Working in Excel

The New Format

Besides changing the appearance of Excel 2007, Microsoft also introduced a new file extension for Excel spreadsheets: .xlsx. As a result, a few compatibility issues need to be considered when accessing files in Excel 2003 and Excel 2007. Excel 2007 will let you open both kinds of spreadsheets: those with .xlsx as well as the older .xls. You also have the option to save in both formats. From the Office Button, select Save As and then choose from the default format Excel Workbook (.xlsx), or the Excel 97-2003 Workbook (.xls). However, keep in mind that someone using an older version of Excel will need to download an adaptor from the Microsoft Web site in order to open an .xlsx file.

To open a file, simply select the Microsoft Office Button to see the drop-down menu, from which you can select Open.

Quick Access Toolbar

A handy tool new to Excel 2007 (as well as all of the other Microsoft Office Suite applications) is the Quick Access Toolbar, located at the top left corner of the window, next to the Microsoft Office Button. This section of the ribbon is for easy access to your frequently-used tools. Add more tools to the toolbar by clicking on the drop-down button and choosing a tool. (Remove one by right-clicking the tool you no longer want included.)

Navigating in Excel

An Excel worksheet consists of rows and columns of cells. When a cell is selected, it is an active cell and will have a black border on all four sides.

When working with Excel, you are actually working in a book of worksheets. To move between worksheets in a book, click on the tabs "Sheet 1", "Sheet2" and "Sheet3" at the bottom of the screen. You can change the names of these tabs by right-clicking the tab and selecting Rename.

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