Spreadsheet Software CS 100 Mount Union College

Spreadsheet Basics l Screen area is divided into rows and columns l Microsoft Excel spreadsheets have 65,536 rows –identified by number –approx. 24 on screen at a time (depends on screen size)

Spreadsheet Basics l Excel spreadsheets have 230 columns –identified by letter l A to Z, then AA to AZ, then BA to BZ,..., to IV –not all on screen at a time l Intersection of a row and column is called a CELL –Basic unit of all spreadsheet operations –identified by column letter(s) and row number

Operating Modes l Ready mode –used for moving current cell pointer around the spreadsheet l Edit mode –data items are being entered/changed in a cell l Other, special-purpose modes –move, copy, recalculate, etc. –depends on current operation requested by user

What Can Go Into A Cell? l Labels - describe parts of the spreadsheet l Numbers - can be used in calculations l Formulas - specify calculations to be performed l Functions - built-in operations the program knows already

Arithmetic Operators in Formulas l + : Addition l - : Subtraction l * : Multiplication l / : Division l Can be used with Numbers or Cell References l Formulas ALWAYS start with =

Ranges of Cells l Many spreadsheet operations apply to more than one cell l A rectangular group of cells is called a RANGE –Identified by the two cells at the corners of the rectangle –Cell references are separated by a colon ( : ) –ex. A1:B6, B8:B12, C3:H3

Functions l Perform some calculation on a range of cells l SUM(F4:F10) -- add up all values in one column l AVERAGE(B18:G18) -- find average of a row l others: MIN, MAX, STDDEV, ….

Functions l Two ways to add all values from D10 through D15 –hard way: =D10+D11+D12+D13+D14+D15 –easy way: =SUM(D10:D15) l What if range changes to D10 through D215? –USE FUNCTIONS WHENEVER YOU CAN!

Types of Spreadsheets - Templates l General framework of a problem l Has labels to identify where values should be placed l Also has formulas and functions for calculations l NO SPECIFIC DATA ENTERED YET

Types of Spreadsheets - Instances l Template with data filled in l Solves a specific instance of the general problem

How to Solve Problems in Excel... l Construct rough sketch of worksheet on paper or mentally l Build a Template –SAVE TO DISK before adding specific data l Retrieve Template from disk and fill with data for each problem instance desired

Spreadsheet Software CS 100 Mount Union College