MicrosoftВ® Office ExcelВ® 2007: Data Analysis and Business Modeling (Bpg -- Other)

To follow the examples in this book you do not need to be an Excel guru. Basically, the two key actions you should know how to do are the following:

• Enter a formula. You should know that formulas must begin with an equal sign (=). You should also know the basic mathematical operators. For example, you should know that an asterisk (*) is used for multiplication, a forward slash (/) is used for division and the caret key (^) is used to raise a quantity to a power.

• Work with cell references. You should know that when you copy a formula that contains a cell reference such as $A$4 (an absolute cell reference, which is created by including the dollar signs), the formula will still refer to cell $A$4 in the cells you copy it to. When you copy a formula that contains a cell reference such as $A4 (a mixed cell address) the row will remain fixed, but the column will change. Finally, when you copy a formula that contains a cell reference such as A4 (a relative cell reference), both the row and the column of the cells referenced in the formula will change.