INTRODUCTION TO MICROSOFT EXCEL
SPREADSHEET BASICS:
Microsoft Excel’s visual format and layout is similar in style to various spreadsheet software
applications presently in the marketplace. Our first steps in understanding Excel is to learn all about the basics of the spreadsheet
format, and how to apply and calculate simple mathematical formulas to the data placed into the worksheet. We will now examine the
visual layout of Microsoft Excel’s workscreen:
DOCUMENT
ZOOM LEVEL
DOCUMENT / FILE
NAME
TOOL BAR
FONT &
FORMATTING
NAME BOX
MENU BAR
FORMULA BAR
CURSOR / POINTER
COLUMN LETTERS
ACTIVE CELL
CELL ROW
NUMBERS
DOCUMENT
WORKSHEETS
IDENTIFICATION OF CELLS IN THE SPREADSHEET
Locating and indentifying rows and columns within the spreadsheet is a
relatively easy task!
Simply locate the NAME BOX to view the currently selected cell
location, or refer to which ROW or COLUMN is presently selected on
the spreadsheet screen.
You will never need to “guess” where you are presently located, or
which cell you have selected on your spreadsheet - ever again!
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ENTERING INFORMATION INTO A CELL: Whenever you want to type information into a cell (alpha or numerical), simply
select the cell you want the information entered into by clicking on the cell once with your left mouse button.
Once you have clicked to select the cell, start typing in your data! When you are finished typing, press ‘Enter’ or ‘Return’ to “seal the
deal”, or click on another cell.
MOVING AROUND TO DIFFERENT CELLS: If you want to move to another cell row/column, use your mouse and ‘click’ to
select your location of choice. You can also use your keyboard’s arrow keys to navigate around the screen, just as easily.
USING THE ‘AUTOSUM’ FEATURE: Microsoft Excel has a very powerful and useful calculation tool built-in to its interface,
called ‘AutoSum’. What AutoSum does is enable you to easily calculate a series of cells, with a mathematical operator. In this case,
ADDITION is the primary operator of this feature.
I started this example by
typing in a value of ‘ 1 ‘ into
cell A1, and a value of ‘ 2 ‘
into cell A2.
Since I wanted to calculate to
TOTAL of cells A1 & A2, I
simply ‘clicked’ on cell A3,
then ‘clicked’ on the
AutoSum button in the Excel
Toolbar.
Excel then confirms that I
wish to calculate the cells,
with a reference of (A1:A2).
Since I am happy with this selection, I hit ‘Enter’ or ‘Return’ on the keyboard to accept this selection for calculation….
THE RESULT?
As you can quite clearly see, the AutoSum feature has calculated 1
+ 2 to equal 3.
In this example, the summary total is now displayed in ‘A3’ as “3”.
Also, note the information/operator data that Excel has placed into
the FORMULA BAR.
In this case, the formula of ‘ =SUM(A1:A2) ‘ is displayed in the FORMULA BAR. What this formula means to us - =SUM (ADD)
A1:A2 (CELLS A1 THRU TO A2).
Pay close attention to the NAME BOX in this example, the display is ‘A3’ – the exact location of our freshly calculated total!
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USING THE SORT FEATURE:
Whenever we use Excel to organize or arrange data and information within a
spreadsheet, there inevitably comes a time where we need to sort data into ACENDING or DECENDING styles.
SORT ACENDING – From ‘lowest to highest’ or ‘A to Z’
SORT DECENDING – From ‘highest to lowest’ or ‘Z to A’
If you wanted to sort your information in an ACENDING order, you would first need to select all the information you want to sort, by
clicking and dragging to highlight the range of information you require. Once you have the data range selected, click on the SORT
ACENDING icon in the TOOLBAR.
The data is now sorted, based on an ACENDING order.
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If you wanted to sort your information in a DECENDING order, you would again need to first select all the information you want to
sort, by clicking and dragging to highlight the range of information you require. Once you have the data range selected, click on the
SORT DECENDING icon in the TOOLBAR.
The data is now sorted, based on a DECENDING order.
CONVERTING NUMERICAL INFORMATION TO CURRENCY $ :
If you wanted to ‘convert’ some numerical information into CURRENCY, simply ‘click’ on the cell you want to
convert, then ‘click’ on the CURRENCY STYLE button in the TOOLBAR.
In the above example, I have successfully converted “68.99” into a CURRENCY FORMAT of “ $ 68.99”. Excel now knows
that this data is NUMERICAL CURRENCY.
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HOW TO GRAPH OR CHART WITHIN EXCEL:
Charting and graphing is really made easy with Microsoft’s Excel. As
with any chart or graph, data is required to complete the process. Once you have your information typed into some cells, along with
column descriptors, you are ready to chart or graph.
