“Data Analsis Using Software Tools(MS-Excel)”

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment for the Award of the Degree of

Masters of Business Administration(2019-2021)

Submitted By:
Yashika Sharma

University PRN :
1928100136

BHARATI VIDYAPEETH DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY, PUNE

SCHOOL OF DISTANCE EDUCATION, PUNE
Academic Study Center - BVIMR, New Delhi
An ISO 9001:2008 Certified Institute
NAAC Accredited Grade “A” University
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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I have taken efforts in this project. However, it would not have been possible without the kind support
and help of many individuals and organization. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all of them.

I am highly indebted to Mr. Yashwant Kumar for their guidance and constant supervision as well for
providing necessary information regarding the project & also for their support in completing the project.

I also would like to thank my sister and my parents who have helped and encouraged me throughout
the working of the project.

Last but not the least I would like to thank the Almighty for always helping me.

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 Student’s Declaration

I Yashika Sharma, a student of MBA 1st semester would like to declare that the project report entitled
“Data Analysis Using Software Tools (MS-Excel)” submitted to Bharti Vidyapeeth University
Pune, School of Distance Education Pune, Academic Study Centre BVIMR New Delhi in partial
fulfillment of the requirement for the award of the degree.

It is an original work carried out by under the guidance of Mr. Yashwant Kumar.

All respected guides, faculty member and other sources have been properly acknowledged and the
report contains no plagiarism.

To the best of my knowledge and belief the matter embodied in this project is a genuine work done
by me and it has been neither submitted for assessment to the University nor to any other University
for the fulfillment of the requirement of the course of study.

Yashika Sharma

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 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Microsoft Excel is perhaps the most versatile and widely used of all the Office applications. No matter
which career path you choose, you will likely need to use Excel to accomplish your professional
objectives, some of which may occur daily. This chapter provides an overview of the Excel application
along with an orientation for accessing the commands and features of an Excel workbook.
Taking a very simple view, Excel is a tool that allows you to enter quantitative data into an electronic
spreadsheet to apply one or many mathematical computations. These computations ultimately convert
that quantitative data into information. The information produced in Excel can be used to make
decisions in both professional and personal contexts. For example, employees can use Excel to
determine how much inventory to buy for a clothing retailer, how much medication to administer to a
patient, or how much money to spend to stay within a budget. With respect to personal decisions, you
can use Excel to determine how much money you can spend on a house, how much you can spend on
car lease payments, or how much you need to save to reach your retirement goals. We will demonstrate
how you can use Excel to make these decisions and many more throughout this text.

Excel is an incredibly powerful tool for getting meaning out of vast amounts of data. But it also works
really well for simple calculations and tracking almost any kind of information. The key for unlocking
all that potential is the grid of cells. Cells can contain numbers, text or formulas. You put data in your
cells and group them in rows and columns. That allows you to add up your data, sort and filter it, put it
in tables, and build great-looking charts. Let’s go through the basic steps to get you started

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 TABLE OF CONTENT P. No.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

PREFACE

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

CHAPTER-1: INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER-2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER-3: FINDINGS & ANALYSIS

CHAPTER-4: CONCLUSION

CHAPTER-5: RECOMMENDATIONS & SUGGESTIONS

CHAPTER-6: LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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 CHAPTER-1
INTRODUCTION

MS- Excel

Microsoft Excel (or Excel) is an application that allows us to do calculations with

numbers and present reports that often contain numbers. Though Excel is an application
for working with numbers we can also prepare text in Excel. Excel is referred to as a
spreadsheet application.
With Excel we can:
 Organize and store data
 Do simple and complex calculations
 Analyze data to understand it
 Format and present reports

Once a structure is set up, with formulas Excel allows us to do calculations for us when
we input new data into the spreadsheet. With Excel we can present data in graphs,
charts and tables and we can take information from Excel and easily place it into a
MSWord document. We will use our project to learn about some of the things that we
can do with Excel.

