task
Steps
1. Create a new, blank workbook
a. Click the File tab and choose new
b. In the new Workbook dialog box,
click Create to open a new, blank
workbook
2. Enter
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a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
the column headings:
Months
Sales
Expenses
Profit
Verify that cell A1 is selected
Type Months and press Enter
Select cell B1
Type Sales and press Tab
In Cell C1, type Expenses and press
Tab
f. In cell D1, type Profit and press
Enter
3. Enter the months, sales, and
expense values for the first
quarter.
a. Use the following data to complete
the worksheet
4. Save the workbook as “My
Ledger.xlsx”
a. Click the File tab and choose Save
As
b. Save file to your desktop
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Performing Calculations

Work with Basic Formulas and Functions
Definition of Excel Formulas:
An Excel formula is a set of mathematical instructions that can be used to perform
calculations in Excel worksheets.
All formulas in Excel begin with an equal sign
(
= ).
Excel formulas contain various components, such as functions, reference, constants,
and operators. A single Excel formula can contain some of all of these components.
Example of Simple Formula:
1. Cell A1 contains the value of 2
2. Cell B1 contains the value of 5
3. In Cell C1, I have typed the formula: =A1+B1
When I press “enter” after typing in my formula, Cell C1 displays the correct
calculation - 7.
You can also see this
formula on the
Formula Bar
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The Formula Bar is located
below the Ribbon and directly
above the worksheet.
It contains:
1. Reference Name box
2. Insert Function button
3. Formula Box
Elements of an Excel Formula
Formula Element
Description
Identifies a cell or a range of cells on a worksheet and refers
References to the location of the values or data on which you need to
apply the formula for calculation
Operators
Symbols that specify the kind of calculation needed to be
performed on the components of a formula
Constants
Numbers or text values that do not change in the formula – If
this value has to change, the formula itself has to be changed
Functions
Predefined formulas in Excel used to simplify complex
calculations
Common Mathematical Operators
Mathematical Operator
Used For
Plus sign
+
Minus sign
Formula Example
Addition
=A1+A2
-
Subtraction
=B3-G4
Asterisk
*
Multiplication
=D12*365
Forward slash
/
Division
=A13/2
Grouping computation
instructions
=(C10*9)/C8
Parentheses ( )
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User Activity
(Use the file you create in the earlier User Activity - My Ledger.xlsx - saved on your
desktop)
Task
Steps
1. Calculate the profit for January
a. Click cell D2
b. Type: =B2-C2
c. Press Enter
2. Calculate the profit for February
a.
b.
c.
d.
3. Calculate the profit for March
a. Enter the calculation and verify your
result with the following:
If necessary, click cell D3
In cell D3, type: =
Click cell B3 and press Minus Sign (-)
Click cell C3 and press Enter
b. Save the file
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Definition of Excel Functions:
A function is a preset, built-in formula. Like formulas, functions begin with the
equal sign ( = ) followed by the function's name and its arguments. The function
name tells Excel what calculation to perform. The arguments are contained inside
parentheses.
Function Example
Function Name
= SUM (A1 : A10)
Arguments
Common Built-in Functions in Excel
Functions
Instructs Excel To…
SUM Add all values specified in the argument
AVERAGE Calculate the mean average of the values specified in the argument
MIN Find the minimum of the values specified in the argument
MAX Find the maximum value of the values specified in the argument
COUNT Find the number of cells that contain numerical values within the
NUMBERS specified range in the argument
The AutoSum function is available in the Editing Group
of the Home tab – this is used to add contiguous
numbers in a row or column
Click in the cell where you want
the sum (D5) and then click
AutoSum – press enter for total
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Excel has a few short cuts to show you all available Functions:
Clicking the AutoSum drop-down
arrow will display a menu with
common Functions
Clicking More Functions
or
Insert Function will bring up a dialog box
with EVERY Excel function available
There is a
Function Library
available on the
Formulas tab
Type the equal sign (=) followed by the first letter(s) of a formula:
=su
(for example)
Formula Auto-Complete will present
you with a drop-down list with all
available functions starting with the
same letter(s) – you can select the
appropriate function without having
to remember lengthy function
names or risk a typo
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User Activity
(Use the file you create in the earlier User Activity - My Ledger.xlsx - saved on your desktop)
Task
1. Calculate the total
sales for January
through March
Steps
a. Click cell B6
b. On the Ribbon, select the Formulas tab
c. On the Formulas tab, in the Function Library
group, Click AutoSum
d. Select B2:B4
e. Press Enter to display the total sales achieved for the
first quarter
2. Calculate the average
sales
a. In cell B7, type =av
b. In the AutoComplete drop-down
list, double-click Average
c. In the worksheet, select B2:B4
d. Type ) and press Enter to display the sales average
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Task
3. Calculate the highest
sales
Steps
a. Verify cell B8 is selected
b. In the Function Library group, click
Insert Function
c. In the Insert Function dialog box, in the Select a
Function list box, select Max and Click OK
d. If the Function Arguments dialog box is in your way,
you can drag it away from the worksheet data
e. Select B2:B4
f. In the Function Arguments dialog box, verify that the
cell references are displayed in the Number1 text
box and click OK
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Task
4. Calculate the lowest
sales
Steps
a. Click cell B9
b. In the Function Library group,
click the AutoSum drop arrow,
choose Min
c. In the
worksheet,
select cell
B2:B4
d. Press
Enter
5. Add Row labels
a.
b.
c.
d.
