A quick lesson in functions and formatting in Microsoft Excel

2.  Functions – a prewritten formula that is built
into excel
 How to verify a formula
 Adding borders
 Formatting numbers and text
 Using conditional formatting – creating a rule
that says if something happens then certain
formatting will occur to a cell
 Review of changing widths and heights of
columns and rows
 Adding headers and footers

3.  To create multiple lines in a cell the user
must press ALT+ENTER
 Another way to make
multiple line in cell is to
right click cell | select format cell | click
alignment tab | check box that say wrap text
 To make columns wider place cursor on line
between columns and double-click or click
and drag (rows are the same)

4.  The power of excel is being able to assign
formulas to a cell
 A function is a prewritten formula in excel
 A user should use cell references instead of
numbers whenever possible (=C4+C5, instead of
234+ 278)
 A formula always begins with an equal (=) sign.
This tells excel that a computation is needed.
 A circular reference occurs when a formula
contains a reference back to itself
 Excel often sees this as an error and will display
#REF!

5.  A function in excel uses arguments.
 In the function =Average(C4:C12)
 =Average is the function
 C4:C12 is the argument
 It is always best to use an existing function, if
possible, in Excel instead of typing in a
formula
 Excel follows the order or operations when
doing compound formulas:
 Negation (-), Percentages (%), Exponentiations (^),
Multiplications (*) and Divisions (/), Additions (+)
and Subtractions (-)

6.  When entering formulas it is best to use cell
references as mentioned before
 Using the point and click method works best
to enter these cell references
 Click in the cell where the formulas will be and
type the = sign
 Click the first cell in the formula
 Then type the operator to be used
 Then click the next cell in the formula
 Repeat steps as needed
 Once formulas are entered use Fill handle to
copy – will save time and possible errors

7.  Three of the most often used functions is
average, minimum, and maximum so excel
made these commands part of the AutoSum
button
 Two different ways to insert these functions:
 Make the cell where the answer is going to be
active
 Begin typing the function and a menu will
pop-up then select the function
 Or select Average from the AutoSum drop down –
Excel will suggest a range that can be changed
 In either case above the user would then select
the range to be averaged

8.  A third way to insert one of these functions
or any functions is to click the Insert
Function Button to the left of the name bar
Using the Insert Function box is
easy: you type in what
calculation is to be done, select
a category such as statistical,
financial, or all and then scroll
through the results double-
clicking on the desired function
The user then enters the
argument and Excel will provide
the results

9.  Range Finder allows users to check which
cells are referenced in a formula. This is a
great way to find errors
 To start the Range finder
simple double-click the
cell that contains the function or formula
 To exit the range finder press the ESC key
(top left of keyboard)
Cells are color coded to make it easy

10.  Theme – predefined set
of colors, fonts, chart
styles, and fill effects
that can be applied to an
entire worksheet.
 Click Page layout tab |
Click Themes

11.  Coloring the background of a cell or a range
of cells can be done by using the paint
bucket in the Font group of the Home Ribbon
 Click the dropdown arrow to the right of the
bucket to choose a color
 Borders can be added to individual cells or
ranges of cells
 Select the cell or range to have a border added
 Click the border button in the font group of the
Home Ribbon (to the left of the paint bucket)

12.  There are several ways to
format the data in a cell or a
range of cells
 1st – use the ribbon
 2nd – select the cell or range |
right click on it | click format
cells | select the appropriate
tab
 3rd – CTRL+1 will bring up the
format cell window (same as
above)

13.  Accounting format puts a dollar sign on the
number(s) in the active cell or range of cells
 There are two types of dollar sign
 Fixed dollar sign – far left of the cell
 Floating dollar sign – appears immediately to the
left of the 1st digit
 Comma style inserts a comma
every three numerals and
rounds to the nearest hundredth unless
otherwise directed
Fixed Floating

14.  Excel allows a user to apply formatting that
appears only when the value in a cell meets
conditions specified by the user
 The condition is made up of two values and a
relational operator
 The condition is either true or false for the cell or
range
 The conditional formatting button is located on
the home ribbon
 To set a rule the user should select New Rule on the
conditional formatting menu
 The New Formatting Rule Window gives the user
options as to what cells are to be formatted and
how

15.  To adjust the size of a column or row place the curser
on the line in between the rows or columns then drag
or double click
 Double clicking will BEST FIT the information in the
cells
 BEST FIT means that the width of the column will increase or
decrease so that the widest entry will fit in the column
 A user can resize multiple columns or rows by selecting
them – Click on the column or row header and drag to
select or click once and hold down the control key to
select multiple non-adjacent rows or columns
 If a number comes up as ##### within a cell this means
the column is to small and needs to be resized

16.  To add a header to a worksheet
click the page layout view button
(bottom right) | click in the header
box | type name | click a cell in
the spreadsheet | click the normal
view
 User will not see header or footer
until viewing the print preview or
actually printing
 A second way to add header /
Footer is to click File | click Print |
On the bottom center of page click
Page Setup |Click header footer
tab | click custom header | add
information desired

17.  Values Version (Results) – this version show
the values or results of the work being done
 Formulas Version – this version shows the
formulas and functions that have been
entered
 To display the formulas the user must press
CTRL+ACCENT MARK (to the left of the 1 on
keyboard)
Value View
Formula View