Lecture 1: Spreadsheet

What is Spreadsheet? The Calc Main Window

Is a tool that is used to store, manipulate and
analyze data. Data in a spreadsheet is organized in a
series of rows and columns and can be searched, sorted,
calculated and used in a variety of charts and graphs.
Is a computer program that can capture, display
and manipulate data arranged in rows and columns.
Are one of the most popular tools available with
personal computers. A spreadsheet is generally
designed to hold numerical data and short text strings.

What is spreadsheet and its purpose?

1. Title bar. It is located at the top, showing the

Is purpose is to simplify to automatic data analysis, name of the current spreadsheet. When the
spreadsheets can help you with a lot of your every tasks.
spreadsheet is newly created, its name is
Untitled X, where X is a number. When you
Spreadsheets Examples
save a spreadsheet for the first time, you are
prompted to enter a name of your choice.
1. Personal Monthly Budget
2. Billing Statements 2. Menu bar. It is located under the Title bar.
When you choose one of the menus, a sub-
Calc works with elements called spreadsheets.
menu appears with other options.
Spreadsheets consist of a number of individual sheets,
• File – contains commands that apply to the
each sheet containing cells arranged in rows and
entire document; for example Open, Save,
columns. A particular cell is identified by its row
Wizards, Export as PDF, Print, Digital
number and column letter.
Signatures, and so on.
• Edit – contains commands for editing the
Cells hold the individual elements – text, numbers,
document; for example Undo, Copy, Changes,
formulas, and so on – that make up the data to display
Fill, Plug-in, and so on.
and manipulate.
• View – contains commands for modifying how
the Calc user interface looks; for example
Each spreadsheet can have many sheets, and each sheet
Toolbars, Column & Row Headers, Full
can have many individual cells. In Calc, each sheet can
Screen, Zoom, and so on.
have a maximum of 1,048,576 rows and a maximum of
• Insert – contains commands for inserting
1024 columns.
elements into a spreadsheet; for example Cells,
Rows, Columns, Sheets, Picture, and so on.
• Format – contains commands for modifying
the layout of a spreadsheet; for example Cells,
 Page, Styles and Formatting, Alignment, and so 4. Formula Bar. This is located at the top of the
on. sheet in your Calc workspace. It is permanently
• Tools – contains various functions to help you docked in this position and cannot be used as a
check and customize your spreadsheet, for floating toolbar. If the Formula bar is not
example Spelling, Share Document, Gallery, visible, go to View > Formula Bar on the main
Macros, and so on. menu bar.
• Data – contains commands for manipulating
data in your spreadsheet; for example Define Going from left to right, the Formula bar consists of the
Range, Sort, Consolidate, and so on. following:
• Window – contains commands for the display • Name Box – gives the cell reference using a
window; for example New Window, Split, and combination of a letter and number, for
so on. example A1. The letter indicates the column
• Help – contains links to the help system and the number indicates the row of the selected
included with the software and other cell.

miscellaneous functions; for example Help, • Function Wizard – opens a dialog from which
License Information, Check for Updates, and so you can search through a list of available
on. functions. This can be very useful because it
also shows how the functions are formatted.
3. Toolbars. The default setting when Calc opens • Sum – clicking on the Sum icon totals the
is for the Standard and Formatting toolbars to numbers in the cells above the selected cell and
be docked at the top of the workspace. then places the total in the selected cell. If there
• Calc toolbars can be either docked and fixed are no numbers above the selected cell, then the
in place, or floating allowing you to move a cells to the left are totaled.
toolbar into a more convenient position on your • Function – clicking on the Function icon
workspace. Docked toolbars can be undocked inserts an equals (=) sign into the selected cell
and moved to different docked position on the and the input line allowing a formula to be
workspace or undocked to become a floating entered.
toolbar. Toolbars that are floating when opened • Input line – displays the contents of the
can be docked into a fixed position on your selected cell (data, formula, or function) and
workspace. allows you to edit the cell contents. To edit

• The default set of icons (sometimes called inside the Input line area, click in the area, then

buttons) on toolbars provide a wide range of type your changes. To edit within the current

common commands and functions. cell, just double-click in the cell.