To graph or chart your data, simply highlight the ENTIRE data range, by ‘clicking’ with your left mouse button on the top leftmost
cell. Now drag out the selection highlight to select the entire data range. Once you have done this, ‘click’ on the CHART WIZARD
icon located in the TOOLBAR of the spreadsheet.
You are now presented with the following chart window:
Select your CHART TYPE along with your CHART SUB-TYPE, from the styles available in this
CHART WIZARD window.
You can easily PREVIEW your chart selection, by clicking on the “ PRESS AND HOLD TO VIEW
SAMPLE” button, located in this CHART WIZARD window.
You are now presented with this CHART WIZARD window titled STEP 2 of 4.
If everything looks fine at this point, and there is no need to adjust the SERIES of our data range, we
now need to click on the
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NEXT button to advance to STEP 3 of 4.
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We are now at STEP 3 of 4 in our CHART WIZARD.
Under the TITLES tab, enter your CHART TITLE, CATEGORY of X
AXIS, and VALUE of Y AXIS.
You are welcome to change any other parameters for this chart later, for
now we will just continue along and click on the
advance to the next step.
NEXT button to
We are now at STEP 4 of 4 in the CHART WIZARD.
Since we wanted to INCLUDE the chart on the SAME
PAGE as our data in the spreadsheet, we would need
to select AS OBJECT INÆ Sheet1.
If you wanted the chart placed into a NEW SHEET
within the spreadsheet, you would have selected AS
NEW SHEET Æ Chart1.
For now, just ‘click’ on the FINISH button.
THE RESULT?
CONGRATULATIONS!!! – Now take a deep-breath and look at your hard work!
Our newly created chart is
displayed in the spreadsheet,
near the data we highlighted
earlier.
Now that it’s placed on our
worksheet, we could choose to
leave it where it is, or move the
chart box to which ever
location we desire.
To move the chart box, click
once on the box to select it. A
selected chart box has 8 small
boxes surrounding it.
Now, simply drag this chart to
any specific location in the
spreadsheet.
Once you are happy with its
location, click anywhere else
on the spreadsheet screen, to
de-select the chart box.
FAST – FUN – AND SIMPLE GRAPHING or CHARTING… Feel free to experiment with several different styles!
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USING CUT, COPY, AND PASTE FEATURES WITHIN EXCEL:
If you are already comfortable with using CUT,
COPY, OR PASTE within most applications on today’s computers, you’re going to feel right at home using these commands within
Excel!
CUTS the selected area from the worksheet, into the computer’s clipboard. Your selection could be alpha,
numerical, a mix of both, and even cell formulas!
COPIES the selected area from the worksheet into the computer’s clipboard, WITHOUT removing the original
information’s position and relative location on the worksheet. Again, your selection could be alpha, numerical,
a mix of both, and even cell formulas!
PASTES the information that was MOST RECENTLY CUT or COPIED to the computer’s clipboard.
REMEMBER: Before you PASTE something, know the new place or new location for it!
Should you choose to not use the TOOL BAR icons, and instead want to use the MENU BAR, you would
need to select the EDIT MENU, along with the appropriate CUT, COPY, or PASTE function.
USING HEADERS/FOOTERS & ADJUSTING PAGE MARGINS:
The fun part of Microsoft Excel is the ability to
customize our spreadsheets! We can add distinctive headers and footers to our worksheets, in a manner and fashion exactly similar to
how we operate the functions in Word. To add HEADERS or FOOTERS, as well as adjusting the spreadsheet PAGE MARGINS, you
need to select from the FILE MENU - FILEÆ PAGE SETUP…
You will see a new PAGE SETUP window open, with the following option tabs at
the top:
PAGE – Has settings for ORIENTATION, SCALING, PAPER SIZE, PRINT QUALITY, PRINTING, and PRINT PREVIEW.
MARGINS – Have settings for TOP, HEADER, LEFT, RIGHT, BOTTOM, FOOTER, and CUSTOM PAGE FEATURES.
HEADER/FOOTER – Has settings for HEADER/FOOTER, as well as CUSTOM HEADER/FOOTER OPTIONS.
SHEET – Has settings for PRINT AREA, PRINT TITLES, PRINT OPTIONS, and PAGE ORDERS.
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TO USE A CUSTOM HEADER/FOOTER:
With the PAGE SETUP window still open, click on the HEADER/FOOTER option tab…
HEADERS:
To access this feature, you need to select the CUSTOM HEADER button:
Simply type in your HEADER INFORMATION, into the LEFT, CENTER, or RIGHT section of the header options window. Click
OK.
Remember, where ever you place your information into (LEFT/CENTER/RIGHT) will correspond to this exact location in the header.
