Excel Intermediate 2016

Reference Notes
 Table of Contents:

Creating a Formula:-..........................................................................................................................2
Order of Calculation..........................................................................................................................3
Entering a Formula into a Range of Cells...........................................................................................3
Absolute and Relative References.....................................................................................................4
Using Functions.................................................................................................................................4
The Function Wizard..........................................................................................................................4
AutoSum............................................................................................................................................5
Views.....................................................................................................................................................7
View Two Or More Worksheets At The Same Time...........................................................................7
View Multiple Workbooks At The Same Time...................................................................................8
To Freeze Panes.................................................................................................................................8
To Use Split........................................................................................................................................8
Insert Subtotals in a Datalist..................................................................................................................9
Outlining..............................................................................................................................................11
Filter data in an Excel table..................................................................................................................12
Create a slicer to filter your table data............................................................................................14
Charting...............................................................................................................................................16
Add a trendline................................................................................................................................17
Range Names.......................................................................................................................................19
Types of names................................................................................................................................19
The scope of a Name.......................................................................................................................19
Hyperlinks............................................................................................................................................21
Create a hyperlink to an existing file or webpage............................................................................21
Create a hyperlink to a new file.......................................................................................................21
Create a hyperlink to a specific location in a workbook..................................................................22
How to name a cell or a range of cells.............................................................................................22
How to Set Up Conditional Formatting................................................................................................24

Sarah Aspinall Page 2 Intermediate Excel Reference Notes

 Creating a Formula:-

The following rules apply to formulae in Excel 2016:

 The formula should be typed into the cell where you wish the answer to result.

 Every formula begins with an equal sign (=).

 The formula must not contain any spaces.

As far as possible, cell references should be used in the formula as opposed to numbers. This will
ensure the formula updates automatically if the values in the worksheet are changed.

Order of Calculation

The order of calculation is always:

B Brackets ()
O Of ^
D Division /
M Multiplication *
A Addition +
S Subtraction -

For example =2+3*4 results in 14 while =(2+3)*4 results in 20

Note: If you double click on a cell that contains a formula, Excel will highlight any ranges to which
the formula refers. This can make it easier to understand formulae created by other users.

Entering a Formula into a Range of Cells

When a formula is copied, any formatting in the cell is also copied. This can be avoided by entering
all related formulae in one step.

 Select all cells to contain the same formula.

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  Create the formula for the active cell.

 Press [Ctrl Return] to enter the formula into all selected cells in one step.

Absolute and Relative References

The standard way in which Excel enters a formula uses relative references. When a formula is
copied, the cell references are updated accordingly.
The shortcut [F4] can be used to make a cell reference absolute.

Type the reference and then press [F4]. This inserts a dollar symbol before the column and row
reference.

Absolute references should be used when you wish to refer to the same variable for lots of different
calculations.

For example, you may have a list of prices in column A that you wish to multiply by a constant
discount rate. Suppose the discount is expressed in the cell D1. The formula may be =A2*$D$1.

Using Functions

The following list is a small selection of the functions available in Excel 2016:

Function Description
=SUM(B2:B15) Adds the range in brackets
=AVERAGE(B2:B15) Returns the average of the range in brackets
=MAX(B2:B15) Returns the highest value in the range
=MIN(B2:B15) Returns the lowest value in the range
=NOW( ) Returns the current date and time
=TODAY( ) Returns the current date

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 The Function Wizard

Next to the formula bar, you'll see an FX button. This is the Formula Wizard:

When you click the FX button, you'll see the Insert Function dialogue box appear:

The Insert Function dialogue box shows a list functions. These are the just the common ones. To see
more functions, click the drop down list to the right of Select a category.

AutoSum
This is used to add the contents of columns and/or rows of values to create totals without having to
enter any formulae. The AutoSum icon is on the Home ribbon.

To test AutoSum, enter some values in the worksheet. This can be done more quickly by using the
=RANDBETWEEN() function. Ensure the Analysis Toolpak add-in is selected before using this
function.

RANDBETWEE(1,10) generates random numbers between 1 and 10

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 RANDBETWEEN(-10,10) generates random numbers between -10 and 10.

Remember you can enter a whole range of random numbers by selecting a blank range, typing the
=RANDBETWEEN() function and pressing [Ctrl Enter].

