I've bent Excel over backwards doing things that it's not meant to do. I believe I'm an average user, maybe a notch above. This means knowing some of the lesser known tricks, but not a pro at pivots or creating elaborate financial spreadsheets. I have used pivots, but nothing heavy-duty.
This book is 820 pages, but half of it has room for notes on the left page that has Notes, My Tips/Shortcuts, and Related Tips for finding similar tips like the one on the current page. You can see what these look like in Amazon's "Search inside" feature. The book has 322 tips and even with as many pages as it has, it's surprisingly lightweight. I have books that are half its size and weigh more.
I also like the bookmarks on the side of the pages. Finding the part of interest is easy. The first page of a part lists the subjects covered and their bookmarks. These subject bookmarks appear with their related tips for quick referencing. You can use the index to find what you need.
Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003 are covered. Each tip lets you know which versions of Excel can use it. In a majority of the tips, all versions are covered so no one with a specific version of Excel gets fewer tips than others.
Part I addresses the new features in Excel 2002 and 2003. It's very brief, so those who have it already won't feel like they're paying for useless information. The price is appropriate for a book of this size with the tips provided and the Excel versions covered. I won't rehash what each part covers as Amazon's "Search inside" also lists them and the complete index.
The writing is formal and stiff, but easy to follow. I had no trouble understanding the directions… most of the time. The screen shots fill in the gap when the tips aren't clear. Newcomers and seasoned users of Excel will benefit from the book. Those who are pros will need to study the table of contents using "Search inside" and decide whether or not the book meets their needs. The quick referencing guide, the format, and the screen shots provide the extra boost.
Originally posted at meryl.net articles
Article comments
1 - Deano
I always find that, as 90% of the functionality of the programs are never used by the average user, most guides can be a bit of a waste unless you are a power user. And then finding the info you need in the book is always a pain.
I like using quick reference sheets for progams myself. Try Nevada Learning Series at www.nlearnseries.com. They're pretty good, I find they cover most of the primary functions and tasks you need as an average user in six pages...
2 - alienboy
i've been using puters for over 10 years now and still can't create anything more complex than a simple invoice in Excel. It was a real struggle and the "help" files were, as usual, no help at all. I don't feel this book would be able to help me either...