• Placing the mouse cursor over any of the icons You can also edit the contents of a cell directly

displays a small box called a tooltip. It gives a in the cell itself by double-clicking on the cell.

brief explanation of the icon function. To close When you enter new data into a cell, the Sum

a tooltip, click once away from the icon or press and Function icons change to Cancel and

the Esc key. Tips and extended tips can be Accept icons.

turned on or off from Tools > Options >

LibreOffice > General on the main menu bar.
5. Individual cells. The main section of the screen 2) Select your color and click OK when finished
displays the cells in the form of a grid, with to close the dialog.
each cell being at the intersection of a column
and a row. 7. Status bar. This provides information about
• At the top of the columns and the left end of the the spreadsheet and convenient ways to quickly
rows are a series of header boxes containing change some of its features.
letters and numbers. The column headers use
an alpha character starting at A and go on to the The various fields on the Status Bar, from left
right. The row headers use a numerical to right, are as follows.
character starting at 1 and go down.
• These column and row headers form the cell • Sheet sequence number. Shows the sequence
references that appear in the Name Box on the number of the current sheet and the total
Formula Bar. number of sheets in the spreadsheet. The
• If the headers are not visible on your sequence number may not be the same as the
spreadsheet, go to View > Column & Row name on the sheet tab if sheets have been
Headers on the main menu bar moved. Double-click on this zone to open the
Navigator.
6. Sheet tabs. At the bottom of the grid of cells in
a spreadsheet are sheet tabs indicating how • Page style. Shows the page style of the current
many sheets there are in your spreadsheet. sheet. To edit the page style, double-click on
Clicking on a tab enables access to each this field and the Page Style dialog opens.
individual sheet and displays that sheet. An
active sheet is indicated with a white tab • Insert mode. Shows the type of insert mode the
(default Calc setup). You can also select program is in. Press the Ins key to change
multiple sheets by holding down the Ctrl key modes. This field is blank if the program is in
while you click on the sheet tabs. insert mode and Overwrite shows when in
overwrite mode.
To change the default name for a sheet (Sheet1,
Sheet2, and so on): • Selection mode. Click to open a context menu
1) Right-click on the sheet tab and select Rename and toggle between Standard selection,
Sheet from the context menu. A dialog opens Extended selection, Adding selection or Block
allowing you to type in a new name for the selection. The icon does not change when
sheet. different selection modes are selected, but the
2) Click OK when finished to close the dialog. tooltip shows the current status.
• Standard selection – click in text or cell where
To change the color of a sheet tab: you want to position the cursor and make the
1) Right-click on the sheet tab and select Tab cell active. Any other selection is then
Color from the context menu to open the Tab deselected.
Color dialog. • Extend selection – clicking in the text either
extends or crops the current selection.
 • Adding selection – a new selection is added to
an existing selection. The result is a multiple Lecture 2: INTRODUCTION TO SPREADSHEET
selection.
• Block selection – a block of text can be selected. Spreadsheet
• Unsaved changes. This icon indicates if there  derived from a large piece of paper that accountants
are any unsaved changes that have not been used for business finances
saved. Double-click this icon or use File > Save  The accountant would spread information like costs,
to save the spreadsheet. payments, taxes, income, etc out on a single, big,
• Digital signature. If the document has been oversized sheet of paper to get a complete financial
digitally signed, an icon shows here. You can overview
double-click the icon to view the certificate.  a document that contains rows and columns of text
See Chapter 6 Printing, Exporting, and E- and numbers
mailing in this guide for more information Ledger
about digital signatures. A document can only  a book of spreadsheets containing accounts to which
be digitally signed after it has been saved. debits and credits are posted from books of original
entry
• Cell or object information. Displays information
relevant to the position of the cursor or the selected Spreadsheet program
element of the spreadsheet. When a group of cells  is an application that helps the user to create
is selected, the sum of the contents is displayed by spreadsheets commonly used for budgets, forecasting,
default. Right-click on this field and select other and other finance-related tasks
functions, such as the average value, maximum
value, minimum value, or count (number of items Electronic Spreadsheet
selected).  electronic equivalent of an accounting worksheet,
comprised of rows and columns to allow you to do
• Zoom slider. Drag the zoom slider, or click the + many tasks in the organization of numbers in a clear,
and – signs to change the view magnification. easy to understand format
 used in almost every profession to calculate, graph,
• Zoom percentage. Indicates the magnification analyze and store information
level of the document. Right-click on the  used for what-if calculations; change one number in a
percentage figure to open a list of magnification spreadsheet and all the calculations in a large
values from which to choose. Double-clicking on spreadsheet will re-calculate, will automatically
this percentage figure opens the Zoom & View change
Layout dialog.  display information used for both simple and complex
“number crunching.”

