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Best in Excel for Science Nerds

March 28, 2011 by admin Leave a Comment

You admit it. You’re not a math nerd; you go more for the scientific look.

Here are some ideas to get you even more excited about the universe using Excel.

Study the solar system by creating a spreadsheet that allows for planet name, year length, climate, etc.
Make a timeline of astronaut flights to the moon. Take into consideration astronauts from other countries.
Keep track of statistics. Try these “Interactive Excel Spreadsheets” that include options in Radioactive decay, Temperature Scales, Blackbody Radiation and the Solar System at: http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/.
Graph your scientific data. See one here at: http://lamesq2000000.blogspot.com/2008/08/blog-post.html.
Plan out your next science project using a simple spreadsheet. What will need to be done, first, second, third—last? What days will you work on your project? What’s your budget, and how much money was spent? Keep track and include with your science project.
Produce a science weather log. Get ideas here: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/results.aspx?qu=logs.
Make a science minded word find or crossword puzzle.
Design a science game.
Get the low-down on Math and Science tables here: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/CT010253077.aspx.
Get the Climate Science add-ins from Excel, “Data Mining” and “Compatible Alternative” respectively.
Get the best Excel Graph Science Templates for Kids here: http://www.freedownloadscenter.com/terms/excel-graph-science-templates-for-kids/kids.html.
Try this great site for geosciences and the use of Excel. Get example activities for beginner and moderate spreadsheet users. http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/mathstatmodels/geo_excel.html.
Get terrific ideas on Excel and science from the World Conference on Educational Sciences 2009. The article entitled, “Using the Excel Spreadsheet in Teaching Science Subjects,” can be obtained as a PDF through sciencedirect.com.

And remember to keep on flying. The best ideas in Excel for those interested in Science may yet travel to the end of the universe…

Filed Under: Excel, Spreadsheet Tagged With: Climatology, Microsoft Excel, Spreadsheet

Used Computers

January 18, 2011 by admin Leave a Comment

The tumbling economy has created a fast growing niche in used computers. Computers tend to become outdated quickly. New better and powerful computers seem to hit the market every six months. Like cell phones, computers are constantly changing. It is impossible for most people to keep up with the developing technology.

Most people are tightening their budgets and are growing accustomed to finding ways to save money. Many people are looking for cheap ways to replace their old computers. Since technology changes so quickly, many people do not want to invest too much money in a computer.

Used computer shops are popping up everywhere. In many shops, you can trade your old computer for an updated refurbished computer. You will receive a credit for your old computer that you can apply to the purchase of the refurbished computer. The low prices are significant and you can find many computers for under $300. The price depends on whether you choose a desktop or laptop. It also depends on the features you choose such as the size of available memory and RAM.

Before buying a used computer, you want to research several of the local used computer retailers in your area. You want to choose a retailer that has been in business for a long time and has a good reputation. You can easily check with your local Better Business Bureau to check complaints and ratings of each business.

You also want to inquire about the return policy of the establishment. If all sales are final once you leave the store, this may indicate issues with the computers the store sells. You also want to inquire if there is some kind of guarantee in case you have problems with the used computer.

Buying a used computer is a more affordable option for people on tight budgets.

Filed Under: General, Spreadsheet Tagged With: Better Business Bureau, Random-access memory, Trade

The Sparkline Summaries

December 12, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Words tangle. Numbers blur. Information has become obscure, unable to be understood. The endless lines of a spreadsheet (no matter how efficient, no matter how precise) overwhelm. There is too much data to decipher and too little desire to do so. And you stare at a file, wondering how your employer could have thought this to be acceptable. The entire… year is outlined, and the months all lose their meanings when trapped so closely together. You can’t read this chart. You can only look away.

This is an all too easy situation — and it’s also one that could be just as easily avoided.

Stuffing spreadsheets with information is understood as necessary. This does not make them wanted, however. Individuals (such as yourself) can grow weary of the endless cells. The facts contained within them are simply too much to bear.