The Excel 2007 window

As in Word 2007, the old menu system has been replaced by the Ribbon and the Office button. The
title bar displays the name of your current workbook. Tabs at the bottom of the screen identify the
different worksheets available to you – I’ll show you a little later how to give them meaningful names.

Macro programming

 VBA programming

The Windows version of Excel supports programming through Microsoft's Visual Basic for
Applications (VBA), which is a dialect of Visual Basic. Programming with VBA allows spreadsheet
manipulation that is awkward or impossible with standard spreadsheet techniques. Programmers may
write code directly using the Visual Basic Editor (VBE), which includes a window for writing code,
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debugging code, and code module organization environment. The user can implement numerical
methods as well as automating tasks such as formatting or data organization in VBA and guide the
calculation using any desired intermediate results reported back to the spreadsheet.

VBA was removed from Mac Excel 2008, as the developers did not believe that a timely release would
allow porting the VBA engine natively to Mac OS X. VBA was restored in the next version, Mac Excel
2011, although the build lacks support for ActiveX objects, impacting some high level developer tools.

A common and easy way to generate VBA code is by using the Macro Recorder.

The Macro Recorder records actions of the user and generates VBA code in the form of a macro. These
actions can then be repeated automatically by running the macro. The macros can also be linked to
different trigger types like keyboard shortcuts a command button or a graphic. The actions in the macro
can be executed from these trigger types or from the generic toolbar options. The VBA code of the
macro can also be edited in the VBE. Certain features such as loop functions and screen prompt by
their own properties, and some graphical display items, cannot be recorded but must be entered into the
VBA module directly by the programmer. Advanced users can employ user prompts to create an
interactive program, or react to events such as sheets being loaded or changed.

Macro Recorded code may not be compatible with Excel versions. Some code that is used in Excel
2010 cannot be used in Excel 2003. Making a Macro that changes the cell colors and making changes
to other aspects of cells may not be backward compatible.

VBA code interacts with the spreadsheet through the Excel Object Model, a vocabulary identifying
spreadsheet objects, and a set of supplied functions or methods that enable reading and writing to the
spreadsheet and interaction with its users (for example, through custom toolbars or command
bars and message boxes). User-created VBA subroutines execute these actions and operate like macros
generated using the macro recorder, but are more flexible and efficient.

 Charts

Excel supports charts, graphs, or histograms generated from specified groups of cells. The generated
graphic component can either be embedded within the current sheet, or added as a separate object.

These displays are dynamically updated if the content of cells change. For example, suppose that the
important design requirements are displayed visually; then, in response to a user's change in trial values

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for parameters, the curves describing the design change shape, and their points of intersection shift,
assisting the selection of the best design.

 Add-ins

Additional features are available using add-ins. Several are provided with Excel, including:

 Analysis Tool Pak: Provides data analysis tools for statistical and engineering analysis
(includes analysis of variance and regression analysis)
 Analysis Tool Pak VBA: VBA functions for Analysis Tool Pak
 Euro Currency Tools: Conversion and formatting for euro currency
 Solver Add-In: Tools for optimization and equation solving

History of Excel

From its first version Excel supported end user programming of macros (automation of repetitive tasks)
and user defined functions (extension of Excel's built-in function library). In early versions of Excel
these programs were written in a macro language whose statements had formula syntax and resided in
the cells of special purpose macro sheets (stored with file extension .XLM in Windows.) XLM was the
default macro language for Excel through Excel 4.0. Beginning with version 5.0 Excel recorded macros
in VBA by default but with version 5.0 XLM recording was still allowed as an option. After version
5.0 that option was discontinued. All versions of Excel, including Excel 2010 are capable of running
an XLM macro, though Microsoft discourages their use

Data Storage & Communications

 Number of rows and columns

Versions of Excel up to 7.0 had a limitation in the size of their data sets of 16K rows.Versions 8.0
through 11.0 could handle 64K rows and 256 columns. Version 12.0 onwards, including the current
Version 16.x, can handle over 1M rows, and 16384 columns.