Examples of Spreadsheet usage:

 tracking personal investments
 budgeting
 Invoices
 inventory tracking  Daniel Bricklin is considered to be the Father of
 statistical analysis Electronic Spreadsheet. He had help from Robert
 numerical modeling Frankston
 address books  Daniel Fylstra, founding Associate Editor of Byte
 telephone books Magazine, joined Bricklin and Frankston in developing
 printing labels VisiCalc
 1979 – VisiCalc was released to the public by Fylstra’s
Advantages of an Electronic Spreadsheet company, Personal Software (later renamed VisiCorp).
 Support good design and accurate results It became the first computer spreadsheet program and
 Program can quickly edit and format data the first killer application for PCs. (killer means,
 Perform calculations and create graphs strikingly impressive or effective)
 Perform “what-if” analysis by changing independent  1980 – SuperCalc, the first spreadsheet that ran on
values in the spreadsheet computers using the CP/M (Control Program/Monitor)
 Support simultaneous use of multiple sheet operating system, was introduced. The DIF (data
interchange format) was developed. This format
Disadvantages of an Electronic Spreadsheet allowed spreadsheet data to be shared and imported into
 Need for specialized software and hardware other programs.
 Time for planning and practicing  1981 – Multiplan, the first spreadsheet to handle
 Development of meaningful and useful applications multiple spreadsheets simultaneously, was released by
takes energy and effort Microsoft.
 Data can be incorrect, and must be reviewed and  Context MBA, the first spreadsheet program that
verified for accuracy handled five tasks (spreadsheets, graphs, databases,
 Complexity surrounding formulas and their word processing, and telecommunications), was
arguments invented and released by Context Management
 Lack of detail in error messages often causes user’s Systems.
frustration and wastes time  1983 – 1-2-3, the spreadsheet program that can handle
 Aspects of the spreadsheet can be applied incorrectly, three tasks (spreadsheets, graphs, and databases), was
due to incorrect assumptions, missing or inaccurate released by Lotus Development. Lisa Calc, the first
data spreadsheet program to use a mouse, was released by
Apple Computer, Inc.
Worksheet  1985 – Excel, the spreadsheet program that can handle
A page organized into rows and columns appearing three tasks (spreadsheets, graphs, and databases) in a
onscreen graphical environment, was released by Microsoft
Corporation. Excel can run on both PC and Mac.
Workbook  1987 – Quattro Pro, the spreadsheet program that has
A file containing a number of related worksheets the combined features of 1-2-3 and Excel and runs in a
graphical environment, was released by Borland.
BRIEF HISTORY OF SPREADSHEETS Newer versions of Quattro Pro are now being developed
• 1978 – The world’s first electronic spreadsheet by Corel Corp.
program, VisiCalc, was invented.
 1987 – Up to Present, new spreadsheet programs and successful author) were in the small business price
updated versions of the old ones have flooded the range. Since then the three related strands of
market. computing—hardware, software, and networks—have
 2011 - Calc, one of the applications included in the produced something of an avalanche of change in
LibreOffice package, is a spreadsheet program, similar business administration and communications, every
to Microsoft Excel or Lotus 1-2-3. Developed by The year bringing changes. Not surprisingly, four months
Document Foundation, it has a number of unique before 2006 began, PC Magazine published a forecast
features, including a system which automatically entitled "2006: The Year Everything Changes." More or
defines series of graphs, based on information available less the same theme has been sounded every year since
to the us. 1980. But changes in computing and related software
applications have shifted toward cell-phone-sized
devices. In the traditional areas of office computing, the
emerging issues of the mid-2000s are 1) centralization
and decentralization: should the information technology
(IT) staff have more or less control; 2) renewal or
Lecture 3: Computer Applications adaptation: should aging applications be brought up to
date or should the business intelligently integrate old
According to The History of Computing Project, the and new and save money; and 3) Web-related expansion
prototype of the first microcomputer was introduced by and exploitation.
the aptly named Micro Computer Inc., Los Angeles, in
Small business has taken an active part both in the use
1968. ARPANET, a defense contractors' information
and provision of computer applications. Once
exchange and the precursor of the Internet, was born a
computers became affordable, they have been widely
year later. Commercial microcomputers (Apple,
deployed in small business and, whether stand-alone or
Commodore, Tandy, Sinclair, and Texas Instruments)
networked, have provided much the same
appeared in 1977. Apple Computer introduced the first
administrative support service they do in larger
graphical interface with the Macintosh; Microsoft
enterprises. Small businesses have also participated
followed with the first version of Windows in 1985. The
actively in providing computer services, the production
Internet evolved from ARPANET over a period of 18
of custom software, the writing of such software for
years and, by 1987, it was a world-wide network. By
their own operations, in consulting with clients and
1990 it was beginning to appear in small businesses,
systems integration, and in Web-consulting and Web-
usually in text mode. The first well-known
page design and development. By the very nature of the
microcomputer software applications were the VisiCalc
small business environment, small operations have
spreadsheet and the word processors Applewriter and
found it easy to adapt and to respond rapidly to change
WordStar, all dating to the 1978—1979 period.
in what was a dynamic environment.
A few small businesses used computers before the
Following list demonstrates various applications of
micros appeared, but primarily in professional
computers in today's arena.
applications rather than as business tools.
Minicomputers like the Honeywell (used in Business
engineering) and the Wang (a dedicated word processor
much used by law-firms and here and there by a
A computer has high speed of calculation, diligence, The computer has provided a lot of facilities in the
accuracy, reliability, or versatility which made it an education system.
integrated part in all business organizations.
• The computer provides a tool in the education
Computer is used in business organizations for: system known as CBE (Computer Based
Education).
• Payroll calculations
• CBE involves control, delivery, and evaluation
• Budgeting
of learning.
• Sales analysis
• The computer education is rapidly increasing
• Financial forecasting
the graph of number of computer students.
• Managing employees database
• There are number of methods in which
• Maintenance of stocks, etc.
educational institutions can use computer to
Banking educate the students.
• It is used to prepare a database about
Today banking is almost totally dependent on
performance of a student and analysis is carried
computer. Banks provide following facilities:
out on this basis.