They don’t have to be.

Through the use of Excel those facts can instead be offered quickly — and efficiently. And the process only requires sparklines.

Simply explained, sparklines are the insertions of individual charts within rows. They can be placed beside data, explaining it in a graph (rather than forcing readers to examine every single cell). The trends of a specified period of time can be viewed, allowing for all increases, decreases and stagnations to be understood. A singular glance can unravel a whole year.

And this is invaluable for those who must look at spreadsheet after spreadsheet. Sparklines allow for a fast comprehension of all pertinent information. All details are still offered. They are simply drawn. This enables them to be recognized and absorbed — traits that are too often lost when relying purely on numbers.

Excel’s ability to create impeccable rows and statistics could never be denied; but its inclusion of sparklines ensures that even casual viewers can gain value from it. All data can be given and all trends can be observed.

Excel makes it possible. Sparklines make it easy.

Filed Under: Excel, Spreadsheet Tagged With: Data, Excel, Microsoft, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office 2007, Sparkline, Spreadsheet

Sizing Capabilities: Excel

December 11, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

It was once a limitation of data, a force of minuscule facts: spreadsheets could be crafted virtually, typed into a computer; but they couldn’t offer the necessary space. All columns were to be shallow. All rows were to be small. Cells couldn’t be overwhelmed with information. They were instead to be protected from it, offered only the essential details. New files were constantly needed, just to keep the programs from failing.

Excel has changed all of that.

With the introduction of their 2010 program, Microsoft has discovered a way to enjoy the comforts of a computer while still creating the necessary documents. Size is no longer a concern. It can be instead be countered:

One: Speed. Excel — despite its many innovations — was once burdened by slow speeds, the loading lulls. Large files were difficult to transfer, forcing users to wait for tedious minutes. That worry has been erased, however. The experience is a now quick one, even with hefty documents. The program won’t falter.

Two: Consistency. A download creeps across the screen, its progress weak, its rewards fading. This is the third attempt to achieve completion and you think there will be a fourth to follow. A file is simply too massive to attach, and the process is wavering. With Excel this is no longer a problem. It’s capable instead of efficient — and consistent — attachments.

Three: Copying. The movement of data, the copy and paste of words, often leaves you wary. Too often do files simply… disappear, unable to withstand the sudden rush of characters and columns. With Excel, however, you can place information into new documents with ease. Shifting from clipboards to blank pages will not be a burden.

Documents were once confined to simple lines, meager rows. Spreadsheets were meant to be tiny. Excel has reinvented the computer concept, however, and allows users to now form the files they need — without a care for space, length or size.

Filed Under: Excel, Microsoft, Software, Spreadsheet Tagged With: Cut copy and paste, Excel, Microsoft, Microsoft Excel, Spreadsheet, Visual Basic for Applications

Walking Through, Gaining Confidence: Excel

December 10, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Software is a confusion: this is an unfortunate truth, and one you must admit daily. Technology baffles, forcing you to stumble through keyboard commands, to wince with every failed attempt of mastery. A computer is necessary, you know, but that doesn’t make it understood. And, when you’re told that you must begin using Microsoft’s Excel program for your career, your first reaction is to… panic.

Spreadsheets seem complicated. Graphs seem unlikely. And the notion of sparklines is met with utter bewilderment. You don’t recognize the terms and phrases; you don’t know the steps and tools. And you worry that your employer will think you unworthy of his trust (as well as that promotion you’ve been trying to earn).

There is way to counter the software deficiencies, however — use a walk-through.

Defined simply: a walk-through is a comprehensive guide to any unknown process. Each action is carefully charted, allowing the individual to move through them all slowly. Every detail is discussed. Every contingency is offered. It enables for an easy understanding of technology, without demanding worry in return.

And for those who fret over Excel it can be invaluable.

