INTRODUCTION TO SPREADSHEETSMICROSOFT EXCEL

Spreadsheets

• Allows users to perform simple and complex sorting

• Allows users to perform calculations quickly by a click of a button

• Organizes and presents figures that can be analyzed, graphed and printed

• Amount of information is limitless

Spreadsheets

• Are used more and more by accountants

• Can be used to automatically– Calculate totals for you– Identify the category with the highest

and lowest numbers– Calculate averages– Create presentation charts from figures

for easier analysis

Common Uses for Spreadsheets

• Sales• Accounting• Scheduling• Inventory Systems• Keeping statistics – sciences,

psychology, etc• ANYTHING THAT USES NUMBERS!

Name Box: Indicates the Cell You Are In. The Cell that Appears is called the ``Active Cell`”

Columns

Formula Bar: Indicates the content of the selected cell. Formulas and Text can be typed here

These tabs represent different worksheets within a workbook

Rows

Cell

Entering Information

• Labels:– Text Information– Numbers are useless without

information to help users understand what they mean (i.e. TOTAL)

• Values:– Any numerical data– Important to not include commas, dollar

signs, etc

Formatting Spreadsheets

• Just like any word or publisher document, the user can– Bold, Italicize, Underline

– Change Font Size, Colour and Style

– Highlight certain text or Numbers• Done by Filling in certain cells with fill icon

Formatting Cells

• Choose the style that you want for the cell– Format Menu ---

Cell– Examples

• Number• Currency• Percentage• Date• Borders• Font

Borders and Colour

• These tools are used to highlight the important cells– Often totals, titles

• To highlight cells – use pastel colours

Inserting and Deleting Cells

• Select the cell or the range (range: Two or more cells on a sheet. The cells in a range can be adjacent or nonadjacent.) of cells where you want to insert the new blank cells.

• Select the same number of cells as you want to insert. For example, to insert five blank cells, you need to select five cells.

Inserting and Deleting Cells

• Inserting Rows– select the row above which you want to

insert the new row.

• Inserting Columns– select the column immediately to the

right of where you want to insert the new column.

Inserting and Deleting Cells

• How to do insert/delete– On the Insert menu, click Cells– Right click on cell or range of cells– Use the icon

• You Try!

Formulas

• The real power of spreadsheets• Automatically calculates math based on

formulas inputted into specific cells• What can you include in

these formulas?– Addition (+) , Subtraction(-)Multiplication(*), Division(/), Exponents (^)

Getting Used to Formulas

• To add numbers together – Type Cell Locations in the formula bar

• i.e. =B3 + A1 + B2

– Type “= “ then click on the desired cell with your mouse

• Try the same formula

• To Multiply or Divide– Cells are separated by either * or /– i.e. = (B3*A3)/4

Using Formulas• This weekend Jimmy bought the following items

– Baseball Cap $19.95– Toothpaste $2.50– Chips $1.25– Movie Ticket $11.00– Shoes $59.75– T-Shirt $15.98

1) Organize the above information into a spreadsheet2) Insert an additional column to calculate the HST (12%) for each

item3) Total up the price paid for each item and for the entire weekend

Spreadsheet Functions

• Using a function in a formula will make the input of a formula much faster

• Instead of entering every individual cell – can insert a function and select a range of cells– Example: Instead of = A1+A2+A3+A4

We put =SUM(A1:A4)

Spreadsheet Functions

• Frequently Used Spreadsheet Functions– SUM – calculates the total of a range of cells– MIN- identifies the lowest value (minimum) in the

range of values specified– MAX – identifies the highest value (maximum) in

the range of values specified– AVERAGE or AVG – calculates the arithmetic

mean of the values in the specified cells– COUNT – counts the number of numeric values in

the range specified

What makes up a formula?

1) The indicator (=)2) The function name (e.g. SUM, AVG)3) The arguments (contained within brackets) –

the cells The cells on which you want the function perfoemed

=AVG(B3:B14)

FUNCTION

ARGUMENTINDICATOR

Fill Down and Fill Across

• This allows you to take a formula or data and replicate it down an entire column or across an entire row

• Absolute Cells: Will keep a certain cell constant while changing others– Insert $ before both column and row reference

($A$1)

Fill Down and Fill Across

• Examples:– Dates– Totals– Absolute Cells

Spreadsheet Functions

• Go back to Jimmy’s items’ spreadsheet– Find a more efficient way to calculate the HST and

show the total amount spent over the weekend

EXCEL AND ACCOUNTING

• This year we will be using excel for a variety of reasons

• Starting with– Recording accounts– Preparing financial statements

• Continuing onto– Financial ratios– Journal Transactions– Many, Many, more

EXCEL AND ACCOUNTING

• Today, we are going to build a balance sheet using excel. (Open – intro to excel assignment)

• Prepare this just like you would on paper– Heading– Assets on Left – Liabilities & Owner’s Equity on right

• Make sure to use formulas and functions to make your totals– Example: If the amount in my equipment account changes

– it should change the value in TOTAL ASSETS