By David Ringstrom, CPA Previously I’ve explained how you can use worksheet functions in Excel to determine the payment for a loan, as well as how to calculate total interest in a single worksheet cell. This time around I’m going to use the NPER function in Excel to show you how you can determine just …
May 06
The End Is Near for Windows XP
By David H. Ringstrom Despite three subsequent Windows releases, Windows XP remains the second most popular operating system version. This cycle started when users eschewed Windows Vista, even though Microsoft redeemed itself with Windows 7. In turn, Microsoft again alienated its customers with major user interface changes in Windows 8. Regardless, the 38 percent of …
Apr 26
Excel Tip: Use Conditional Formatting to Identify Unlocked Cells
by David Ringstrom, CPA In a previous article, I described a technique that lets you tell at a glance if an individual cell is unlocked within a worksheet. In this article, I’ll demonstrate how you can use conditional formatting to identify all unlocked cells within a worksheet range. This can serve both as an …
Apr 26
Resetting the Last Cell in an Excel Worksheet
By David Ringstrom, CPA It’s frustrating when Excel acts as if the active area of a worksheet is significantly larger than the actual area where you have data. Suddenly your scroll bars move you into uncharted areas, such as column TX or row 5,000. In programming parlance, this is known as the “used range” of …
Apr 19
Sticker Shock Awaits Sage 50/Peachtree Payroll Service Users
By David Ringstrom, CPA The 2014 version of Sage 50, formerly known as Peachtree Accounting, is available for purchase now. As a result, certain users who rely on the payroll subscription are going to experience sticker shock in the near future. Historically, you could purchase a Sage 50/Peachtree Accounting product and pay an additional …
Apr 14
Determining Worksheet Cell Protection at a Glance
By David Ringstrom, CPA It can be frustrating when you’re working in an unfamiliar worksheet and “the cell or chart you are trying to change is protected” prompt appears on-screen. By default, you can’t easily tell at a glance if a cell is locked or not, but in this article, I’ll show you how …
Apr 05
Creating a Series of Letters in Excel
By David Ringstrom, CPA By its very nature as a spreadsheet, it’s easy to create a series of numbers in Excel. For instance, you can enter the number 1 in cell A1, hold down the Ctrl key, and drag the fill handle in cell A1 down to create an instant series of numbers. For …
Mar 25
Microsoft Excel: Inserting Rows and Columns with Ease
By David Ringstrom, CPA Spreadsheet users frequently insert rows and columns into spreadsheets, but for most users, it’s a multiple-step process. Even savvy users who rely on keyboard shortcuts have to use two different shortcuts in sequence. In this article, I’ll explain how you can create your own custom shortcut to insert rows or columns …
Mar 15
Recovering Unsaved Excel Workbooks
By David Ringstrom, CPA It’s every spreadsheet user’s worst nightmare – you’ve worked on a workbook for a period of time, and then accidentally close it without saving. Or the power goes out, or Excel crashes . . . the list of spreadsheet hazards goes on and on. If you’re using Excel 2010 or later, there’s a …
Mar 07
How to Disable Worksheet Animation in Excel 2013
By David Ringstrom, CPA Excel 2013 has arrived, and for the most part, it’s much like Excel 2007 and 2010, but with some spiffy new features, such as Recommended Charts and Pivot Tables, Flash Fill, Quick Analysis, Power View, and more. I’ll be exploring these features in upcoming articles, but first I want to show …
Mar 05
Restoring Classic Print Preview in Excel 2010/2013
By David Ringstrom, CPA Long-term Excel users will recall that Excel has historically provided a separate Print Preview window that made it easy to zoom in and adjust settings. Excel 2010 introduced a new “Backstage View” where print preview became embedded into the File menu. Excel 2013 continues this new tradition, but you can get …
Feb 15
Part 1 on Identifying Duplicate Values in an Excel List
By David H. Ringstrom, CPA From time to time, you may need to identify duplicate values with a list in Excel. Modern versions, including Excel 2007 and later, provide this capability with just a few mouse clicks. For good measure, I’ll also describe a worksheet function-based approach that works in any version of Excel. …
Feb 06
New Features in Excel 2013
Microsoft has posted a list of new features in Excel 2013. Most center around pivot tables, but this list has some gaps, such as the new =FORMULATEXT function that can display a formula from another cell.
Feb 01
Microsoft Office 2013 Officially Released
By David Ringstrom, CPA The latest incarnation, or rather incarnations, of Microsoft’s flagship productivity suite were released on January 29, 2013. The plural reference is a nod toward both the web-based Office 365 version as well as the new Office 2013 desktop versions. Microsoft is offering pricing inducements aimed at encouraging users to subscribe to …
Feb 01
Free Spreadsheet-Based Form 1040 Available for 2012 Tax Year
By David H. Ringstrom, CPA Fresh from our pull-back from the fiscal cliff, it’s not just the IRS that’s been madly updating forms for the 2012 filing season. Right on schedule, Glenn Reeves of Burlington, Kansas has released his sixteenth spreadsheet-based version of the US Individual Tax Return, commonly known as Form 1040. Since 1997 …