• Banks provide online accounting facility,

Marketing
which includes current balances, deposits,
overdrafts, interest charges, shares, and trustee In marketing, uses of computer are following:
records.
• Advertising - With computers, advertising
• ATM machines are making it even easier for
professionals create art and graphics, write and
customers to deal with banks.
revise copy, and print and disseminate ads with
Insurance the goal of selling more products.
• At Home Shopping - Home shopping has been
Insurance companies are keeping all records up-to-date
made possible through use of computerized
with the help of computers. The insurance companies,
catalogues that provide access to product
finance houses and stock broking firms are widely using
information and permit direct entry of orders to
computers for their concerns.
be filled by the customers.
Insurance companies are maintaining a database of all
clients with information showing
Health Care

• procedure to continue with policies

Computers have become important part in hospitals,
• starting date of the policies labs, and dispensaries. The computers are being used in
• next due installment of a policy hospitals to keep the record of patients and medicines.
• maturity date It is also used in scanning and diagnosing different
• interests due diseases. ECG, EEG, Ultrasounds and CT Scans etc.,
• survival benefits are also done by computerized machines.
• bonus
Some major fields of health care in which computers are
Education used are:
 • Diagnostic System - Computers are used to • Military Operation and Planning
collect data and identify cause of illness. • Smart Weapons
• Lab-diagnostic System - All tests can be done
and reports are prepared by computer.
Communication
• Patient Monitoring System - These are used to
check patient's signs for abnormality such as in Communication means to convey a message, an idea, a
Cardiac Arrest, ECG etc. picture or speech that is received and understood clearly
• Pharma Information System - Computer checks and correctly by the person for whom it is meant for.
Drug-Labels, Expiry dates, harmful drug’s side Some main areas in this category are:
effects etc.
• E-mail
• Surgery : Nowadays, computers are also used
• Chatting
in performing surgery
• Usenet
Engineering • FTP
• Telnet
Design Computers are widely used in engineering
• Video-conferencing
purpose.

One of major areas is CAD (Computer Aided Design).

That provides creation and modification of images. Government
Some fields are:
Computers play an important role in government. Some
• Structural Engineering - Requires stress and major fields in this category are:
strain analysis for design of Ships, Buildings,
• Budgets
Budgets, Airplanes etc.
• Sales tax department
• Industrial Engineering - Computers deal with
design, implementation and improvement of • Income tax department

integrated systems of people, materials and • Male/Female ratio

equipment. • Computerization of voters lists

• Architectural Engineering - Computers help in • Computerization of driving licensing system

planning towns, designing buildings, • Computerization of PAN card

determining a range of buildings on a site using • Weather forecasting
both 2D and 3D drawings

Military

Computers are largely used in defense. Modern tanks,

missiles, weapons etc. Military also employs
computerized control systems. Some military areas
where a computer has been used are:

• Missile Control
• Military Communication