Rudy's Tips on Ten Common Spreadsheet Terms Plus One More

Ten Common Spreadsheet Terms Plus One More
Here is a quick list of 10 of the most common Spreadsheet terms: A handy tool for those new to using a spreadsheet program like Excel or Microsoft Works, Open Office or Libre.
1. Active Cell
In an Excel worksheet, each small rectangle or box is known as a cell.
The active cell is the cell surrounded by a black border. The black border is referred to as the active cell highlight
Data can only be entered into the active cell.
Even if more than one cell is selected, there is still only one active cell.
Use the mouse pointer or the arrow keys on the keyboard to move the active cell highlight from one cell to another.
It is also known As the Current Cell.
2. Cell Reference
A cell reference identifies the location a cell or group of cells in the spreadsheet.
A cell reference consists of the column letter and the row number that intersect at the cell's location. Note that when listing a cell reference, the column letter is always listed first.
The current cell reference can always be found in the Name Box (see below).
In some spreadsheet programs, a cell reference is referred to as a cell address.
3. Data
Data is information that is stored in a spreadsheet program.
Data is stored in the individual cells of a worksheet. Only one piece of data is stored in each cell.
In addition to being stored in the spreadsheet, the data can be used in calculations, displayed in graphs, or sorted and filtered to find specific information.
There are three types of data in Excel: Open Office or Libre. values, labels, and dates/times.
4. Formula
A spreadsheet formula is a mathematical equation that will calculate a result.
Examples of simple formulas: = A3 - C6 / D2 or = ( B4 + B5 ) * E7
In spreadsheet formulas, normally we use the cell reference of the data rather than the data itself.
In Excel, Open Office or Libre. Formulas begin with an equal ( = ) sign.
5. Function
A function is a preset formula.
Like formulas, functions in Excel Open Office or Libre. begin with the equal sign ( = ) followed by the function’s name and its arguments.
The function name tells Excel Open Office or Libre. what calculation to perform. The arguments are contained inside round brackets and tell Excel Open Office or Libre.what data or other information to use in the calculation.
For example, the SUM function is one of the most commonly used functions in Excel. Open Office or Libre. It is used to add together the data in selected cells. The SUM function is written as -
= SUM ( D1 : D6 )
Here the function adds the contents of cells D1 to D6 and stores the answer in cell D7.
6. Name Box
The Name Box is located next to the formula bar above the worksheet area.
The Name Box displays the cell reference of the active cell.
It will also show if a name has been assigned to a cell or range of cells.
The Name Box can also be used to assign names to cells or ranges of cells.
7. Formula Bar
Formula bar in Excel is located next to the name box above the worksheet area.
The formula bar displays the data or formula stored in the active cell.
It can also be used to enter or edit a formula, a function, or data in a cell.
8. Range
A range is a group of cells in a worksheet that have been selected or highlighted. When cells have been selected they are surrounded by a black outline or border.
Using the mouse, keyboard or name box, a number of cells can be selected to create a range. Commands executed by Excel will affect the entire range.
A range is identified by the cell references of the cells in the upper left and lower right corners of the range. These two references are separated by a colon (:) which tells Excel to include all the cells between these start and end points.
An example of a range of adjacent cells would be B5:D10.
9. Worksheet
A worksheet is a single page or sheet in an Excel spreadsheet.
By default, there are three worksheets per file.
Switching between worksheets is done by clicking on the sheet tab at the bottom of the screen.
10. Ribbon (Excel 2007 & 2010)
The Ribbon is the strip of buttons and icons located above the work area in Excel 2007 and 2010.
The Ribbon replaces the menus and toolbars found in earlier versions of Excel.
Above the Ribbon are a number of tabs, such as Home, Insert, and Page Layout. Clicking on a tab displays the options located in this section of the ribbon.
11. Auto fill
Auto fill is a very handy utility to use in your spreadsheet and is very easy to use. For data that falls in a “serial” category such as month names, days of the week, and consecutive numbers and dates, for example can be entered quickly using the auto fill command. Most spreadsheets recognizes certain kinds of serial data and enters it for you as part of the auto fill feature, instead of having to fill in the data one item at a time, you can enter it all at once by dragging the mouse, follow these steps to “autofill” cells.
1. Click the cell that is first in the series, for example, if you intend to list the days of the week in consecutive cells, click where the first day is to go
2. Enter the first number, date, or list item in the series.
3. Move to the adjacent cell and enter the second number, date, or list item in the series
If you want to use the same number or text in adjacent cells, it isn’t necessary to take this step, but your spreadsheet needs the first and second items in the case of series so it can tell how much to increase or decrease the amount or time period in each cell. For example, entering 5 and 10 tells your spreadsheet to increase the number by 5 so the next cell is 15.
4. Select the cell or cells you just entered data in
5. Click the autofill handle and start dragging in the direction in which you want the data to appear. The autofill is the little black square in the lower right corner of the selected cell(s). Finding it can be difficult. Carefully move the mouse pointer over the lower right corner of the cell, and when you see the mouse pointer change into a black cross, left click and hold and start dragging. As you drag the data will appear in a pop up box.