To use AutoSum:

If you select the values only, only column totals will be given.
If you want column and row totals, select all values and extend the selection to include a blank
column and blank row – the totals will be placed in these blank, selected cells.

[Alt =] is the keyboard shortcut for AutoSum.

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 Views
View Two Or More Worksheets At The Same Time
You can compare two in the same workbook or in different workbooks by viewing them side by side.
You can also arrange multiple worksheets to view them all at the same time.

View Two Worksheets In The Same Workbook Side By Side

On the View tab, in the Window group, click New Window.

On the View tab, in the Window group, click View Side by Side.

In the workbook window, click the worksheets that you want to compare.

To scroll both worksheets at the same time, click Synchronous Scrolling in the Window group on
the View tab.
View Two Worksheets Of Different Workbooks Side By Side
Open both of the workbooks that contain the worksheets that you want to compare.

On the View tab, in the Window group, click View Side by Side .

Note If you keep more than two workbooks open, Excel displays the Compare Side by Side dialog
box. In this dialog box, under Compare Side by Side with, click the workbook that contains the
worksheet that you want to compare with your active worksheet, and then click OK.

In each workbook window, click the sheet that you want to compare.

To scroll both worksheets at the same time, click Synchronous Scrolling in the Window group on
the View tab.

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 View Multiple Workbooks At The Same Time
Open the workbooks .
On the View tab, in the Window group, click Arrange All.
Under Arrange, click the option that you want.

To Freeze Panes
From the View tab, in the Window group, click the arrow below Freeze Panes.

Do one of the following:

To lock one row only, click Freeze Top Row.

To lock one column only, click Freeze First Column.
To lock more than one row or column, or to lock both rows and columns at the same time, click
Freeze Panes.

When you freeze the top row, first column, or panes, the Freeze Panes option changes to Unfreeze
Panes so that you can unlock any frozen rows or columns.

You can freeze rows at the top and columns on the left side of the worksheet only. You cannot
freeze rows and columns in the middle of the worksheet.

To Use Split

From the View tab, in the Window group, click the split screen button..

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 Insert Subtotals in a Datalist

You can automatically calculate subtotals and grand totals in a list (list: A series of rows that contains
related data or a series of rows that you designate to function as a datasheet by using the Create List
command.) for a column by using the Subtotal command in the Outline group on the Data tab.

Make sure that each column has a label in the first row, contains similar facts in each column, and
that the range has no blank rows or columns.

Select a cell in the range. – the columns must be sorted into common groups.
To Insert one level of subtotals:-

From the Data tab, in the Outline group, click Subtotal.

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 The Subtotal dialog box is displayed.

In the At each change in box, click the column to subtotal. In the example above, you would select
Sport.

In the Use function box, click the summary function that you want to use to calculate the subtotals.
In the example above, you would select Sum.

In the Add subtotal to box, select the check box for each column that contains values that you want
to subtotal. In the example above, you would select Sales.
If you want an automatic page break following each subtotal, select the Page break between groups
check box.

To specify a summary row above the details row, clear the Summary below data check box. To
specify a summary row below the details row, select the Summary below data check box. In the
example above, you would clear the check box.
Optionally, you can use the Subtotals command again by repeating steps one through seven to add
more subtotals with different summary functions. To avoid overwriting the existing subtotals, clear
the Replace current subtotals check box.

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 Outlining
If you have a list (list: A series of rows that contains related data or a series of rows that you
designate to function as a datasheet by using the Create List command.) of data that you want to
group and summarize, you can create an outline of up to eight levels, one for each group. Each inner
level, represented by a higher number in the outline symbols (outline symbols: Symbols that you use
to change the view of an outlined worksheet. You can show or hide detailed data by pressing the
plus sign, minus sign, and the numbers 1, 2, 3, or 4, indicating the outline level.) displays detail
data (detail data: For automatic subtotals and worksheet outlines, the subtotal rows or columns that
are totalled by summary data. Detail data is typically adjacent to and either above or to the left of
the summary data.) for the preceding outer level, represented by a lower number in the outline
symbols. Use an outline to quickly display summary rows or columns, or to reveal the detail data for
each group. You can create an outline of rows (as shown in the example below), an outline of
columns, or an outline of both rows and columns.

