Excel 2010 Bible

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Introduction

Excel commands

Excel 2010 (like Excel 2007) features a “menu-less” user interface. In place of a menu system,

Excel uses a context-sensitive Ribbon system. The words along the top (such as File, Insert, Page

Layout, and so on) are known as tabs. Click a tab, and the Ribbon displays the commands for the

selected tab. Each command has a name, which is (usually) displayed next to or below the icon.

The commands are arranged in groups, and the group name appears at the bottom of the Ribbon.

The convention I use is to indicate the tab name, followed by the group name, followed by the

command name. So, the command used to toggle word wrap within a cell is indicated as:

Home ➪ Alignment ➪ Wrap Text

You’ll learn more about using the Ribbon user interface in Chapter 1.

Filenames, named ranges, and your input

Input that you make from the keyboard appears in bold. Named ranges appear in a monospace

font. Lengthy input usually appears on a separate line. For example, I may instruct you to enter a

formula such as the following:

=”Part Name: “ &VLOOKUP(PartNumber,PartList,2)

Key names

Names of the keys on your keyboard appear in normal type. When two keys should be pressed

simultaneously, they’re connected with a plus sign, like this: “Press Ctrl+C to copy the selected

cells.” Here are the key names as I refer to them throughout the book:

Alt down arrow Num Lock right arrow End

Scroll Lock Caps Lock Home PgDn Shift

Ctrl Insert PgUp Tab Delete

left arrow up arrow

The four “arrow” keys are collectively known as the navigation keys.

Functions

Excel built-in worksheet functions appear in uppercase, like this: “Note the SUM formula in

cell C20.”

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