TRANSCRIPT

Video 1: What are formulas? Video 4: AutoSum

Formulas instruct Excel to perform basic If you’re adding up a column of numbers, you
mathematical calculations, such as: speed up this process further by using the
AutoSum function.
Addition
Click in the cell at the bottom of the column.
Subtraction
Then click the AutoSum button.
Multiplication, and
The formula appears in the cell showing the range
Division
of cells that Excel will calculate.
To tell Excel you want to do a calculation, you need to
If you need to modify the range of cells selected in
start a formula with an equals sign.
the column, you can change the cell references in
the formula bar.

Video 2: Entering calculations Alternatively, you can click on the square on the top
right of your selected cells, and drag the cursor to
You can input calculations to Excel in just the same select the cells you want to include.
way you would enter them on a calculator.
Press Enter and the calculation is complete.
Remember to start each formula with an equals
symbol to let Excel know you’re using a formula. Then You can also access other functions by clicking on
just add the rest of the calculation and press Enter. the bottom arrow of the AutoSum button, here.

You can even do complex calculations.

But you’ll usually need to use cell references rather Video 5: Insert Function
than typing in whole calculations manually.
Insert Function is on the Formulas tab.
This tool makes it easier to add formulas to
Video 3: Using formulas your spreadsheet.

You can access Functions by clicking on the You can search for the formula you need here.
Formulas tab.
Or you can search by category.
Functions are formulas that have been pre-
When you click on a function, you can see its
programmed into Excel. You can use functions to
definition, and you can check if it’s the right one
quickly perform automatic calculations.
for your task.
For example, to get the total for this column, you
could type out the whole calculation with all the
cells you want to add up… Video 6: Using Insert Function
but that would be very slow. Select your function, and click OK.
It’s faster to use a function, such as SUM. The next screen in the dialogue box lets you set
the parameters for your function. Excel calls these
Every formula in Excel should start with an
arguments. They can vary depending on the function
equals sign.
you’ve chosen.
And you need to identify the 1st and last cells in
In this case, we’ve chosen SUM, so we can set the
your range.
range of cells we need to add up.
There are several other functions you can use for
This tool lets you add up more than one column’s
quick tasks, such as
set of cells.
• calculating the average
Just to check you’re on the right lines, you can see a
• counting values preview of the calculation.
• finding the smallest value When you’re happy, click OK.

• finding the largest value

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Video 7: The Formulas tab Video 10: Creating an absolute cell reference
You can access functions on the Formulas tab. To create an absolute cell reference, you need to
They’re grouped under different categories in the insert a dollar sign in front of each row or column
Functions Library. reference that you want to make absolute.
Click on one of the category icons to see a list of Now your cell references should stay the same,
its functions. even if you copy the formula down into the rest of
the column.
Click on a function to set its parameters.
This can be useful if you always want to refer to a
The rest of the Formulas tab has more advanced
specific cell. If you need to change the value, you
tools. Let’s take a quick look.
only need to do this in the original cell.
The Defined Names group allows you to give a range
of cells a specific name, so they’re easier to refer to if
you’re using them constantly. Video 11: Adding a date
The Formula Auditing group gives you several tools If you want Excel to recognize that you’re adding
for tracking formula errors. This is useful if you’re a date to your spreadsheet, simply use the
using multiple combined formulas. forward slash…
And the Calculation group lets you control the way Or add short hyphens between numbers. The date
Excel does its calculations. format will automatically match your Windows
regional settings.

Video 8: Copying formulas

Video 12: Using the TODAY function to
There are times when you’ll need to repeat a
add today’s date
formula in a list.
You can add today’s date by using the TODAY
For example, let’s say you want to calculate a
function. Click on the Date and Time icon and select
percentage discount off a range of goods.
TODAY. There are no parameters to set here so click
Add the formula into the 1st cell, and check it’s right. OK. You should see today’s date in your spreadsheet.

Make sure you’ve clicked into the cell which has the You can also add on days from a date. So, for
formula you want to copy. example, if you want a new date which is 5 days in
the future, you can simply add a simple addition
Hover your cursor over the highlighted box so it formula to the cell reference, like this. Press Enter,
changes from a white cross to a black cross. and you’ll see a date 5 days on.
Now click on the small green square and drag where
you want the formula to be copied.
Video 13: Using the TIME function to add a time
Use the TIME function to add hours, minutes,
Video 9: What are absolute cell references? and seconds.
If you’ve used a formula, some of your cells will Click on Date and Time, and select TIME.
contain references to other cells within that formula.
Fill in the hours, minutes, and seconds fields,
When you want to copy or move one of those cells, and click OK.
Excel will automatically change the cell references
to match their new location. This is called relative
cell addressing.
Alternatively, you can fix the location of a specific cell
by making it an absolute reference. An absolute cell
reference doesn’t change when you copy or move it
somewhere else.