In
In
In
In
Cell A6,
Cell A7,
Cell A8,
Cell A9,
enter:
enter:
enter:
enter:
Total
Average
High
Low
6. Calculate the Total,
Average, High and
Low for Expenses
a. Calculate the Expense column using the steps you used
above for the Sales column
b. Use the following to verify your work
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Copy Formulas and Functions
As you work in Excel, you may find the need to re-use the same formulas and
functions repeatedly. Rather that recreate these each time, you can copy them.
You can use the Cut, Copy, and Paste commands on the Clipboard group of the Home
tab, from the shortcut menu displayed by right-clicking on a cell, or by using the
keyboard shortcut keys:
Cut Copy Paste -
Paste Options
The Paste option in Excel allows you to specify how the copied data should be pasted.
Here are some options:
Option
Description
Use Destination Theme
Pastes the copied cell using the destination theme
Match Destination
Formatting
Replaces the original formatting of the copied cell and
pastes it with the formatting used in the destination
cell
Keep Source Formatting
Retains the original formatting of the copied cell and
pastes the data as is
Values and Number
Formatting
Pastes only the values and the number formatting used
in the copied cell in the destination cell
Keep Source Column Width
Retains the column width of the copied cell
Formatting Only
Pastes only the formatting of the copied cell in the
destination cell
Link Cells
Pastes a link to the copied cells in the destination cells
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Relative References
Definition:
By default, a spreadsheet cell reference is relative. What this means is
that as a formula or function is copied and pasted to other cells, the cell
references in the formula or function change to reflect the function's new
location.
Because this is the default, whenever you reference a cell using the column
and row heading, it is a relative reference. For example: =SUM
(C5:C8) is a relative reference.
Absolute References
Definition:
In contrast to a relative reference, an absolute cell reference does not
change when it a formula is copied and pasted to other cells. You would
use an absolute cell reference when you refer to a value in cells that needs
to remain constant while performing calculations. Absolute cell
references contain a dollar sign ($) before the column and row heading in
the cell reference. For example: =H7*$H$3 is an absolute cell
reference.
I think it is easier to how these references look and work on a real spreadsheet. Here
is our “My Ledger.xlsx” spreadsheet we’ve been working on.
We can view the actual formulas by selecting the Formulas tab and then the Show
Formulas button in the Formula Auditing group.
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This shows an example of
Relative References
If I were to copy
the formula in
cell B9 to cell C9,
the result would
be this
Notice how the formula changed “relative” to its
new location in the worksheet – changing from cells
B2:B4 to cells C2:C4
By clicking the
Show Formulas
button again, you
can now see the
correct
calculations for
Columns B and C
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Once again I selected the
Show Formulas button
This time I’m showing an
example of an
Absolute Reference
(cell B8)
TIP:
You can easily change from a
Relative Reference to an
Absolute Reference by
highlighting the formula on
the formula bar and then
pressing the F4 key
Now If I were to copy
the formula in cell B8
to cell C8, the result
would be this
Notice how the formula did not change – the formula
is exactly the same in each cell - the cell reference
is “absolute”
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User Activity
(Use the file you create in the earlier User Activity - My Ledger.xlsx - saved on
your desktop)
Task
1. Copy the Expense
Total to Profit Total
Steps
a. Click cell C6
b. Choose your Copy method:
a. Select the Home tab, in the Clipboard group,
click the Copy button
b. Right-click the cell and select Copy
c. Type Ctrl+C
c. Click cell D6
d. Choose your Paste method:
a. In the Clipboard group, click the Paste button
and press Enter
b. Right-click in the cell and select Paste
c. Type Ctrl+V
d. Or simply press Enter
e. Select and examine the formula in Cell C6
f. Select and examine the formula in cell D6
The copied formula is relative to its new position in
the worksheet
2. Complete the
remaining formulas
a.
b.
c.
d.
Select cells C7-C9
Perform your Copy method of choice
Click cell D7, Perform your Paste method of choice
Save and close the My Ledger.xlsx file
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How to Find Help
Click the blue question mark to
bring up the Excel help window
From here you click
on the various links
Or enter in a search phrase
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