SPREADSHEET
Definition of Spreadsheet
A Spreadsheet is simply a sheet of paper on which horizontal and
vertical lines to generate a rectangular grid, much as your mathematics
copy. A spreadsheet can also be called a workbook or code book. A
workbook (e.g. Excel) is a collection of one or more worksheets (A
worksheet is like a page in the workbook).Each square or block is used
to write number or text or figure for calculations if required as shown
below;
A rectangular grid for data entry
Spreadsheets can also be defined as active software-based tables used
to express numerical values. (The format and name are derived from an
old manual system.) An Electronic spreadsheet is an electronic
counterpart of the paper spreadsheet.
USES OF SPREADSHEET PACKAGES
For Statistical analysis
For Mathematical purposes
Regression analysis
Budget management and control
Preparation of daily sales report
Stock / Inventory control analysis
Preparation of examination results
Accounting purpose
Financial projection and analysis
Preparation of Payroll, etc
Further Uses of Spreadsheet are to;
i. store information in the memory of the computer
ii. ask the computer to calculate results
iii. display the information and results on the computer screen in the
desired manner.
iv. tabulate data inputs.
v. process data and perform integrated calculations using formulas
vi. make financial business statements
vii. make production of breakdown analyses and graphs
Spreadsheet can be APPLIED in the following areas;
1. Annual reports of business firms
2. Invoices or bills
3. Tender evaluations
4. Banking
5. Inventory control
6. Budgets
7. Payroll
8. Scientific calculations
Examples of Spreadsheet
The best-known spreadsheet formats are MS Excel, SPSS (Spreadsheet
package for social science) and Lotus developed in the 1980s and
introduced worldwide by the 1990s. Spreadsheets have now
standardized most of the old-style accounting methodologies and are a
primary source of raw data.
Further Examples of Spreadsheet Packages are;
Lotus 1-2-3
Microsoft Excel
STATVIEW
Quattro pro
Easy Calc
GS-Calc
Super-Calc
VisiCalc
PRACTICALS ON EXCEL
1. Loading and exiting Ms-Excel
2. Creating, Saving and retrieving files
LOADING AND EXITING SPREADSHEET PACKAGES
The feature of a typical Microsoft Excel environment is presented
below;
.
Loading the Spreadsheet Package
To load a spreadsheet package, take the following steps:
Click on the START button
Point to ALL PROGRAMS
Point to Microsoft Office
Click on Microsoft Excel
METHOD II
Double-click the Microsoft Excel icon on the desktop. The spreadsheet
package opens. The active cell is cell A1 and the active worksheet is
sheet1.
Exiting the Spreadsheet package
To exit a spreadsheet package, take any of the following steps:
Click on the File menu and select Exit.
Click on the Close button on the title bar
Press ALT+F4.
Creating a New Worksheet
To create a new Excel worksheet follow the steps below:
Click on the Microsoft Office Button
Click on new from the menu displayed
OR press CTRL+N
Saving a Worksheet
To save a worksheet for the first time, follow the steps below;
Click on the Microsoft office Button
Click on Save
When the dialog box appears, in the save in box click on the
arrow, a drop down menu appears.
Select a location to save e.g My Document
Type a file name in the File name box.
Click on Save
Save As Dialog Box
Subsequently, just press ctrl + S to continue saving the worksheet.
NOTE: Educators should please show the students other methods of
saving a worksheet
Retrieving a Worksheet
To retrieve an existing or saved worksheet, follow the steps below;
Load the spreadsheet package (Microsoft Excel in this case)
Click on the File menu or the Microsoft Office button
Click on Open, the open dialog box will be displayed
Click on the arrow beside the Look in box
Select My Document from the drop-down menu
Click on the File Name
Click on Open