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  File formats

Microsoft Excel up until 2007 version used a proprietary binary file format called Excel Binary File
Format (.XLS) as its primary format. Excel 2007 uses Office Open XML as its primary file format, an
XML-based format that followed after a previous XML-based format called "XML Spreadsheet"
("XMLSS"), first introduced in Excel 2002.

Although supporting and encouraging the use of new XML-based formats as replacements, Excel 2007
remained backwards-compatible with the traditional, binary formats. In addition, most versions of
Microsoft Excel can read CSV, DBF, SYLK, DIF, and other legacy formats. Support for some older
file formats was removed in Excel 2007. The file formats were mainly from DOS-based programs.

 Binary

OpenOffice.org has created documentation of the Excel format. Since then Microsoft made the Excel
binary format specification available to freely download

 XML Spreadsheet

The XML Spreadsheet format introduced in Excel 2002 is a simple, XML based format missing some
more advanced features like storage of VBA macros. Though the intended file extension for this format
is .xml, the program also correctly handles XML files with .xls extension. This feature is widely used
by third-party applications (e.g. MySQL Query Browser) to offer "export to Excel" capabilities without
implementing binary file format.

 Current file extensions

Microsoft Excel 2007, along with the other products in the Microsoft Office 2007 suite, introduced new
file formats. The first of these (.xlsx) is defined in the Office Open XML(OOXML) specification.

If you open an Excel 97-2003 workbook, it automatically opens in Compatibility Mode. To take
advantage of the new features of Excel 2010, you can save the workbook to an Excel 2010 file format.
However, you also have the option to continue to work in Compatibility Mode, which retains the
original file format for backward compatibility.

The following tables describe the file formats that are supported in Excel.

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 Format Extension Description

The default Excel 2007 and later workbook format. In reality

a Zip compressed archive with a directory structure of XML text
Excel .xlsx documents. Functions as the primary replacement for the former binary
Workbook
.xls format, although it does not support Excel macros for security
reasons.

Excel Macro-
enabled .xlsm As Excel Workbook, but with macro support.
Workbook

As Excel Macro-enabled Workbook, but storing information in binary form

Excel Binary rather than XML documents for opening and saving documents more
.xlsb
Workbook quickly and efficiently. Intended especially for very large documents with
tens of thousands of rows, and/or several hundreds of columns.

Excel Macro-
.xltm
A template document that forms a basis for actual workbooks, with macro
enabled
support. The replacement for the old .xlt format.
Template

Excel add-in to add extra functionality and tools. Inherent macro support
Excel Add-in .xlam
because of the file purpose.

 Old file extensions

Format Extension Description

Main spreadsheet format which holds data in worksheets, charts, and

Spreadsheet .xls
macros

Add-in .xla Adds custom functionality; written in VBA

(VBA)

The file extension where Microsoft Excel custom toolbar settings are
Toolbar .xlb
stored.

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 A chart created with data from a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet that only
Chart .xlc saves the chart. To save the chart and spreadsheet save as .XLS. XLC is
not supported in Excel 2007 or in any newer versions of Excel.

Dialog .xld Used in older versions of Excel.

Archive .xlk A backup of an Excel Spreadsheet

Adds custom functionality; written in C++/C, Visual Basic, Fortran, etc. and
Add-in (DLL) .xll
compiled in to a special dynamic-link library

Macro .xlm A macro is created by the user or pre-installed with Excel.

Template .xlt A pre-formatted spreadsheet created by the user or by Microsoft Excel.

