2: Starting a Workbook in Excel 2007

You will need to know how to insert text and numbers into Excel workbooks to be able to use it to calculate, analyze, and organize data. In this lesson, you will learn how to create a new workbook, insert and delete text, navigate a worksheet, and save an Excel workbook.

Your First Workbook

To Create a New, Blank Workbook:

• Left-click the Microsoft Office Button.
• Select New. The New Workbook dialog box opens and Blank Workbook is highlighted by default.

• Click Create. A new, blank workbook appears in the window.

When you first open Excel, the software opens to a new, blank workbook.

To Insert Text:

• Left-click a cell to select it. Each rectangle in the worksheet is called a cell. As you select a cell, the cell address appears in the Name Box.

• Enter text into the cell using your keyboard. The text appears in the cell and in the formula bar.

Each cell has a name, or a cell address based on the column and row it is in. For example, this cell is C3 since it is where column C and row 3 intersect.

To Edit or Delete Text:

• Select the cell.
• Press the Backspace key on your keyboard to delete text and make a correction.
• Press the Delete key to delete the entire contents of a cell.

You can also make changes to and delete text from the formula bar. Just select the cell and place your insertion point in the formula bar.

To Move Through a Worksheet Using the Keyboard:

• Press the Tab key to move to the right of the selected cell.
• Press the Shift key and then the Tab key to move to the left of the selected cell.
• Use the Page Up and Page Down keys to navigate the worksheet.
• Use the arrow keys.

To Save the Workbook:

• Left-click the Microsoft Office Button.
• Select Save or Save As.
• Save As allows you to name the file and choose a location to save the spreadsheet. Choose Save As if you'd like to save the file for the first time or if you'd like to save the file as a different name.
• Select Save if the file has already been named.

You can save a workbook in many ways, but the two most common are as an Excel Workbook, which saves it with a 2007 file extension, and as an Excel 97-2003 Workbook, which saves the file in a compatible format so people who have earlier versions of Excel can open the file.