Microsoft Excel: The Basics
Microsoft Excel: The Basics
The Basics
Spreadsheet
Open Excel.
By default, Excel will open a blank
workbook that contains three worksheets
(spreadsheets). Each box, located in both
a column and a row, is called a cell.
The Menu Bar is directly below the Title bar and displays the menu. The menu
begins with the word File and continues with the following: Edit, View, Insert,
Format, Tools, Data, Window, and Help. You use the menu to give instructions
to the software. Point with your mouse to a menu option and click the left mouse
button. A drop-down menu will appear. You can now use the left and right arrow
keys on your keyboard to move left and right across the Menu bar options. You
can use the up and down arrow keys to move up and down the drop-down
menu. To select an option, highlight the item on the drop-down menu and press
Enter.
Toolbars
Microsoft Excel consists of worksheets. Each worksheet contains columns
and rows. The columns are lettered A to IV; the rows are numbered 1 to
65536. The combination of column and row coordinates make up a
cell address. For example, the cell located in the upper left corner of the
worksheet is cell A1, meaning column A, row 1. Cell E10 is located under
column E on row 10. You enter your data into the cells on the worksheet.
CELLS
Cells can be
formatted to help
handle various
types of data.
Right click on a
single cell, or a
group of cells, and
select “Format
Cells” from the
drop down menu.
Brief descriptions
of format types
can be seen at
the bottom of the
dialog box. Take
a moment to look
through the
various formatting
options. Click
cancel when
you’re done.
Type a number into
cell 1A, right click on
the cell, and select
“Format Cells.” Note
that a sample format
is shown on the top
right of the dialog
box. You can adjust
the number of
decimal places and
any preceding
symbols.
Excel Help