A module is written in VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) for Microsoft

Module .xlv
Excel

.DLL
Code written in VBA may access functions in a DLL, typically this is used to
Library
access the Windows API

Workspace .xlw Arrangement of the windows of multiple Workbooks

Versions
Early history
Microsoft originally marketed a spreadsheet program called Multiplan in 1982. Multiplan became very
popular on CP/M systems, but on MS-DOS systems it lost popularity to Lotus 1-2-3. Microsoft released
the first version of Excel for the Macintosh on September 30, 1985, and the first Windows version was
2.05 (to synchronize with the Macintosh version 2.2) in November 1987.[74] Lotus was slow to bring 1-2-3
to Windows and by the early 1990s Excel had started to outsell 1-2-3 and helped Microsoft achieve its
position as a leading PC software developer. This accomplishment solidified Microsoft as a valid
competitor and showed its future of developing GUI software. Microsoft maintained its advantage with
regular new releases, every two years or so.

 Microsoft Windows
Excel 2.0 is the first version of Excel for the Intel platform. Versions prior to 2.0 were only available on the
Apple Macintosh.
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  Excel 2.0 (1987)
The first Windows version was labeled "2" to correspond to the Mac version. This included a run-time
version of Windows.[75]
BYTE in 1989 listed Excel for Windows as among the "Distinction" winners of the BYTE Awards. The
magazine stated that the port of the "extraordinary" Macintosh version "shines", with a user interface as
good as or better than the original.[76]
 Excel 3.0 (1990)
Included toolbars, drawing capabilities, outlining, add-in support, 3D charts, and many more new
features.[75]
 Excel 4.0 (1992)
Introduced auto-fill.[77]
Also, an easter egg in Excel 4.0 reveals a hidden animation of a dancing set of numbers 1 through 3,
representing Lotus 1-2-3, which was then crushed by an Excel logo.[78]
 Excel 5.0 (1993)
With version 5.0, Excel has included Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), a programming language based
on Visual Basic which adds the ability to automate tasks in Excel and to provide user-defined
functions (UDF) for use in worksheets. VBA is a powerful addition to the application and includes a fully
featured integrated development environment (IDE). Macro recording can produce VBA code replicating
user actions, thus allowing simple automation of regular tasks. VBA allows the creation of forms and
in-worksheet controls to communicate with the user. The language supports use (but not creation)
of ActiveX (COM) DLL's; later versions add support for class modules allowing the use of basic object-
oriented programming techniques.
The automation functionality provided by VBA made Excel a target for macro viruses. This caused
serious problems until antivirus products began to detect these viruses. Microsoftbelatedly took steps to
prevent the misuse by adding the ability to disable macros completely, to enable macros when opening a
workbook or to trust all macros signed using a trusted certificate.
Versions 5.0 to 9.0 of Excel contain various Easter eggs, including a "Hall of Tortured Souls", although
since version 10 Microsoft has taken measures to eliminate such undocumented features from their
products.[79]
5.0 was released in a 16-bit x86 version for Windows 3.1 and later in a 32-bit version for NT 3.51
(x86/Alpha/PowerPC)
 Excel 95 (v7.0)

Microsoft Excel 95
Released in 1995 with Microsoft Office for Windows 95, this is the first major version after Excel 5.0, as
there is no Excel 6.0 with all of the Office applications standardizing on the same major version number.

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Internal rewrite to 32-bits. Almost no external changes, but faster and more stable.
 Excel 97 (v8.0)
Included in Office 97 (for x86 and Alpha). This was a major upgrade that introduced the paper clip office
assistant and featured standard VBA used instead of internal Excel Basic. It introduced the now-removed
Natural Language labels.
This version of Excel includes a flight simulator as an Easter Egg.
 Excel 2000 (v9.0)

Microsoft Excel 2000

Included in Office 2000. This was a minor upgrade, but introduced an upgrade to the clipboard where it
can hold multiple objects at once. The Office Assistant, whose frequent unsolicited appearance in Excel
97 had annoyed many users, became less intrusive.
 Excel 2002 (v10.0)
Included in Office XP. Very minor enhancements.
 Excel 2003 (v11.0)
Included in Office 2003. Minor enhancements, most significant being the new Tables.
 Excel 2007 (v12.0)

