Introduction to Microsoft Excel 2013

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet software that is widely used in offices and schools for storing, organizing and manipulating data in rows and columns. What makes spreadsheets so popular is their ability to perform calculations based on the data stored in them.

For example, in offices, spreadsheet software is widely used for storing financial data. This data can be used for calculating profit and loss, average sales etc. In school, the spreadsheet can be used to calculate average marks, grades etc. In Microsoft Excel You can perform complex mathematical calculations on data. It also allows you to represent data pictorially in the form of charts for better understanding and analysis. Another important feature of spreadsheet software is its ability to recalculate the values automatically if the source data changes.

The first ever electronic spreadsheet was VisiCalc which was co-created by Daniel Bricklin and Bob Frankston in early 1980s. The various spreadsheet software available in the market include Microsoft Excel, Lotus 1-2-3, Quattro Pro and OpenOffice Calc. Microsoft Excel comes as a part of Microsoft Office Package. In this chapter, we will learn about Microsoft Excel 2013.

 

Starting Microsoft Excel

To starts Microsoft Excel, follow the steps given here-

Step 1: Click on the Start button on the Taskbar.

Step 2: Click on the All Programs option.

Step 3: Click on the Microsoft Office option.

Step 4: Click on Microsoft Excel 2013.

From the Excel Start Screen, locate and select Blank Workbook to access the Excel interface.

  

Components of the Microsoft Word Window:

The Microsoft word window contains a number of elements:

Worksheet: 

It is a grid or a work area made up of horizontal rows and vertical columns wherein you enter and work with data. You can add more worksheets as and when required. An excel worksheet contains 16,384 columns and 1,048,576 rows.

Workbook: 

A workbook is a collection of multiple worksheets stored under a single file name. When you save an excel worksheet, you are actually saving a workbook.

Row: 

A row is horizontal arrangement of cells. Each row on a worksheet is identified using a number. The rows are numbered from top to bottom in ascending order starting from 1, 2, 3, 4 till 1,048,576.

Column: 

A column is vertical arrangement of cells. Each column on a worksheet is identified using a unique label. The column are labelled as alphabets (A, B, C, ….Y, Z, AA, AB, AC, …AZ, BA, BB,… till XFD.

Cell: It is the most basic unit of a worksheet. It is formed by the intersection of a row and a column. A cell ma

y contain text, numbers, date or a formula.

Cell address: 

A cell address in a spreadsheet identifies location of the cell. It is a combination of column name and row number of the cell, such as A2 or B16 etc. Name box displays this address in a worksheet.

Cell pointer / Active cell:  

This is the cell on which the cursor is currently placed. It is outlined by a dark border. Data is always entered in the active cell.

 

Range of Cells: 

It refers to a group of cells adjacent to each other forming a rectangular shape.

Formula Bar: 

This is located below the Ribbon. It displays the contents of the active cell. It can also be used to Enter and the Cancel buttons.

Minimize and maximize the Ribbon

Step 1: Click the Ribbon Display Options arrow in the upper-right corner of the Ribbon.

Step 2: Select the desired minimizing option from the drop-down menu:

Auto-hide Ribbon: 

Auto-hide displays your workbook in full-screen mode and completely hides the Ribbon. To show the Ribbon, click the Expand Ribbon command at the top of screen.

Show Tabs: 

This option hides all command groups when they're not in use, but tabs will remain visible. To show the Ribbon, simply click a tab.

Show Tabs and Commands: 

This option maximizes the Ribbon. All of the tabs and commands will be visible. This option is selected by default when you open Excel for the first time.

Add commands to the Quick Access toolbar:

Step 1: Click the drop-down arrow to the right of the Quick Access toolbar.

Step 2: Select the command you want to add from the drop-down menu. To choose from more commands, select More Commands.

Step 3: The command will be added to the Quick Access toolbar.

Worksheet views:

Excel 2013 has a variety of viewing options that change how your Workbook is displayed. You can choose to view any workbook in ___

1. Normal View

2. Page Layout View

3. Page Break View

To change worksheet views, locate and select the desired worksheet view command in the bottom-right corner of the Excel window. Click the arrows in the slideshow below to review the different worksheet view options.

 

How to insert content:

Step 1: Click a cell to select it.

Step 2: Type data into the selected cell, then press Enter on your keyboard. The content will appear in the cell and the formula bar. You can also input and edit cell content in the formula bar.

Types of data:

You can enter numbers, dates, time, formulas and text in a cell. Let us discuss about these data types in details.

• Numbers:

A worksheet is primarily used for the computation of numeric data. Numbers are values that consist of numerals from 0 to 9 including symbols like +, -, /, (, ) and decimal point ( . ). You can also use characters like dollar ( $ ), percentage ( % ) and comma ( , ) with number values. All numbers entries are right aligned in a cell by default.

Examples: 130;  56,000;  $4,500;  700.00

N: B: To treat a number value as a text entry in a cell, you can type an apostrophe ( ‘ ) before the number value.

• Formulas:

A formula is a mathematical expression involving numbers values, operators like +, -, / and cell addresses for performing calculations on worksheet. Formulas evaluate to a single value.

