Spreadsheet programs are very versatile. Microsoft Excel, for example, can help just about any small business organize finances, employee information and tracking inventory lists. If you have the right spreadsheet software information, you can use it to keep track of just about any data that is important for your company. You can also use spreadsheets to print and email information to anyone else in the company who needs access to it.

Budget spreadsheets used by home offices and businesses can be difficult to learn, but learning their advanced features is well worth the effort. You can find many resources for spreadsheet software education and training, including:

1. Training courses provided by software companies.

2. Spreadsheet software demos and tutorials that explain how best to use a program's features.

3. Online courses or seminars that can be taken any time

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Explore spreadsheet software info and tutorials to learn more about the program

Most software companies want you and your company to get the most out of its software program. And to do that, you need to be trained in basic and advanced features. Often companies will provide detailed tutorials, demos, and user guides to help with understanding specific aspects of the program.

I recommend: GuidesandTutorials.com provides a comprehensive tutorial for Microsoft Excel 2003 edition. Spreadsheet 123 provides many different tutorials for Excel, including basic tutorials for beginners and more advanced tutorials for those who are familiar with much of the program.

Learn about Excel and other spreadsheet programs through training courses

Excel is a versatile software program, but it is very complex. For this reason, many companies provide extensive Excel software training for a wide range of businesses, including finance and accounting. These courses can take a person who has never seen the program before and teach them the skills they need to create workable spreadsheets for their business.

I recommend: Like many other community colleges, Santa Monica College offers courses on accounting spreadsheets and advanced Excel techniques. Eastern Shore Community College provides a more general spreadsheet software course, but also teaches the MOS Excel objectives.

Learn payroll spreadsheets software through online courses

While getting a classroom education can be helpful for many who need to learn a new program, you can also take advantage of online courses that provide the same information packaged in a more convenient and cost-effective manner. Online courses usually take less time to complete, and many allow you to review your course materials for up to a year after you finish the course.

I recommend: Microsoft Office Online provides many short online courses that teach skills in Excel, such as formulas and printing options. LearningElectric.com offers online video tutorials that teach basic and advanced skills in Excel.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Many spreadsheet software programs, such as Google spread sheet software, offers training and support options for those who purchase their business package. Such packages provide connection to experts who can help you work out any support issues.

Until the next great product comes along, Microsoft's Excel program is the bestselling spreadsheet software application on the market. For newcomers to spreadsheet software, spreadsheets were first developed in the 1970s as a computer simulation of a traditional business accountant paper worksheet, comprised of rows and columns that form a grid of cells. Each grid cell in a spreadsheet might contain financial numeric values, words, or formulas that specifically automate sums and value configurations.

For many users, the chief attribute of spreadsheet software is that it allows users to lay out complex financial data including business costs, income, taxes, and other expenses on one easy-to-read "page."

Before you make a purchase, ask yourself the following questions and be sure to research spreadsheet software information to help you determine the answers:

1. Is your work style best served by a web-based spreadsheet application or a desktop spreadsheet software product?
2. What spreadsheet software best serves your computer's operating system?
3. Would you prefer a standalone spreadsheet software product or software that's part of an office suite?
4. Can the spreadsheet software import other file formats?
5. Can the spreadsheet software easily integrate charts and graphs, or can the user create the graphic elements within the application? Will you need to use charts or graphs for your business? Can the software create a combination chart that might include several types of charts such as a pie chart, a flow chart, and a bar chart?
6. What's the maximum number of rows, columns, and cells that the software can display on a spreadsheet?
7. If you're more technically oriented, does the program allow you to create your own spreadsheet calculation formulas?
8. Does the spreadsheet software offer special print control functions?

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Review frequently-asked-questions (FAQs) that best explain what the spreadsheet software does

Because there are many different types of spreadsheets, there may be specific spreadsheet software info that you'll need to know to differentiate one product from another. Some spreadsheet programs are simple and straightforward. Others have a much steeper learning curve. If you're new to spreadsheet software, you may want an intelligent overview of what these products have to offer.

I recommend: John Walkenbach, or J-Walk, former PC World Magazine spreadsheet software expert, has a website that includes The Spreadsheet Page which is a brief history of spreadsheets and a list of links to spreadsheet software information. Additionally, John includes links to a variety of Excel software user tips as well as resources for other spreadsheet applications.

Visit official product websites to find out more about specific spreadsheet software

While Excel software is the market leader, other spreadsheet applications offer their own unique features. See which one of the many free Excel templates or free downloads of spreadsheet software demos best suits your business needs.

I recommend: Download the free 60-day trial of the Microsoft Excel program in its Office Professional suite. Lotus 1-2-3 is one of the original spreadsheet software products. You can search for more information on this IBM product and others in the Lotus SmartSuite user forums. Corel offers an online resource called CorelTUTOR which includes free online tutorials for its Quattro Pro spreadsheet application (part of the WordPerfect Office suite). OpenOffice Calc is an open-source free spreadsheet software application developed by Sun Microsystems as part of their OpenOffice business suite, competing directly against Excel. With OpenOffice, you can create budget spreadsheets for home office and business office and the full OpenOffice.org suite is available to download for free.

Visit websites oriented toward online collaboration using specific spreadsheet programs

If distance collaboration is part of your business, online spreadsheets may be right for your business.