 Highlight either the columns or rows to be grouped

 From the Data tab, in the Outline group, click Group.

 The outline symbols appear beside the group on the screen.

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 Filter data in an Excel table

You can use either: Highlight the Field Headings and click on the Filter button from the Data Tab or
Create your Table from Insert Table.

For quick filtering, do this:

Click the arrow in the table header of the column you want to filter.
In the list of text or numbers, uncheck the (Select All) box at the top of the list, and then check the
boxes of the items you want to show in your table.

The filtering arrow in the table header changes to this icon to indicate a filter is applied. Click it to
change or clear the filter.

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 Filter by specific text or numbers

1. Click the arrow in the table header of the column you want to filter.
2. If the column has numbers, click Number Filters. If the column has text entries, click Text
Filters.
3. Pick the filtering option you want, and then enter your filtering conditions.
For example, to show numbers above a certain amount, pick Greater Than Or Equal To, and then
enter the number you have in mind in the adjacent box.

To filter by two conditions, enter filtering conditions in both sets of boxes, and pick And for both
conditions to be true, and Or for either of the conditions to be true.
Filter items by color
If you've applied different cell or font colors or a conditional format, you can filter by the colors or
icons that are shown in your table.

1. Click the arrow in the table header of the column that has color formatting or conditional
formatting applied.
Click Filter by Color and then pick the cell color, font color, or icon you want to filter by.

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 The types of color options you’ll have available depend on the types of format you have applied.

Create a slicer to filter your table data

You can also create slicers to filter your table data. A slicer is really useful because it clearly indicates
what data is shown in your table after you filter your data.

Here’s how you can create one to filter your data:

1. Click anywhere in the table to show the Table Tools on the ribbon.

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 2. Click Design > Insert Slicer.

3. In the Insert Slicers dialog box, check the boxes you want to create slicers for.
4. Click OK.
A slicer appears for each table header you checked in the Insert Slicers dialog box.
5. In each slicer, click the items you want to show in your table.
To choose more than one item, hold down Ctrl, and then pick the items you want to show.

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 Charting

Use the Recommended Charts command on the Insert tab to quickly create a chart that’s just right
for your data.
1. Select the data that you want to include in your chart.
2. Click Insert > Recommended Charts.

3. On the Recommended Charts tab, scroll through the list of chart types that Excel
recommends for your data.
Click any chart type to see how your data will look in that format.

Tip: If you don’t see a chart type that you like, click the All Charts tab to see all of the available chart
types.
4. When you find the chart type that you want, click it, and then click OK.
5. Use the Chart Elements, Chart Styles, and Chart Filters buttons next to the upper-right
corner of the chart to add chart elements like axis titles or data labels, to customize the look
of your chart, or to change the data that’s shown in the chart.

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 Tips:
 Use the options on the Design and Format tabs to customize the look of your chart.

 If you don't see these tabs, add the Chart Tools to the ribbon by clicking anywhere in the
chart.

Add a trendline

On your chart, click the data series to which you want to add a trendline or moving average.
The trendline will start on the first data point of the data series you choose.

Click the Chart Elements button next to the upper-right corner of the chart.
Check the Trendline box.
To choose a different type of trendline, click the arrow next to Trendline, and then click Exponential,
Linear Forecast, or Two Period Moving Average. For additional trendlines, click More Options.
If you choose More Options, click the option you want in the Format Trendline pane under
Trendline Options.

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 If you select Polynomial, enter the highest power for the independent variable in the Order box.
If you select Moving Average, enter the number of periods to use to calculate the moving average in
the Period box.
Tip: A trendline is most accurate when its R-squared value (a number from 0 to 1 that reveals how
closely the estimated values for the trendline correspond to your actual data) is at or near 1. When
you add a trendline to your data, Excel automatically calculates its R-squared value. You can display
this value on your chart by checking the Display R-squared value on chart box (Format Trendline
pane, Trendline Options).

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 Range Names

Name is a meaningful shorthand that makes it easier to understand the purpose of a cell reference,
constant, formula, or table, each of which may be difficult to comprehend at first glance. The
following information shows common examples of names and how they can improve clarity and
understanding.

