Using formulas

What is a formula?

•FORMULA•is a data entry capable of performing mathematical and logical operations automatically.

Several things we need to consider before entering a formula

1.Determine first where to put the formula. • The location of the formula must be in

the cell where you want to see the results of the computations.

2.Formulas in excel begin with an equals (=) sign.

• There are several operators like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. There is no problem when you are just using one operator at a time; but the difficulty begins when you put several operators together in a single formula. With more than one operators present in a formula, the logical question is which among the operators will the computer perform first?

Which among the two equations was correctly computed?

Equation 1

Equation 2

5*2-4/2=3 5*2-4/2=8

1. Operators enclosed in parenthesis2. Percentage3. Exponential4. Multiplication and division5. Addition and subtraction6. Concatenation (of strings)7. Comparisons of logical operators =,<>,<,>,<=,>=

The following operators will be calculated first in subsequent order: