This handout introduces the basic features of Microsoft Excel, a spreadsheet program on Macintoshes and on computers running Microsoft Windows. The handout covers entering and editing data, formatting, formulas, page setup, and printing spreadsheets.
Starting Excel
You can start Excel by:
1. Double-clicking on the Microsoft Excel application icon. This application is usually in a folder called Excel. An alias for this icon appears on the desktop of the computers in the Student Microcomputer Facility.
2. Double-clicking on the icon of any Excel document. When you double-click an Excel document, Excel opens with the document already loaded.

Exploring the Excel Interface
Components of the Excel Window
Besides the usual window components (close box, title bar, scroll bars, etc.), an Excel window has several unique elements identified in the figure below.
Standard Toolbar
The Standard toolbar, located beneath the menu bar, has buttons for commonly performed tasks like adding a column of numbers, printing, sorting, and other operations. Excel let’s you customize the toolbar or even display multiple toolbars at the same time. The Standard Excel XP toolbar appears in the figure below.
Formatting toolbar
The Formatting toolbar, located beneath the Standard toolbar bar, has buttons for various formatting operations like changing text size or style, formatting numbers and placing borders around cells.

Download pdf Getting Started with Microsoft Excel