Basic Arithmetic in a cell - Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and exponentiation are done with +, 1 , *, /, and ^. The variable is replaced by a cell reference. Multiplication needs to be explicit. (We need x*y) rather than xy.) Raising to a power of e is done with the EXP() function.
One feature to remember is that Excel uses a slightly different order of operations compared to what is used in all math classes. Excel interprets -5^2 as (-5)^2 rather than -(5^2).
Arithmetic with commands - Excel has commands for normal arithmetic operations, SUM(), PRODUCT(), QUOTIENT(), and POWER(). In practice, we will only use SUM(), which can be used on a list.
Showing all the formulas on a page Under the Formulas tab, the show formulas item from the show button shows all the formulas on the page. An image of the button 1.3.2 is in the section.
Quick fill Is used when we want to repeat a cell or collection of cells many times. You select a group of cells, then position the cursor over the dot in the lower right corner of the selection. The shape of the curve will change. Click and drag to fill. Formulas are modified according to the rules of relative and absolute references. A screencast is in the Basic Arithmetic video 1.3.1
Relative and absolute references - When Copying formulae from one cell to another, either with copy and paste, or with quick-fill, it is important to understand relative and absolute cell references. Suppose we are moving a formula from cell A1 to cell B3. (We are going one column over and two rows down.) A relative reference changes with the formula location. =F5 becomes =G7. An absolute reference stays the same and has dollar signs, $, to fix an index. For the same move, =$F$5 stays =$F$5.
We can also fix either the rows or columns by using dollar signs, $. Moving from cell A1 to cell B3, the formula =F$5 becomes =G$5 and =$F5 becomes =$F7