Example Type Example with no name Example with a name

Reference =SUM(C20:C30) =SUM(FirstQuarterSales)

Constant =PRODUCT(A5,8.3) =PRODUCT(Price,WASalesTax)

Formula =SUM(VLOOKUP(A1,B1:F20,5,FALSE), -G5) =SUM(Inventory_Level,-Order_Amt)

Table C4:G36 =TopSales06

Types of names

There are several types of names that you can create and use.
Defined name A name that represents a cell, range of cells, formula, or constant value. You can
create your own defined name, and Microsoft Office Excel sometimes creates a defined name for
you, such as when you set a print area.
Table name A name for an Excel table, which is a collection of data about a particular subject that
is stored in records (rows) and fields (columns). Excel creates a default Excel table name of Table1,
Table2, and so on, each time that you insert an Excel table, but you can change a table's name to
make it more meaningful. For more information about Excel tables, see Using structured references
with Excel tables.

The scope of a Name

All names have a scope, either to a specific worksheet (also called the local worksheet level) or to
the entire workbook (also called the global workbook level). The scope of a name is the location
within which the name is recognized without qualification. For example:
If you have defined a name, such as Budget_FY08, and its scope is Sheet1, that name, if not
qualified, is recognized only in Sheet1, but not in other sheets without qualification.
To use a local worksheet name in another worksheet, you can qualify it by preceding it with the
worksheet name, as the following example shows:
Sheet1!Budget_FY08
If you have defined a name, such as Sales_Dept_Goals, and its scope is the workbook, that name is
recognized for all worksheets in that workbook, but not for any other workbook.

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 A name must always be unique within its scope. Excel prevents you from defining a name that is not
unique within its scope. However you can use the same name in different scopes. For example, you
can define a name, such as GrossProfit that is scoped to Sheet1, Sheet2, and Sheet3 in the same
workbook. Although each name is the same, each name is unique within its scope. You might do this
to ensure that a formula that uses the name, GrossProfit, is always referencing the same cells at the
local worksheet level.
You can even define the same name, GrossProfit, for the global workbook level, but again the scope
is unique. In this case, however, there can be a name conflict. To resolve this conflict, by default
Excel uses the name that is defined for the worksheet because the local worksheet level takes
precedence over the global workbook level. If you want to override the precedence and you want to
use the workbook name, you can disambiguate the name by prefixing the workbook name as the
following example shows:
WorkbookFile!GrossProfit
You can override the local worksheet level for all worksheets in the workbook, with the exception of
the first worksheet, which always uses the local name if there is a name conflict and cannot be
overridden.
Defining and entering names
You define a name by using the:
Name box on the formula bar This is best used for creating a workbook level name for a selected
range.
Create a name from selection You can conveniently create names from existing row and column
labels by using a selection of cells in the worksheet.
New Name dialog box This is best used for when you want more flexibility in creating names, such
as specifying a local worksheet level scope or creating a name comment.
Note: By default, names use absolute cell references.
You can enter a name by:
Typing Typing the name, for example, as an argument to a formula.
Using Formula AutoComplete Use the Formula AutoComplete drop-down list, where valid names
are automatically listed for you.
Selecting from the Use in Formula command Select a defined name from a list available from the
Use in Formula command in the Defined Names group on the Formulas tab.

Hyperlinks

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 Create a hyperlink to an existing file or webpage

On a worksheet, click the cell where you want to create a hyperlink.

Tip You can also select an object, such as a picture or an element in a chart you want to use to
represent the hyperlink.
Do one of the following:
You can also right-click the cell or graphic and then click Hyperlink, or you can press Ctrl+K.
On the Insert tab, in the Links group, click Hyperlink.

Under Link to, click Existing File or Web Page.

Do one of the following:
To enter the name and location of a known file or webpage that you want to link to, type that
information in the Address box.

To locate a Web page, click Browse the Web , open the Web page that you want to link to, and
then switch back to Excel without closing your browser. Or, to use recently linked pages, click
Browsed Pages and then click the web.
To select a file, click Current Folder, and then click the file that you want to link to or, to use recently
used files click Recent Files, and then click the file.
Tip You can change the current folder by selecting a different folder in the Look in list.
If you want to create a hyperlink to a specific location in the file or on the webpage, click Bookmark,
and then double-click the bookmark that you want to use.
Note The file or webpage that you are linking to must have a bookmark.
In the Text to display box, type the text that you want to use to represent the hyperlink.
To display helpful information when you rest the pointer on the hyperlink, click ScreenTip, type the
text that you want in the ScreenTip text box, and then click OK.