Examples: =10 + 20 will result in 30 and A1 + A2

N: B: All formula begin with an equal to ( = ) sign.

• Date and Time:

You can enter date values like 12/04/2020 and time like 04:26:11 AM in a cell on a worksheet. The ways a date or time is displayed depends on the format applied to the cell on a worksheet. All dates and time entries are right aligned in a cell by default.

• Text:

Data which is not recognized by Excel as a number, date, time or formula is treated as text data. Text is any combinations of letters, numbers, symbols like /, -, ? or space. By default, all text entries are left-aligned in a cell. Text entries are used to give headings or titles, names etc. on the worksheet.

Examples: 105-5640; Name; M-3452; marks; etc.

 

Navigating a Worksheet:

The following lists of the keys and the key combinations that let you easily move around in a worksheet.

• Arrow Keys: Up, down, left or right of the current cell.
• Tab: Move next cell in a row.
• Shift + Tab: Move previous cell in row.
• Enter: Move one cell down in a column.
• Shift + Home: Move one cell up in a column.
• Home: First cell in a row.
• Ctrl + Home: Cell all of the current worksheet.
• Page Up: One screen up.
• Page Down: One screen down.

 

Renaming a worksheet:

The steps to be followed for renaming a worksheet are:

Step 1: Double-click the name of the worksheet on the worksheet tab Or right-click on the name of the worksheet and then select rename option.

Step 2: Type a new name and press Enter.

Adding a New Worksheet:

For quickly adding worksheet at the end, click the new sheet button at the end of the worksheet tab.

However, to add a new worksheet between the existing sheets, select the worksheet before which you want the new worksheet to be placed and follow the given steps:

Step 1: Click the Insert option in the Cells group on the Home tab. A drop-down list is displayed. Or right-click on the name of the worksheet and then select Insert option.

Step 2: Choose the Insert Sheet option.

Shortcut Key: Shift + F11

Removing a Worksheet:

Place the mouse pointer on the worksheet that you wish to delete and follow these steps:

Step 1: Click the Delete option in the Cells group on the Home tab. A drop-down list is displayed. Or right-click on the name of the worksheet and then select Delete option.

Step 2: Choose the Delete Sheet option.

 

Save and Save As

Excel offers two ways to save a file- Save and Save As. These options work in similar ways, with a few important differences:

• Save: 

When you create or edit a workbook, you'll use the Save command to save your changes. You'll use this command most of the time. When you save a file, you'll only need to choose a file name and location the first time. After that, you can just click the Save command to save it with the same name and location.

• Save As: 

You'll use this command to create a copy of a workbook while keeping the original. When you use Save As, you'll need to choose a different name and/or location for the copied version.

 

Save a workbook:

Locate and select the Save command on the Quick Access toolbar.

Step 1: If you're saving the file for the first time, the Save As pane will appear in backstage view.

Step 2: You'll then need to choose where to save the file and give it a file name. To save the workbook to your computer, select Computer, then click Browse.

Step 3: The Save As dialog box will appear. Select the location where you want to save the workbook.

Step 4: Enter a file name for the workbook, then click Save.

Step 5: The workbook will be saved. You can click the Save command again to save your changes as you modify the workbook.

N: B: You can also access the Save command by pressing Ctrl+S on your keyboard.

 

Change the default save location:

Step 1: Click the File tab to access backstage view.

Step 2: Click Options.

Step 3: The Excel Options dialog box will appear. Select Save, check the box next to Save to Computer by default, then click OK. The default save location will be changed.

How to open an existing workbook:

Step 1: Navigate to Backstage view, then click Open.

Step 2: Select Computer, then click Browse.

Step 3: The Open dialog box will appear. Locate and select your workbook, then click Open.

N: B: If you've opened the desired workbook recently, you can browse your Recent Workbooks rather than search for the file.

 

Pin a workbook:

If you frequently work with the same workbook, you can pin it to backstage view for faster access.

Step 1: Navigate to Backstage view, then click Open. Your recently edited workbooks will appear.

Step 2: Hover the mouse over the workbook you want to pin. A pushpin icon will appear next to the workbook. Click the pushpin icon.

Step 3: The workbook will stay in Recent Workbooks. To unpin a workbook, simply click the pushpin icon again.

 

Convert a workbook:

If you want access to all of the Excel 2013 features, you can convert the workbook to the 2013 file format. Note that converting a file may cause some changes to the original layout of the workbook.

Step 1: Click the File tab to access backstage view.

Step 2: Locate and select Convert command.

Step 3: The Save As dialog box will appear. Select the location where you want to save the workbook, enter a file name for the presentation, and click save.

Step 4: The workbook will be converted to the newest file type.

 

How to use Auto Recover:

Step 1: Open Excel 2013. If AutoSaved versions of a file are found, the Document Recovery pane will appear.

Step 2: Click to open an available file. The workbook will be recovered.

How to export a workbook as a PDF file:

Step 1: Click the File tab to access backstage view.

Step 2: Click Export, then select Create PDF/XPS.

Step 3: The Save As dialog box will appear. Select the location where you want to export the workbook, enter a file name, and then click Publish.

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