Microsoft Excel 2007

Included in Office 2007. This release was a major upgrade from the previous version. Similar to other
updated Office products, Excel in 2007 used the new Ribbon menu system. This was different from what
users were used to, and was met with mixed reactions. One study reported fairly good acceptance by
users except highly experienced users and users of word processing applications with a classical WIMP
interface, but was less convinced in terms of efficiency and organisation.[80] However, an online survey
reported that a majority of respondents had a negative opinion of the change, with advanced users being
"somewhat more negative" than intermediate users, and users reporting a self-estimated reduction in
productivity.[81]
Added functionality included the SmartArt set of editable business diagrams. Also added was an
improved management of named variables through the Name Manager, and much improved flexibility in
formatting graphs, which allow (x, y) coordinate labeling and lines of arbitrary weight. Several
improvements to pivot tables were introduced.

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Also like other office products, the Office Open XML file formats were introduced, including .xlsm for a
workbook with macros and .xlsx for a workbook without macros.[82]
Specifically, many of the size limitations of previous versions were greatly increased. To illustrate, the
number of rows was now 1,048,576 (220) and columns was 16,384 (214; the far-right column is XFD). This
changes what is a valid A1 reference versus a named range. This version made more extensive use of
multiple cores for the calculation of spreadsheets; however, VBA macros are not handled in parallel and
XLL add-ins were only executed in parallel if they were thread-safe and this was indicated at registration.
 Excel 2010 (v14.0)

Microsoft Excel 2010 running on Windows 7

Included in Office 2010, this is the next major version after v12.0, as version number 13 was skipped.
Minor enhancements and 64-bit support,[83] including the following:

 Multi-threading recalculation (MTR) for commonly used functions

 Improved pivot tables
 More conditional formatting options
 Additional image editing capabilities
 In-cell charts called sparklines
 Ability to preview before pasting
 Office 2010 backstage feature for document-related tasks
 Ability to customize the Ribbon
 Many new formulas, most highly specialized to improve accuracy[84]
 Excel 2013 (v15.0)
Included in Office 2013, along with a lot of new tools included in this release:

 Improved Multi-threading and Memory Contention

 FlashFill[85]
 Power View[86]
 Power Pivot[87]
 Timeline Slicer[88]
 Windows App
 Inquire[89]
 50 new functions[90]
 Excel 2016 (v16.0)
Included in Office 2016, along with a lot of new tools included in this release:

 Power Query integration

 Read-only mode for Excel
 Keyboard access for Pivot Tables and Slicers in Excel

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 New Chart Types
 Quick data linking in Visio
 Excel forecasting functions
 Support for multi-selection of Slicer items using touch
 Time grouping and Pivot Chart Drill Down
 Excel data cards[91]
 Apple Macintosh

Microsoft Excel for Mac 2011

 1985 Excel 1.0

 1988 Excel 1.5
 1989 Excel 2.2
 1990 Excel 3.0
 1992 Excel 4.0
 1993 Excel 5.0 (part of Office 4.x—Final Motorola 680x0 version[92] and first PowerPC version)
 1998 Excel 8.0 (part of Office 98)
 2000 Excel 9.0 (part of Office 2001)
 2001 Excel 10.0 (part of Office v. X)
 2004 Excel 11.0 (part of Office 2004)
 2008 Excel 12.0 (part of Office 2008)
 2011 Excel 14.0 (part of Office 2011)
 2015 Excel 15.0 (part of Office 2016— Office 2016 for Mac brings the Mac version much closer to
parity with its Windows cousin, harmonizing many of the reporting and high-level developer functions,
while bringing the ribbon and styling into line with its PC counterpart.)[93]
 OS/2
 1989 Excel 2.2
 1990 Excel 2.3
 1991 Excel 3.0

