The Excel Interface

OFFICE BUTTON & RIBBON

In Excel 2007, the Office button replaces the familiar File menu. Click to reveal the New, Open, Save, Print and Close options.

The familiar menus and toolbars have also been replaced. Seven tabs are displayed across the top-left of the window. When you select a tab, a number of options will be displayed as buttons with text labels and picture icons for easy identification. The tabs and their options are known as the Ribbon. The options are organized under the tabs in groups of related features. You can expand the groups by clicking the arrow in the right of the group box.

HOME TAB

The Home tab contains the most common text editing tools used in Excel.

SHORTCUT MENU

The most common Excel commands and functions can be accessed quickly by using the shortcut menu. To access this feature, simply right-click the element you wish to edit if you are using a PC, or control-click the element you wish to edit if you are using a Mac. The options displayed will vary depending on the element you have selected.

SPREADSHEET BASICS

Each Excel file is a workbook that can hold many worksheets. The worksheet is a grid of columns (designated by letters) and rows (designated by numbers). The letters of the columns are indicated in the blue buttons across the top of the worksheet. The numbers of the rows are indicated in the blue buttons down the left of the worksheet. The intersection of a column and a row is called a cell. You can input your data into the cells. Cells can contain text, numbers, or mathematical formulas for automatic calculations. Each cell on the spreadsheet has a cell address that is the column letter followed by the row number.

Adding a Worksheet

By default, three worksheets are included in each Excel workbook. You can access the different worksheets by clicking the worksheet tabs just above the status bar.

To add a new worksheet, click the Insert Worksheet tab, to the right of the existing worksheet tabs.

Renaming a Worksheet

To rename a worksheet tab, follow these steps:

1. Right-click the tab you want to rename if you are using a PC, or control-click the tab you want to rename if you are using a Mac. A shortcut menu will open.
2. Click Rename from the shortcut menu.
3. Type the new name.
4. Press <Enter>.