FOOTERS:
To access this feature, you need to select the CUSTOM FOOTER button:
Simply type in your FOOTER INFORMATION, into the LEFT, CENTER, or RIGHT section of the footer options window. Click
OK.
Remember, where ever you place your information into (LEFT/CENTER/RIGHT) will correspond to this exact location in the footer.
ADJUSTING PAGE MARGINS:
Accomplishing this task is as easy as specifying your margin dimensions, for the TOP,
HEADER, LEFT, RIGHT, BOTTOM, and FOOTER - by placing a numerical value into
each of the margin’s data input windows.
The ‘picture’ of the page, with surrounding margin settings, will visually change to ‘show’
you the results of your margin dimensions input.
1…2…3 and you’re off and running, with all margins set!
ADJUSTING ROW OR COLUMN HEIGHT/WIDTH:
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WIDTH
To adjust the width of your row or column, simply place the pointer in-between and to the end of the cell you want to expand… The
pointer will change to a “Line Left/Right arrow”, once this occurs simply ‘click’ your left mouse button and drag to the left to
REDUCE the cell width, or drag to the right to INCREASE the cell width. Once you let go of the left mouse button, after you have
dragged out the size you want, the cell’s new size will remain.
NOTICE HOW THE POINTER NOW LOOKS???
AS YOU DRAG, THE CELL’S WIDTH
INCREASES – TAKE NOTE OF THE
‘FLOATING’ MEASURE BEING
DISPLAYED IN A YELLOW BOX….
Once you are happy with it’s new width,
release your left mouse button…
HEIGHT
To adjust the height of your row, simply place the pointer in-between and to the end of the cell you want to expand… The pointer will
change to a “Line Up/Down arrow”, once this occurs simply ‘click’ your left mouse button and drag UP to REDUCE the cell height,
or drag DOWN t to INCREASE the cell height. Once you let go of the left mouse button, after you have dragged out the size you
want, the cell’s new size will remain.
NOTICE THE POINTER CHANGE……
AS YOU DRAG, THE CELL’S HEIGHT INCREASES – TAKE NOTE OF THE
‘FLOATING’ MEASURE BEING DISPLAYED IN A YELLOW BOX….
Once you are happy with it’s new height,
release your left mouse button…
ADDING ROWS
To add a row, simply ‘click’ on the cell row number you wish to insert another row before or ahead of, then ‘click’ on the INSERT
menu, followed by ROWS. 1 new row will be added, ahead of the row you just ‘clicked on’ and selected!
ADDING COLUMNS
To add a column, simply ‘click’ on a column location where you want a NEW COLUMN added. Next, ‘click’ on the INSERT menu,
followed by COLUMNS. 1 new column will be added, exactly where you selected the column to be inserted in the first place!
DELETING ROWS OR COLUMNS:
Simply ‘click’ once on the ROW or COLUMN you want to delete, then select from the
EDIT menu DELETE. The row or column you selected is now removed, and the remaining rows or columns take up the empty space.
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USING THE ‘FILL DOWN’ AND ‘EXTENDED SERIES’ FEATURES:
FILL DOWN: The FILL DOWN feature of Microsoft Excel allows you to basically “drag” a copy of a highlighted or selected cell
to a range or group of cells. To apply a ‘FILL DOWN’, begin by selecting the cell you wish to duplicate, then immediately drag down
below this cell, the appropriate number of cells you wish this information to be copied into. If you selected a range of 10 cells, these
10 cells would then contain exactly the same information as the cell you copied and applied the ‘FILL DOWN’ feature to.
EXTENDED SERIES: You can automatically fill in several types of series by selecting cells and dragging the fill handle or by
using the Series command (point to Fill on the Edit menu, and then click Series). To select the type of series from a shortcut menu,
select the starting values for the series; then hold down the right mouse button as you drag the fill handle. This information was taken
directly from Excel’s built-in context help.
Time
A time series can include increments of days, weeks, or months that you specify, or it can include repeating sequences such as
weekdays, month names, or quarters. For example, the initial time selections in the following table result in the series shown.
Initial selection
Extended series
9:00
Mon
Monday
Jan
Jan, Apr
Jan-96, Apr-96
15-Jan, 15-Apr
1994, 1995
10:00, 11:00, 12:00
Tue, Wed, Thu
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Feb, Mar, Apr
Jul, Oct, Jan
Jul-96, Oct-96, Jan-97
15-Jul, 15-Oct
1996, 1997, 1998
AutoFill
The AutoFill feature extends several types of series as shown in the following table. The fourth example shows how Microsoft
Excel can extend part of a selection (Product 1) and copy another part (On backorder). The last example is a best-fit trend.
Note Items separated by commas are in adjacent cells.