Allow users who have already explored the facets of a program to chart them out for you. Learn everything from collecting numbers to binding data fields to customizing files. All functions can be offered to you, with the tools and endless buttons all explained. A walk-through will even provide security suggestions, helpful hints and the potential applications (ones that you may not have considered for Excel before).

Don’t assume that this program can’t be conquered. It can — and it has been. You can take advantage of the efforts of others, allowing them to offer the advice you need. Learn what you wish and gain the confidence to succeed.

Excel isn’t impossible to understand. You simply need assistance to do this. Walk-throughs are available throughout the online world and will prove to be essential. Use them.

Filed Under: Excel, Microsoft, Software, Spreadsheet Tagged With: Excel, Function (mathematics), Microsoft, Microsoft Excel, Spreadsheet, Statistics

Simple Budgeting With Spreadsheets

December 10, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

The new year is coming up again and what plans have you made for your budget next year? Maybe you’ve decided to find out where all that vanishing money is going. Maybe you have chosen to spend your money on pet insurance, too many shopping trips, or just realized that food and gas prices have gone up. Most businesses use digital spreadsheets to track their budgets — and you can too.

Once you open a spreadsheet, you’ll see a large page divided into cells. The first cell up in the left corner is box ‘A1,’ because it’s in column A and is on row 1. Don’t be intimidated; using a spreadsheet is easy. It is a great tool to plan out all of your necessary spending like health insurance, food, pet insurance, gas for you car, even space to save for retirement.

In cell B2, type ‘Income.’ Push tab to go to C2 (the cell to the right of B2) and type in your monthly income after taxes.

Now for your bills. Click B4 and type in ‘Bills.’ Push tab again and type your first bill in C4, like pet insurance or utilities. Don’t worry about adding the amount of each one yet; that’s in the next step. Push enter and add the next bill. Keep going down the column until you’ve added all your monthly bills.

Click in the cell to the right of each bill and begin to enter the amount of each one. The name and the amount have to be in separate boxes. For example, the box for ‘Rent’ should have it’s amount in the box to the right.

Once you have all your amounts entered, go to the end of the amounts column and click in the box below the last one. Here comes the tricky part. Type ‘=SUM(C4:C10)’ and push enter. If you have a lengthy number of bills, replace C10 with the last amount box. This little code will add all of your bills.

Lastly, in the box right below ‘Income,’ type in ‘Dis. Income.’ Push tab, type in ‘=C2-C11′ and push enter. Replace C11 with the total bill amount from the last step and you’re done. This is your disposable income.

Filed Under: Excel, Spreadsheet, Tips

The Foundation of Excel

November 20, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

: Image by computerjoe via Flickr

Microsoft Excel sits on your desktop and in your Microsoft Office and yet you probably don’t have the faintest clue exactly what it is you are looking at. Maybe you have never worked with it or in a business or school setting where it has been shown to you. But excel has one of the better inventions out of the mircosoft office. It is a spreadsheet software that features things like calculation, graphing tools, pivot tables and even it’s own programming language called visual basic for applications. It’s a spreadsheet for the different platforms.

Excel has the basics of any other spreadsheet. It uses a grid of cells and it arranges it in numbered rows and columns and will organize and arrange data just like a math equation. It has supplied functions that allow it to answer any issue that you might give it while working on a project. This is an important business tool as so much of the business world utilizes spreadsheets to show investment returns, to calculate budgets or even just to have payroll numbers in there. It has become just as much a part of the bookkeeping as it has anything else. Part of the reason it’s so important is because it can be partitioned. You can section off part of the information logged and see how it works or how dependent it is on other variables in the equation.

Its other strength is that the VBA will allow you, the user, to try solving different math problems and then report those problems back to the spreadsheet. And of course it has different programs and applications that can allow the spreadsheets to be hid from the user while other problems are solved or until the user is in need of them again. Excel is not your cut and dry spreadsheet. There is no question about that.

Filed Under: Excel, Spreadsheet Tagged With: Microsoft, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office, Pivot table, Programming language, Spreadsheet, VBA, Visual Basic for Applications