Page 46 - Excel 2007 Bible

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Introducing Excel
his chapter serves as an introductory overview of Excel 2007. If you’re
already familiar with a previous version of Excel, reading this chapter is IN THIS CHAPTER
Tstill a good idea. Excel 2007 is different from every previous version — Understanding what Excel is
very different.
used for
Learning the parts of Excel’s
What Is Excel Good For? window
Excel, as you probably know, is the world’s most widely-used spreadsheet program, Introducing the Ribbon user
and is part of the Microsoft Office suite. Other spreadsheet programs are available, interface, shortcut menus, and
but Excel is by far the most popular and has become the world standard. dialog boxes
Much of the appeal of Excel is due to the fact that it’s so versatile. Excel’s forte, Navigating Excel worksheets
of course, is performing numerical calculations, but Excel is also very useful for
non-numerical applications. Here are just a few of the uses for Excel: Introducing Excel with a quick
hands-on session
n Number crunching: Create budgets, analyze survey results, and
perform just about any type of financial analysis you can think of.
n Creating charts: Create a wide variety of highly customizable charts.
n Organizing lists: Use the row-and-column layout to store lists
efficiently.
n Accessing other data: Import data from a wide variety of sources.
n Creating graphics and diagrams: Use Shapes and the new SmartArt
to create professional-looking diagrams.
n Automating complex tasks: Perform a tedious task with a single
mouse click with Excel’s macro capabilities.

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