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Application of Excel
Everywhere excel is widely used as a data analysis and financial calculation purpose. There are number of
application of excel, few of them are given as follows:
 Data entry and storage
Excel is better tool for entering data and its storage. One excel worksheet contains maximum of
1048576 rows and 16384 columns, and hence it can be used to store large amount of data.
 Verification of data
Excel provides techniques of verifying entered data using some programming.
 Accounting and budgeting
It is useful in organizing sata using different scenarios. It can also be used to create flow charts with
text, pictures and animation.
 Data analysis
 Today it plays very important role in online business or websites owners. For different purposes like
tracking web visitors, sale of product, customer reviews, behavior of users, event marketing
campaigns, etc.
 Visualization
Using data you can create charts and graphs, those can be useful for presentation, reports, aid in one’s
data analysis.
 Forecasting
For calculating future value excel provides useful tools.
 Goal setting and planning
It is very important from students to businessman for doing routine work, excel provides very easy
ways to doing this with friendly environment.

Tabs & bars in excel

 Tool bar
It contains menu, buttons or combinations of both. It is collection of icons which offers ashortcut to
using a drop down menu. It provides quick shortcuts of common commands.
 Title bar
It is a bar located at top of windows, which displays name of the window/ application and the current
excel document. By default name to excel file is book 1, when we save file and give name to it, then
that name is displayed on title bar.
 Formula bar
It is special toolbar displayed at the top of excel sheet, usually this is shown by symbol fx known as
function symbol. It shows content i.e. formula or value of current cell.
When we enter equal to sign (=) in cell then this bar is activated while writing any formula in the cell=
sign is must, without= sign formula is not considered.
 Ribbon bar
It consist of excel command button for particular current area. There are various tabs on ribbon bar
such as file, home, insert, page layout, formula, data. Review, and view.
 File tab
Fle tab contains various submenus when we click on file tab then following screen is visible, usingit
you can deal with different operations relating to file viz; creating new file, opening existing file,
saving file, saving existing file with another name.
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 Home tab
For doing commn functions this tab is used, like formatting, inserting and delting columns, copying
cell value, pastingit etc.
 Insert tab
This tab is used to insert new objects such as charts, hyperlink, symbols, text etc. into existing
worksheet.
 Page layout tab
This tab is used to see the lok of the worksheet i.e, onscreen and view of the sheet when we print it.
The commands provided under this tab are used to control page margins, page breaks, theme colors
and print area.
 Formula tab
We use Formula tab to insert functions, define the name, create the name range, review the formula,
etc. In ribbon, Formulas tab has very important and most useful functions to make dynamic reports
 Data tab
We use Data tab for the large amount of data.It is useful to import the data by connecting with the
server, and we can import data automatically from web, MS Access etc. And sort & filter are very
helpful options we have in Excel; it makes easy to read vast data.

Data tab

 Review tab
Review tab contains the editing feature, comments, track changes and workbook protection options.
These features make it easy to share the data with the proper information whilst ensuring security of
data.
 View tab
This tab is used to control the view of excel sheet and making easy while viewing the data. This tab is
also useful in preparing worksheet for printing.
 Status bar
Shows all kinds of information, such as status of num-lock, page number, average of numbers that are
selected. You can customize the status bar as per our convienince.

Editing data
In data entry mode, when you move the cursor to a new cell, anything you type replaces the previous
cell contents. Edit mode allow you to amend existing cell contents without having to retype the entire
entry. Note that while you are in edit mode, many of the Ribbon commands are disabled.
Editing cell contents
There are two different ways to enter edit mode: either double-click on the cell whose contents you

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want to edit, or else click to select the cell you want to edit, and then click anywhere in the formula
bar.
 To delete characters, use the [BACKSPACE] or [DEL] key.
 To insert characters, click where you want to insert them, and then type. You can toggle
between insert and overtype mode by pressing the [INSERT] key.
 You can force a line break within the current cell contents by typing [ALT] + [ENTER]. Exit
edit mode by pressing [ENTER].

