Excel Tips and Tricks

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Important

• Learn how to use help!

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Excel Tips

• Working with Hyperlinks– Task: create 2 .xls files,

with mutual hyperlinks

• Shortcut to enter today’s date– Ctrl + ;

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Excel Tips

• Right click status bar, choose ‘quick functions’– Can select multiple non-

contiguous cells

• AutoFill to speed up data entry– Office Button>Excel

Options>Edit Custom Lists…

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Excel Tips

• Creating a custom template (.xlt)

• \Program Files\Microsoft Office\Templates\1033

• Seven available- Billing, BloodPressure,Expenses, Loan, Budget, Sales, TimeCard

• Open and examine

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Breakeven Analysis

• Search for template(s) at http://office.microsoft.com

• 3 available• Download and examine

“Breakeven analysis”

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Custom FormatsTable 23-3. Useful Formatting Characters for Building Custom Number Formats

Character Purpose Example Number Entered

Result

# Creates a placeholder for significant digits, rounding to fit if necessary.

##.### 50.0048 2.30

50.005 2.3

0 Rounds numbers to fit like the # character, but fills any empty positions with zeros to align numbers and to fill all specified positions.

00.00 50.1 5

50.10 05.00

? Also rounds numbers to fit, but fills any empty positions with spaces rather than extra zeros (if necessary) to align numbers and fill positions.

??.?? 5.6 .70 73.27

5.6 .7 73.27

"text" Adds the characters within the quotes to the value in the cell.

"ID " ## 75 2

ID 75 ID 2

comma (,) Separates thousands in numbers. #,### 5600 5,600

$, –, +, :, /, (, ), space

Standard formatting characters. Each appears as specified in the custom numeric format.

$#.000 500.5 $500.500

% Multiplies value by 100 and adds percent sign.

##% .25 25%

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Columns & Rows

• What is maximum row height?

• AutoFormat

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Conditional Formatting

• Examine CondForm.xls• Find Conditional

Formatting- Edit>GoTo> special…

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Page Breaks

• Page Break Preview

Workbook Organization

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Understand Locking and Protection• Format>Cells>Protection

tab• All cells initially locked• Add protection to invoke

locking selected cells

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Protecting Workbook

• Structure-cannot insert, delete…worksheets

• Windows-prevent resizing

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Protecting Worksheets

• Prevent inadvertent changes to formulas…

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Worksheet Tabs

• Add names• Change tab colors

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InterWorksheet References

• Examine SalesSum.xls

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Inter Workbook References

• Examine SalesLnk.xls

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Shared Workbooks

• Create one on \\store\classes\200900..\shared

• Experiment with settings, Tools>Share Workbook…

• Create shared workbook on Portal, My Site

Customizing Excel

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Custom Views

• For current workbook• Save time• View>Custom Views…

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Printing

• Examine tabs in File>Page Setup…

• Scaling, Header/Footer, Print titles, Gridlines, Row and column headings, comments

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Panes

• Freeze• Split

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Options

• Calculation-F9, Manual, Iteration

• Formulas-R1C1 reference• Custom Lists• Security-Digital

Signatures

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Add-Ins, .xla, .xll

• Provide special functionality– Analysis Toolpak– Analysis Toolpak-VBA– Solver

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Add-Ins

• Create your own• See MSDN

Formulas and Functions

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Formulas vs Results

• Toggle using Ctrl + ~– Formula vs Values

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Relative, Absolute and Mixed References• Examine Log.xls from

Companion Content• Highlight formula bar,

cycle references using F4• Do exercise in book,

Building a Formula

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Operator Precedence

• Search Help!• Parentheses to override!

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Built-In Functions

• Formulas>Insert Function…

• 200 functions by category• Examine arguments

– Note required, optional

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Function ErrorsTable 26-3. Common Error Values in Excel Formulas

Error Value

Description

#DIV/0! You’re dividing by zero in this formula. Verify that no cell references refer to blank cells.

#NA You might have omitted a function argument. No value is available.

#NAME? You’re using a name in this formula that hasn’t been defined in the workbook. (See the next section, “Using Names in Functions.”)

#NULL! In a formula, you referred to the intersection of two ranges that don’t intersect.

#NUM! Your function arguments might be out of range or otherwise invalid, or an iterative function you’re using might not have computed long enough to reach a solution. (Entering a rough answer in the Guess argument might reduce the number of iterations Excel needs.)

#REF! Your formula includes range references that have been deleted.

#VALUE! Your formula is using a text entry as an argument.

###### Your calculation results were too wide to fit in the cell. Increase the column width.

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Named Ranges

• Simplify Formulas• Formulas>Name Manager• Review section material

carefully, important!

Charts

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Charts

• Insert>Chart• Examine SalesSum.xls

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Chart Planning

• Data set?• Most other options can be

changed later

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Chart Formatting

• Review options, choices• Examine SalesSum.xls

Lists, Filters, PivotTables

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Lists

• Examine Pivot.xls• Provided guidelines follow

database theory• Note use of data entry

forms• Review Sorting options

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AutoFilter

• Use Pivot.xls, set AutoFilter

• Set up Custom AutoFilter

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List Subtotals

• Note levels• Note function subtotals

– Sum, Count, Average…

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Converting Lists to .mdb

• Why? Excel has limitations

• Simple to do, use Access, File>Open

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PivotTables, PivotCharts

• Data Analysis and Organization

• Experiment with the Wizard using Pivot.xls

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Lists in SharePoint

• Create list with Pivot.xls• Save to WSU portal

Business Analysis

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Goal Seek

• Examine GoalSeek.xls

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Solver

• Examine Solver.xls• Make sure to install Solver

Add-In– Office Button>Excel

Options>Add-Ins…>click Go…

• Named Ranges simplifies understanding

• Follow book example

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Scenario Manager for What-If

• Examine Scenario.xls • Scenarios for Best

Case/Worst Case– Scenario reports-Summary

Web Publishing and XML

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Excel Web Page

• Be aware of feature limitations

• Static vs dynamic– .html snapshot– .xls file, requires IE 4.01+

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Excel Web Page

• Publish Pivot.xls to your web site– Browse to and try to open it– Try to use Solver– Try to use Goal Seek

• What are the benefits?

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Excel on the Web

• Web Query– http://moneycentral.msn.co

m/scripts/webquote.dll

• Get Data– Data>From Web

• Modify Data– Data>Connections

• Data refreshed when workbook is opened

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XML Data

• XML is a universal, open, nonproprietary, text-based format that is rapidly becoming the common medium for data exchange

• Use Inventory.xml