Excel Instructions

CAUTION: Read Appendix A for specific instructions relating to these templates.

1.  Enter the appropriate numbers/formulas in the shaded (gray) cells.  An asterisk (*) will appear to the right of an incorrect answer.

2.  A formula begins with an equals sign (=) and can consist of any of the following elements:

      Operators such as + (for addition), - (for subtraction), * (for multiplication), and / (for division).

      Cell references, including cell addresses such as B52, as well as named cells and ranges

      Values and text

      Worksheet functions (such as SUM)

3.  You can enter a formula into a cell manually (typing it in) or by pointing to the cells.

     To enter a formula manually, follow these steps:

           Move the cell pointer to the cell that you want to hold the formula.

          Type an equals sign (=) to signal the fact that the cell contains a formula.

          Type the formula, then press Enter.

4.  Rounding:  These templates have not been formatted to round numbers to either the nearest whole number or the nearest cent.  For example, 

     17.65 x 1.5=26.475.  The template will display 26.48 but hold 26.475. Since you want to use 26.48 you will need to use Excel's rounding function.  

     In order to tell Excel to round to the nearest whole penny you must enter the formula as:  =round(17.65*1.5,2).  This tells Excel to multiply 17.65 x 1.5, then round to 2 decimals. Excel will now display and hold the amount as 26.48.

5. Remember to save your work.  When saving your workbook, Excel overwrites the previous copy of your file.   You can save your work at any time. 

You can save the file to the current name, or you may want to keep multiple versions of your work by saving each successive version under a different name.

To save to the current name, you can select File, Save from the menu bar or click on the disk icon in the standard toolbar.  

It is recommended that you save the file to a new name that identifies the file as yours, such as Chapter_7_long_version_Your_Name.xlsx

To save under a different name, follow these steps:

       Select File, Save As to display the Save As Type drop-box, chose Excel Workbook (*.xlsx)

       Select the folder in which to store the workbook.

       Enter the new filename in the File name box.

       Click Save.

Chapter-7-payroll-problem