Inserting or deleting cells

You can insert a new cell above the current active cell, in which case the active cell and those
below it will each move down one row. You can also insert a new cell to the left of the current
active cell, in which case the active cell and those on its right will each move one column to
the right. To insert a cell:
1. Select the cell next to which you want to insert a new cell.
2. On the Home ribbon, find the Cells group and click Insert followed by Insert Cells.

3. A dialog box will open. Click the direction in which you want the surrounding cells to shift.

To delete a cell, do as follows:

1. Select the cell that you want to delete.
2. On the Home ribbon, find the Cells group and click Delete followed by Delete Cells.

3. A dialog box will open. Click the direction in which you want the surrounding cells to shift. You
can also right-click on the active cell and select Insert or Delete on the pop-up menu.

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Formatting data Cell formatting
The icons on the Home ribbon provide you with a variety of formatting options. To apply any of these,
just select the cell or cells that you want to format, and then click the desired icon. Commonly used
formatting attributes include:

The Format Painter allows you to copy formatting attributes from one cell to a range of cells.
1. Select the cell whose formatting attributes you want to copy.
2. Click on the Format Painter icon.
3. Select the cell or range of cells that you want to have the same formatting attributes. The cell values
will remain as before, but their format will change.
Formatting rows and columns
Any of the cell formatting options above can easily be applied to all the cells contained in one or more
rows or columns. Simply select the rows or columns by clicking on the row or column labels, and then
click on the formatting icons that you want to apply.
You may also want to adjust the width of a column:
 To manually adjust the width, click and drag the boundary between two column headings.
 To automatically adjust the width, select the required columns, and then in the Cell group on
the Home ribbon, select Format, Cell Size, Autofit Column Width

 To specify an exact column width, select the columns, and then in the Cell group on
the Home ribbon, select Format, Cell Size, Column Width, and type the value you
want
To adjust the height of a row:
 To manually adjust the height, click and drag the boundary between two row
labels. y To automatically adjust the height, select the required rows, and then
in the Cell group on the Home ribbon, select Format, Cell Size, Autofit Row
Height.
 To set a row or rows to a specific height, select the rows, and then in the Cell
group on the Home ribbon, select Format, Cell Size, Row Height, and type the

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 value that you want.
Hiding rows and columns
If your spreadsheet contains sensitive data that you don’t want displayed on
the screen or included in printouts, then you can hide the corresponding rows
or columns. The cell values can still be used for calculations, but will be
hidden from view.
The easiest way to hide or unhide a row or column is to select the row or
column heading, right-click to view the pop-up menu, and then select Hide or
Unhide.
Alternatively, you can click the Format icon on the Home ribbon, and select
the Hide & Unhide option.

Formulas
Formulas are the key to Excel’s amazing power and versatility! By using a formula, you can find the answer
to virtually any calculation you can think of! In this section I’m going to explain how to construct a formula,
and give you some guidelines to ensure that your formulas work correctly.
Creating a formula
Rule number one: a formula always starts with an equals sign (“=”). This lets Excel know that it’s going to
have to work something out.
In the body of the formula, you’re going to tell Excel what you want it to calculate. You can use all the
standard maths operations, like addition and multiplication, and you can include numbers, cell references, or
built in functions (which are covered in the next section of this manual).
For example, suppose you have a retail business. You buy stock at cost price, and add a 25% markup to
calculate your selling price. VAT must be added to that at 14%. You give a 5% discount to long-standing
customers who pay their accounts promptly. Let’s look at how formulas can make the calculations simple for
you:

