European Computer Driving Licence Module 4 – Spreadsheets Chapter Functions

Functions ZA function is a formula used in a calculation ZExcel has over 200 functions to help with many applications ZFor ECDL4 you will learn about:, =SUM, =AVERAGE, =MIN, =MAX, =COUNT

The SUM function ZAlthough you can use the AutoSum button to add up a column or row of numbers, you can also type the function, Click where you want the total to appear, Type =SUM(, Click and drag the cells you want to add up, Press the Enter key

The AVERAGE Function ZUse this to work out the average of a range of cells, Click where you want the result of the function to appear (eg cell B13), Type =AVERAGE(, Select the cells you want to find the average of, Press the Enter key Watch out: any blank cell formatted as Number will upset your average!

The MAX and MIN functions ZTo display the highest number in a range of cells:, Click where you want the result of the function to appear (eg cell B15), Type =MAX(, Select the range of cells, Press the Enter key ZTo show the lowest number, replace =MAX( with =MIN(

The COUNT Function ZTo count the number of entries in a range of cells:, Click where you want the result of the function to appear (eg cell B19), Type =COUNT(, Select the range of cells, Press the Enter key, Note the COUNT function only counts cells that contain a number – it will ignore blank cells or cells which contain text!

Adding a new record ZTo add a new record, you will need to insert a new row ZRight click the row header where you want the new row to appear ZSelect Insert from the shortcut menu A blank row will appear. ZType in your new data!

Copying data between sheets ZSelect the sheet which contains the data you want to copy (eg Birth Stats) and select the cells (eg A1 to D1) ZClick the Copy icon ZClick the sheet you want to copy the cells to (eg Daily Weights) ZClick in the appropriate cell and click the paste icon ZYou may need to widen the columns to fit the data!

Filling a series ZType a numeric value in the first cell (eg Day 1) ZMove the mouse pointer to the bottom right corner until the pointer changes to a black plus-sign (the fill handle) Z Click and drag across (a tool tip will appear as you drag!) Z Release the mouse button Z Excel will automatically increment the value! Z Handy Hint: This also works with Days, Months and plain numbers!

Hiding and Unhiding Rows ZTo “hide” a row, click any- where in the row (eg row 12) ZFrom the Format menu, select Row then Hide ZThe row will disappear from view – the row number will not display ZTo display the “hidden” row select the row headers above and below (eg 11 and 13) ZFrom the Format menu select Row then Unhide

Freezing row and column titles ZWhen working on a big spreadsheet, it is useful to have either row labels or column headings showing no matter how far you scroll in the spreadsheet, Click in the cell nearest to A1 that you don’t want to freeze (eg cell B4), Select Window, Freeze Panes from the menu – black borders will appear next to the frozen panes

Unfreezing Panes ZTo “unfreeze” panes, select Window then Unfreeze Panes from the menu ZThe black borders will disappear ZIt doesn’t matter where the active cell is when doing this!

Opening several workbooks ZIf you have several workbooks open, you will see a taskbar button for each one ZTo switch between open workbooks, click the taskbar button ZYou can also select Window from the menu bar and select the workbook you want to work on! ZThis is handy if you have more than 3 workbooks open and Windows XP “groups” the taskbar buttons!

Saving under another file name ZTo save an existing workbook with a different file name, select File then Save As from the menu ZType in the new file name in the File Name box then click Save ZYou can also use File, Save As to save to a different location

Saving as a different file type ZYou can choose to save a workbook in a different file format ZClick File then Save As and click in the File type box ZSelect the file type from the drop down list Scroll down to see more options!

Different file formats ZTo post a spreadsheet file on the web, save as a Single File Web Page (.htm or.html) ZTo save as a text file that can be read by other operating systems, choose Text File ZTo save as a template, select Template ZTo save in a format suitable for older spreadsheet or database programs, select csv format ZYou can also save as a Lotus spreadsheet (.wk4) or dBase (.dbf) For more information on file formats, type File Formats into Excel’s Help section!