Initial selection
Mon
1-Jan, 1-Mar
Qtr3 (or Q3 or Quarter3)
Product 1, On backorder
text1, textA
1st Period
Product 1
1, 2
1, 3, 4
Extended series
Tue, Wed, Thu,...
1-May, 1-Jul, 1-Sep,...
Qtr4, Qtr1, Qtr2,...
Product 2, On backorder, Product 3, On backorder,...
text2, textA, text3, textA,...
2nd Period, 3rd Period,...
Product 2, Product 3,...
3, 4, 5, 6,...
5.66, 7.16, 8.66,...
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Linear and Growth series
When you create a linear series by dragging the fill handle, Microsoft Excel increases or decreases values by a constant value
that is based on the selected starting values. When you create a growth series by selecting the Growth Trend command from
the shortcut menu, Microsoft Excel multiplies values by a constant factor.
Initial selection
Extended linear series
1, 2
1, 3
100, 95
Initial selection
1,2
1,3
2,3
4.5, 6.75, 10.125
3, 4, 5
5, 7, 9
90, 85
Extended growth series
4, 8, 16
9, 27, 81
HOW TO FORMAT CELL PROPERTIES – BORDERS & COLORS:
If you wanted to have a border around your entire data in the spreadsheet – first highlight the entire data field to apply a border to,
then select from the FORMAT menu – CELLS…
Then select the BORDER tab, from the options window:
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Now, to create the OUTLINE for this border, click on the OUTLINE button. Notice the pictogram in this window shows you what
‘border’ will be applied to the range? Neat eh??
Now, ‘click’ on the OK button to set this option….
THE RESULT?
NOTICE THE ‘BORDER’ LINE APPLIED IN AN OUTLINE FORMAT AROUND THE DATA….
You can experiment with applying different line weights/styles to your highlighted data, along with filling in the inside of the border,
by clicking on the INSIDE button under the FORMAT CELLS Æ BORDER options window.
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APPLYING COLOR TO FILLS OR FONTS:
Once you have selected a cell in your spreadsheet, you can then click on the ‘FILL COLOR’ icon to
apply the current color to this cell, or select an alternate color by clicking on the little black downarrow next to this icon. A color palette box will then drop down, allowing you to select a new fill
color. Once selected, this fill color will remain as the DEFAULT FILL COLOR, and become visually
displayed within the icon, and ready for applying to your data once selected.
Once you have selected your text in a cell, you can then click on the ‘FONT COLOR’ icon to
apply the current color to the text in this cell, or select an alternate color by clicking on the
little black down-arrow next to this icon. A color palette box will then drop down, allowing
you to select a new font color. Once selected, this font color will remain as the DEFAULT
FONT COLOR, and become visually displayed within the icon, and ready for applying to your
data once selected.
RENAMING, ADDING, OR REMOVING WORKSHEETS FROM THE SPREADSHEET:
RENAMING:
To rename a worksheet tab in Excel you first have to click on the tab name, then right-click with your mouse to
open up the quick menu to select RENAME…
ADDING:
To add another worksheet to your spreadsheet file, you first have to click on one of the worksheet tabs at the
bottom of the screen, then right-click with your mouse to open up the quick menu to select INSERT…
REMOVING:
To remove a worksheet from your spreadsheet file, you first have to click on one of the worksheet tabs at
the bottom of the screen, then right-click with your mouse to open up the quick menu to select
DELETE…
A warning window will then ‘pop-up’, confirming your decision to DELETE the selected worksheet.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SAVE and SAVE AS IN EXCEL:
SAVE - No different in form/function to how Microsoft Word handles saving of files. When you initially use the SAVE feature, you
are prompted for a filename/location. Once you have established a filename, any continued use of the SAVE command will append or
overwrite the contents of your file, WITHOUT ever again asking what the name of the file is, or where it’s located.
SAVE AS – No different in form/function to how Microsoft Word handles saving of files. When you invoke the SAVE AS feature,
the system then prompts you for a filename/location. Once you have established the filename/location, and use the SAVE AS feature
again, you will continue to be prompted for a filename/location. SAVE AS is an ideal feature for creating alternate or new filenames
or locations for files, without the worry of exclusively overwriting or appending the file like the SAVE feature does.
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UNDERSTANDING EXCEL’S PRINT PREVIEW FEATURE:
The ‘PRINT PREVIEW’ feature of Microsoft Excel allows you to view your entire spreadsheet data/document in a ‘WYSIWYG’
(whuzzy-wig) or (What You See Is What You Get) format.
When using this feature, there is no guess work involved, as to “will it all fit on a page….” “Is the chart too big..”…etc…
To access this feature, you can click on the
PRINT PREVIEW icon in the TOOL BAR…
Here’s what the print preview screen looks like….
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FEEL FREE TO CONTACT THE APPROPRIATE INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANT SUPPORTING
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