Week Nine: Clear

With the use of Microsoft Excel, the creation of spreadsheets is made simple. Not only does Excel allow the user to create one spreadsheet, but to create multiple spreadsheets together in a workbook. This week, learning about some of the basic functions of Excel, has been a review for me. Although I don't regularly use Excel, it is true that it is a very powerful tool. I originally learned the basics of Excel, along with some of its other functions in another computer class. Through ISM3004, more emphasis was put onto some of the functions that Excel is capable, one of which was the formulas ability.

The availability of formulas makes creating spreadsheets easier for users, especially when there are large amounts of data being used. Such formulas as =AVERAGE(), allows the user to average together a small, or a large amount of numbers. For example, if a user has 267 rows of data that they have to average together, instead of adding all the numbers together, and then dividing it by 267, they simply enter the formula =AVERAGE(A1:A267), and Excel will immediately give the answer. 
Along with the average formula, a user has the ability to add together data, subtract, multiply, divide, even look up data from a specific chart located on the spreadsheet. This can be an especially useful to a teacher who wants to see the letter grade for their students based on the total number of points received in the class. The can be down by using the =VLOOKUP() function. With the VLOOKUP function, the user enters the values which make the statement either true or false. In the case of a teacher, given in the example in the lecture, if they wish to record a students grade as unsatisfactory or satisfactory, the user only enters which value is to be marked as satisfactory and all that is not, will be marked as unsatisfactory.