Create a hyperlink to a new file

On a worksheet, click the cell where you want to create a hyperlink.

Tip You can also select an object, such as a picture or an element in a chart you want to use to
represent the hyperlink.
Do one of the following:
You can also right-click the cell or graphic and then click Hyperlink, or you can press Ctrl+K.

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 On the Insert tab, in the Links group, click Hyperlink.

Under Link to, click Create New Document.

In the Name of new document box, type a name for the new file.
Tip To specify a location other than the one shown under Full path, you can type the new location
preceding the name in the Name of new document box. Or you can click Change to select the
location that you want and then click OK.
Under When to edit, click Edit the new document later or Edit the new document now to specify
when you want to open the new file for editing.
In the Text to display box, type the text that you want to use to represent the hyperlink.
To display helpful information when you rest the pointer on the hyperlink, click ScreenTip, type the
text that you want in the ScreenTip text box, and then click OK.

Create a hyperlink to a specific location in a workbook

To link to a location in the current workbook or another workbook, you can either define a name for
the destination cells or use a cell reference.
To use a name, you must name the destination cells in the destination workbook.

How to name a cell or a range of cells

Select the cell, range of cells, or nonadjacent selections that you want to name.

Click the Name box at the left end of the formula bar .

In the Name box, type the name for the cells, and then press ENTER.
Note: Names can't contain spaces and must begin with a letter.
On a worksheet of the source workbook, click the cell where you want to create a hyperlink, and
then do one of the following:
Tips: You can also select an object, such as a picture or an element in a chart that you want to use
to represent the hyperlink.
Right-click the cell or graphic and then click Hyperlink, or you can press Ctrl+K.
On the Insert tab, in the Links group, click Hyperlink.

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 Under Link to, do one of the following:
To link to a location in your current workbook, click Place in This Document.
To link to a location in another workbook, click Existing File or Web Page, locate and select the
workbook that you want to link to, and then click Bookmark. Do one of the following:
In the Or select a place in this document box, under Cell Reference, click the worksheet that you
want to link to, type the cell reference in the Type in the cell reference box, and then click OK.
In the list under Defined Names, click the name that represents the cells that you want to link to,
and then click OK.
In the Text to display box, type the text that you want to use to represent the hyperlink.
To display helpful information when you rest the pointer on the hyperlink, click ScreenTip, type the
text that you want in the ScreenTip text box, and then click OK

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 How to Set Up Conditional Formatting
The Conditional Formatting button in the Styles group of the Home tab in Excel 2016 enables you to
apply provisional formatting to a cell range based solely on the categories into which its current
values fall. Should you edit the numbers in the cell range so that their values fall into other
categories, the program automatically changes their cell formatting to suit.
Click the Conditional Formatting button in the Styles group of the Home tab, a drop-down menu
appears with the following options:

 Highlight Cells Rules opens a continuation menu with various options for defining formatting
rules that highlight the cells in the cell selection that contain certain values, text, or dates;
that have values greater or less than a particular value; or that fall within a certain ranges of
values.
 Top/Bottom Rules opens a continuation menu with various options for defining formatting
rules that highlight the top and bottom values, percentages, and above and below average
values in the cell selection.
 Data Bars opens a palette with different color data bars that you can apply to the cell
selection to indicate their values relative to each other by clicking the data bar thumbnail.
 Color Scales opens a palette with different two- and three-colored scales that you can apply
to the cell selection to indicate their values relative to each other by clicking the color scale
thumbnail.
 Icon Sets opens a palette with different sets of icons that you can apply to the cell selection
to indicate their values relative to each other by clicking the icon set.
 New Rule opens the New Formatting Rule dialog box where you define a custom conditional
formatting rule to apply to the cell selection.
 Clear Rules opens a continuation menu where you can remove conditional formatting rules
for the cell selection by clicking the Clear Rules from Selected Cells option, for the entire
worksheet by clicking the Clear Rules from Entire Sheet option, or for just the current data
table by clicking the Clear Rules from This Table option.
 Manage Rules opens the Conditional Formatting Rules Manager dialog box where you edit
and delete particular rules as well as adjust their rule precedence by moving them up or
down in the Rules list box.

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