THE 11 MOST IMPORTANT EXCEL FEATURES - TECHNOLOGY - 2024

The most common and outstanding features of Excel are its presentation in grids called cells, its functions for automating calculations with numerous formulas, and the ability to create graphical presentations.

Developed by the Microsoft company in the mid-1980s, it is an electronic spreadsheet program for computers and other similar devices, used for storing, organizing and manipulating data.

The handling -at least basic- of Excel has become an almost mandatory requirement of the Curriculum Vitae of anyone who wishes to be hired for a conventional job; and more than an extra skill, knowing how Excel works is a must.

It is probably the most important software in any workplace that uses computers and is one of the most used programs by companies, businesses and small businesses, especially in the accounting area.

Its functions as a spreadsheet allow many facilities to keep track of financial activities, as well as its options to organize the information, both numerical and alphabetical data for later presentation in reports, balance sheets, tables and graphs.

Excel is part of the Microsoft Office software package, along with other programs such as Word and Power Point.

Whether for office work, small and medium business, school or academic work, or simply for casual use, Microsoft Excel functionality is reported worldwide as the easiest and most efficient to use.

Basic features about Excel

1- Cells

The checked box is a cell, specifically C4, since it coincides with column C and row 4.

It is a two-dimensional array of intersecting columns and rows that forms the famous and well-known Excel presentation grid. The information is entered into the cells, which is the small rectangle where each row and column meet.

The columns are arranged vertically and identified by letters - from left to right - in the guide row located at the top.

The rows are laid out horizontally and numbered cardinally - top to bottom - in the leading column on the left.

In this way, each cell is easily identifiable with the letter and number of the corresponding column and row.

With a simple click on the desired cell, Excel allows you to select to start entering both letters and numbers.

2- Worksheet

At the bottom we find 3 worksheets.

It is the name given to the complete grid sheet where all the cells are. The latest versions of the program handle 1,048,576 rows and 16,348 columns, from 'A' to the last one identified with the letters 'XFD'.

The worksheets are identified in the lower left with some labels that can be renamed according to the user's needs.

3- Workbooks

Workbook titled as 'Lifeder'

It is the common name of Excel files which can contain several worksheets. To switch between worksheets, just select the labels located at the bottom and left of the program screen.

Traditionally, workbooks were stored in files with the extension '.XLS', but since the 2007 version the extension changed to '.XLSX'.

Newer versions can still open files with an old extension, but if not, a compatibility pack must be installed.

4- Ribbons of options

Inside the green box we find the Start menu ribbon.

Since the 2007 version, the Microsoft Office suite programs have replaced the traditional menu with ribbons with options arranged in icons. They are a kind of visual menu where the options are kept open.

Each ribbon contains a series of functions related to characteristic icons. For example, the "Start" ribbon has the most common options such as font type, color, and size; The "Insert" ribbon contains the functions of inserting tables, tables, images, among others.

5-

Excel offers a series of more complex and specialized default functions that can be added to formulas, such as mathematical and trigonometric operations such as subtraction, sine, and cosine; financial such as discounts and fees; and other statistical, referential and logical functions.

There can be only one formula in each cell, but each formula can contain multiple functions.

7- Graphics

The data can be converted into graphs.

Excel allows you to visually present the data in a worksheet with different types of graphs.

Depending on the purpose, the program offers bar, pie or pie graphs, line graphs, area graphs and XY scatter graphs.

8- Excel tables

It is a tool for structural storage of tabular data in a selection of columns and rows that the program maintains independent of the worksheet, for later management by the user.

9- Pivot tables

Also called pivot tables, it allows the analysis of large amounts of data within worksheets and then presents them in complex reports or tables without the need to write formulas.

10- Macros

They are small programs that are written in the Visual Basic programming language or "VBA" (Visual Basic for Applications) that help to automate processes and operations in worksheets.

It is a feature for advanced users that allows programming connectivity in databases, doing analytics, forms, algorithms, filters, web searches, among others.

11- Display mode

Different Excel display options.

Excel allows up to three different types of visualization in each spreadsheet to favor the comfort of each user. To modify it it is necessary to go to the bottom of Excel on the right. These can be divided into three possible views:

- Normal. It is the one that appears by default, showing an unlimited number of columns and cells.

- Page design. Divide the spreadsheet based on the number of pages you have.

- Page break. It allows a zoom out in order to show you the spreadsheet in summary mode.

In all views there is a zoom bar to zoom in and out to suit the user's needs.

References

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5. Top 10 Excel Features. Recovered from analystcave.com
6. Ted French (2016). What is Microsoft Excel and What Would I Use it for? ThoughtCo. Recovered from thoughtco.com.
7. Duygu Yılmaz (2017). What is so good about Excel? Recovered from www.quora.com.