I recommend: With EditGrid, you can upload existing spreadsheets for online collaboration with colleagues. Take an online tour of the Google spread sheet software called Google Docs, an easy-to-use collaborative spreadsheet application. Another available online spreadsheet is Jotspot Spreadsheets, which includes an importable cut-and-paste Excel sheet function.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Because spreadsheets can become densely populated with entered values, there are spreadsheet comparison software products available that can compare two spreadsheets which seem to be identically populated, and can immediately identify conflicting entries.
• •  Selecting the right spreadsheet software for your business can be a highly subjective decision depending on your business's individual criteria and your personal bookkeeping and brainstorming style.

A spreadsheet is made up of cells and you can enter data into each of them. This data is either numbers, letters or formulas. You can then format the data depending on how you want to see it. You can add or remove places after the decimal point, adding a dollar sign or a negative sign, and make letters all caps or small letters.

Sometimes you need to do the same task repeatedly; for these tasks, you can create macros. Finally, if you need to do the same thing each week or month you can make worksheets, which will make your job easier.

Although Microsoft Excel isn’t the only spreadsheet software, it dominates much of the spreadsheet information you'll find. This isn’t to say that you can’t use the information for other spreadsheets. However, most of the information in this guide is about Microsoft Excel.

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Cells

A cell is a block that is designated by a row and column, such as A1 in a spreadsheet. A1 is the cell in the first row of the first column on a blank spreadsheet.

I recommend: GuidesandTutorials.com describes a cell in detail. The site shows you an example of a cell, how to select a cell and how to edit it.

Toolbars

Toolbars are the buttons or icons you will commonly use when making or editing your spreadsheet. You can customize them to work for you.

I recommend: Adept Science provides information on customizing toolbars.

Formulas

A formula is what you use when you want to do an arithmetic function with a cell such as addition, subtraction, multiplication or division.

I recommend: Microsoft provides examples of frequently used Excel formulas

Formatting

Formatting is what you do to a cell to customize it. You can put in a dollar or cents, center the data or put the data in all caps, to name a few options. In fact, there are many ways to format your cell.

I recommend: Tech Republic shows you an easy to way to highlight rows and columns in Excel.

Macros

An Excel macro is a set of commands that can be triggered by a keyboard shortcut, toolbar button or an icon in a spreadsheet. Macros are used to remove the necessity of repeating the steps of common tasks over and over. You can create a macro and perform it when you want to complete a task quickly.

I recommend: Anthony's VBA Page has a tutorial that walks you through macros.

Data

Data is the information you enter in each cell. It can be a number, a label or a formula. Often, you can import and export data sets in and out of the program.

I recommend: Using Technology in Education shows how to enter and manipulate data in a spreadsheet.

Most people looking for spreadsheet software info look to Microsoft Excel. Excel is the most common spreadsheet, and is sold as part of the Microsoft Office Suite. Recently, though, there have been some free alternatives to Microsoft's pricey office bundle that are gaining popularity. ThinkFree Office, OpenOffice and Google Docs all offer a free spreadsheet component.

There are certain do's and don'ts that are universal to any type of spreadsheet, and also more specific advice tailored to each individual program. Check out the following online resources that cover spreadsheet software for beginners:

1. Learn best and worst practices with all spreadsheet software.
2. Get up and running in the Microsoft Excel program.
3. Find out how to use the Google spreadsheet software.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Get everyone on the same page with best practice spreadsheet software information

If you're getting your business up and running and want all of your employees--and yourself--on the same page, it's a good idea to implement a uniform approach to spreadsheets. It doesn't matter whether you're using the Excel software or some other free spreadsheet software. It's best to set certain standards from the beginning.

I recommend: The CFO Publishing Corporation has compiled a great set of spreadsheet resources that includes "worst practices" to avoid, links to free tutorials and notes from the annual spreadsheet summit. BPM Analytical Empowerment has developed Best Practice Spreadsheet Modelling Standards that provide universal rules for spreadsheet development. You can download the standards for free, or send your employees to a training course.

Implement the Microsoft Excel program quickly and easily with beginner guides and free templates

Microsoft Excel is the predominant spreadsheet software in the business world. Because it's been around for so long, it's incredibly easy to find training resources for your employees and yourself. If you're not sure where to start, you can download templates to help you get started.

I recommend: You can find free Excel templates for everything from asset tracking and expense reports to amortization schedules at Vertex42. They also have articles on topics like creating Excel functions and using shortcuts. MrExcel Consulting has a huge database of Excel tutorials and tips. The Baycon Group has free Excel 2007 tutorials, and Microsoft has online training for Excel 2003 and 2007.

Save money by using the free Google spread sheet software

If you're starting up a new business and looking to cut costs, you can use the spreadsheet software in Google Docs. Google Docs has shaped up to be a major competitor to the expensive Microsoft Office suite. The Google Spreadsheet application doesn't have some of the advanced features of Excel, but if all you need is a basic spreadsheet it's perfect.

I recommend: You can take a tour of Google docs on the Google website. The website wikiHow has a beginner's tutorial on using Google Spreadsheets. MSOffice-Tutorial-Training.com explains how Google Docs stacks up to Microsoft Office. If you're still on the fence, read a review of Google Spreadsheets on CBS Interactive.