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  In column A, the Stock Item labels have just been typed in.
 In column B, the Cost Price values have just been typed in.
 In column C, I’ve used a formula. Cell C2 contains “=B2 * 25%”. This works out 25% of the value in
cell B2 (cost price), and displays the result in cell C2 (markup).
 In column D, I’ve used a formula. Cell D2 contains “=B2 + C2”. This adds the values in cells B2 (cost
price) and C2 (markup), and displays the result in cell D2 (retail price).
 In column E, I’ve used a formula. Cell E2 contains “=D2 * 14%”. This works out 14% of the value in
cell D2 (retail price), and displays the result in cell E2 (VAT).
 In column F, I’ve used a formula. Perhaps by now you can work it our for yourself? Cell F2 contains
“=D2 + E2”. This adds the values in cells D2 (retail price) and E2 (VAT), and displays the result in
cell F2 (selling price).
 In column G, I’ve used a formula. Cell G2 contains “=F2 * 95%”. This works out 95% of the value in
cell F2 (selling price), and displays the result in cell G2 (discounted price).
And the great thing about using formulas in Excel, is that you can copy them just as you do values. So
once you’ve entered all the formulas in row 2 and checked that they are correct, you just need to
1. Select the cells in row 2 that contain your formulas (cells C2 to G2).
2. 2. Move the cursor over the fill handle in the bottom right corner of the selected cells. It will change
shape to a black cross.
3. 3. Hold down the mouse button and drag the selected cells over rows 3 to 5. The values in cells C3 to
G5 are automatically calculated for you! How cool is that

How formulas are evaluated

Now let’s look at some of the rules for creating formulas:
The operators that you need to know are
+ addition
- subtraction
* multiplication
/ division
^ exponentiation (“to the power of”) & to join two text strings together
These operations are evaluated in a particular order of precedence by Excel:
 Operations inside brackets are calculated first
 Exponentiation is calculated second.
 Multiplication and division are calculated third.
 Addition and subtraction are calculated fourth.
 When you have several items at the same level of precedence, they are calculated from left to right.
Let’s look at some examples:
= 10 + 5 * 3 – 7 (result: 10 + 15 – 7 = 18)
= (10 + 5) * 3 – 7 (result: 15 * 3 – 7 = 38)
= (10 + 5) * (3 – 7) (result: 15 * -4 = -60)
If you’re not sure how a formula will be evaluated - use brackets!

Functions
Excel provides a wide range of built-in functions that can be included in your formulas to save you the effort
of having to specify detailed calculations step-by-step. Each function is referred to by a specific name, which
acts as a kind of shorthand for the underlying calculation. Because a function is used inside a formula, you’ll

2
still need to start off with an equals sign to show Excel that a calculation is required. Using AutoSum
Because addition is the most frequently used Excel function, a shortcut has been provided to quickly add a
set of numbers:
1. Select the cell where you want the total to appear.
2. Click on the Sum button on the Home ribbon
. 3. Check that the correct set of numbers has been selected (indicated by a dotted line). If not, then drag to
select a different set of numbers.
4. Press [ENTER] and the total will be calculated.
Basic functions
Some of the most commonly used functions include:
SUM() to calculate the total of a set of numbers
AVERAGE() to calculate the average of a set of numbers
MAX() to calculate the maximum value within a set of numbers
MIN() to calculate the minimum value within a set of numbers
ROUND() to round a set a values to a specified number of decimal places
TODAY () to show the current date
IF() to calculate a result depending on one or more conditions

So how do you use a function?

A function makes use of values or cell references, just like a simple formula does. The numbers or cell
references that it needs for its calculations are placed in brackets after the name of the function.

To give a simple illustration:

Several popular functions are available to you directly from the Home ribbon.
1. Select the cell where you want the result of the calculation to be displayed.
2. Click the drop-down arrow next to the Sum button.
3. Click on the function that you want.
4. Confirm the range of cells that the function should use in its calculation. (Excel will try to guess this for
you. If you don’t like what it shows inside the dotted line, then click and drag to make your own selection.)
5. Press [ENTER]. The result of the calculation will be shown in the active cell.