Taking a very simple view, Excel is a tool that allows you to enter quantitative data into an electronic spreadsheet to apply one or many mathematical computations. These computations ultimately convert that quantitative data into information. The information produced in Excel can be used to make decisions in both professional and personal contexts. For example, employees can use Excel to determine how much inventory to buy for a clothing retailer, how much medication to administer to a patient, or how much money to spend to stay within a budget. With respect to personal decisions, you can use Excel to determine how much money you can spend on a house, how much you can spend on car lease payments, or how much you need to save to reach your retirement goals. We will demonstrate how you can use Excel to make these decisions and many more throughout this text.
Figure 1 shows a completed Excel worksheet that will be constructed in this chapter. The information shown in this worksheet is top-line sales data for a hypothetical merchandise retail company. The worksheet data can help this retailer determine the number of salespeople needed for each month, how much inventory is needed to satisfy sales, and what types of products should be purchased. Notice that the embedded chart makes it very easy to see which months have the highest unit sales.
Figure 1. Example of an Excel Worksheet with Embedded Chart
Starting Excel
Follow-along file: Not needed for this skill
The following steps will guide you in starting the Excel application. Note that these steps along with Figure 2 relate to the Windows 7 operating system, which is very similar to the Windows Vista operating system.
Click the Start button on the lower left corner of your computer screen.
Click the All Programs arrow at the bottom left of the Start menu.
Click the Microsoft Office folder on the Start menu. This will open the list of Microsoft Office applications.
Click the Microsoft Excel 2010 option. This will start the Excel application.
Figure 2. Start Menu
The Excel Workbook
Follow-along file: Not needed for this skill
Once Excel is started, a blank workbook will open on your screen. A workbook is an Excel file that contains one or more worksheets (sometimes referred to as spreadsheets). Excel will assign a file name to the workbook, such as Book1, Book2, Book3, and so on, depending on how many new workbooks are opened. Figure 3 shows a blank workbook after starting Excel.
Figure 3. Blank Workbook
Your workbook should already be maximized (or shown at full size) once Excel is started, as shown in Figure 3. However, if your screen looks like Figure 4 after starting Excel, you should click the Maximize button, as shown in the figure.
Explanation:
More of this: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/santaana-informationsystems/chapter/unit-1-excel-fundamental/
Answers & Comments
Answer:
Taking a very simple view, Excel is a tool that allows you to enter quantitative data into an electronic spreadsheet to apply one or many mathematical computations. These computations ultimately convert that quantitative data into information. The information produced in Excel can be used to make decisions in both professional and personal contexts. For example, employees can use Excel to determine how much inventory to buy for a clothing retailer, how much medication to administer to a patient, or how much money to spend to stay within a budget. With respect to personal decisions, you can use Excel to determine how much money you can spend on a house, how much you can spend on car lease payments, or how much you need to save to reach your retirement goals. We will demonstrate how you can use Excel to make these decisions and many more throughout this text.
Figure 1 shows a completed Excel worksheet that will be constructed in this chapter. The information shown in this worksheet is top-line sales data for a hypothetical merchandise retail company. The worksheet data can help this retailer determine the number of salespeople needed for each month, how much inventory is needed to satisfy sales, and what types of products should be purchased. Notice that the embedded chart makes it very easy to see which months have the highest unit sales.
Figure 1. Example of an Excel Worksheet with Embedded Chart
Starting Excel
Follow-along file: Not needed for this skill
The following steps will guide you in starting the Excel application. Note that these steps along with Figure 2 relate to the Windows 7 operating system, which is very similar to the Windows Vista operating system.
Click the Start button on the lower left corner of your computer screen.
Click the All Programs arrow at the bottom left of the Start menu.
Click the Microsoft Office folder on the Start menu. This will open the list of Microsoft Office applications.
Click the Microsoft Excel 2010 option. This will start the Excel application.
Figure 2. Start Menu
The Excel Workbook
Follow-along file: Not needed for this skill
Once Excel is started, a blank workbook will open on your screen. A workbook is an Excel file that contains one or more worksheets (sometimes referred to as spreadsheets). Excel will assign a file name to the workbook, such as Book1, Book2, Book3, and so on, depending on how many new workbooks are opened. Figure 3 shows a blank workbook after starting Excel.
Figure 3. Blank Workbook
Your workbook should already be maximized (or shown at full size) once Excel is started, as shown in Figure 3. However, if your screen looks like Figure 4 after starting Excel, you should click the Maximize button, as shown in the figure.
Explanation:
More of this: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/santaana-informationsystems/chapter/unit-1-excel-fundamental/