Electronic 6 Spreadsheets The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution. Bertrand Russell LEARNING OBJECTIVES After studying this chapter you should be able to: 1. Define the terms used to identify the parts of an electronic spreadsheet. 2. Find online and program resources for learning how to use the program and its features. 3. Create and save an electronic spreadsheet. 4. Use some of the special features of spreadsheets, including creating graphics. 129
130 Chapter 6 OPENING SCENARIO Mr. Mason and Caitlin were preparing for a labor negotiating session the following day.they had been working on the different proposals and possible counterproposals for a number of days.there were at least a dozen different possibilities for how much each of the demands and offers would cost. He needed to be able to quickly calculate what the costs and benefits would be, based on any number the other side might throw out on the table. He needed to quickly assess whether the total costs and bottom-line benefits to the employees were within the negotiating authority and budgets, and basically if the proposal made any sense. There were a fixed number of employees with current salary and hour information available.what he needed was the ability to quickly calculate what the cost for each proposal would be, based on the different percentage increases proposed, the individual fringe benefit cost, and a total per employee and total for all employees, during the negotiating session without having to leave to have the figures calculated. Caitlin had taken a course in preparing and using spreadsheets, which had saved a lot of time in doing calculations in a complex estate that required consideration of a number of alternative tax and estate planning strategies. Mr. Mason was hoping his paralegal could do the same thing in this case because without an electronic spreadsheet it would take hours to get through the session,and the other side always seemed to have the numbers at their fingertips. INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRONIC SPREADSHEETS Many areas of legal practice involve calculating and presenting financial information. In family law practice, the preparation of family and personal balance sheets and income and expense reports are routinely prepared for support and equitable distribution hearings. Wills, trusts, and estate practices frequently must calculate the financial impact of taxes on different estate plans, or prepare and submit an accounting to beneficiaries or to the court for approval, with details showing how the fiduciary handled the financial affairs of the estate or trust. Trial attorneys must account to clients for the proceeds of settlements, including details of the receipts and disbursements from the case and in some cases, like minors compromises and class action cases, to the court for approval. The computerized spreadsheet, when laid out in the format acceptable to the court, can be printed without reentering the data, or copied into word documents. For many applications in legal practice there are templates with formulas for calculating the information needed, such as an electronic spreadsheet version of the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) sheet used in real estate settlements or closings. Electronic spreadsheets have reduced the potential for error in manually calculating or retyping amounts or in using formulas for calculation. The tedium of manually completing a worksheet by hand to recalculate a small change is eliminated by instant reproduction of the template or spreadsheet and changing a number to determine its effect on the rest of the calculation. The use of computer spreadsheets reduces the errors associated with manual mathematical calculations and errors in retyping the information. Caution must be taken to make sure that the formula is accurate and performs the desired calculation. Even expert spreadsheet users use a set of sample numbers to test the formulas, knowing what the result should be, based on prior use or calculations.
Electronic Spreadsheets 131 CREATING AND WORKING WITH SPREADSHEETS As you look at the following spreadsheet examples and at the templates provided online from Microsoft, Corel, and other sources you will note a number of different presentation styles and degrees of complexity. A spreadsheet in its most basic form is any two items with some relationship that is acted upon mathematically and the result presented in a third location (called a cell). Spreadsheets are frequently used in situations requiring many complex calculations, like in what-if tables in complex estate planning. Some people specialize in developing these complex spreadsheets using complex mathematical formulas and then designing a user friendly appearance or format. With an understanding of what the spreadsheet can be used to accomplish, you will be able to express what you need to present and what the relationships of the data are to someone else, like the in-house IT person or outside computer consultant to get what you need. Row A horizontal set of cells in a spreadsheet. Column A vertical set of cells in a spreadsheet. Cell In a spreadsheet, the box at the intersection of a row and column for text or numerical data. NAVIGATING IN ELECTRONIC SPREADSHEETS Spreadsheets use standard terms to describe the parts of the spreadsheet, such as rows, columns, cells, formula bar, active cell and formula, and workbooks, as shown in Exhibit 6.1. These cells are values. Formula Bar In Excel, the area at the top of the spreadsheet for entering formula and data into spreadsheet cells. Workbook A collection of worksheets. Where rows and columns intersect is a cell. This is cell A1. Cells A1 to A23 are labels. The value of this cell has been changed. SUM function =SUM(B10:B21) adds the values in B10 through B21. Formula (=B8 B22) subtracts Total Expenses (cell B22) from Total Income (cell B8). This entire page is a worksheet. One or more worksheets make up a workbook. An additional row of information has been added. These cells have been recalculated after changes were made to the spreadsheet. Exhibit 6.1 Names of parts of a spreadsheet, using Excel 2003 as a sample spreadsheet.
132 Chapter 6 Exhibit 6.2 Excel 2007 Ribbon view of Excel Spreadsheet (reproduced from the Excel tutorial Overview). WWW MINI EXERCISE The Excel 2003 courses from Microsoft available online may be accessed at http://office. microsoft.com/en-us/training/ CR061831141033.aspx WWW MINI EXERCISE The Excel 2003 Overview tutorial may be accessed at http://office.microsoft.com/trai ning/training.aspx?assetid=r C011234971033 The Excel 2007 Overview tutorial may be accessed at http://office.microsoft.com/trai ning/training.aspx?assetid=r C100620751033 Property Bar In Quattro Pro, the area at the top of the spreadsheet for entering formula and data into spreadsheet cells. Excel 2007 and its new Ribbon design changes the appearance of the user interface and some of the other items, including the menus and toolbar and layout, as shown in Exhibit 6.1, but does not change the names of the basic parts of a spreadsheet, as shown in Exhibit 6.2, or change the basic functions for which a spreadsheet is used. As with other Microsoft Office Suite 2007 programs, the 2007 version uses tabs, groups, and command buttons in the groupings to carry out a command or display a menu of options for access to the features and functions formerly accessed using the menus and toolbars. RESOURCES FOR LEARNING AND USING ELECTRONIC SPREADSHEETS As seen in the chapter on word processing, most vendors of software provide help in learning and using the software. Microsoft offers a number of online tutorials, some of which are listed in Exhibit 6.3, which shows those for Excel 2003. An example is shown in Exhibit 6.4. Corel s Quattro Pro provides tutorials within the program that can be used without the need for an internal connection to a website. Exhibit 6.5 shows a partial list of the available tutorials and Exhibit 6.6 shows the contents of a tutorial, in this case on using the property bar. The property bar in Quattro Pro appears above the column letters and is a context sensitive set of commands. (Context sensitive means it changes according to what is being worked on.)
Exhibit 6.3 Online tutorials available for learning Excel 2003. Exhibit 6.4 Excel online tutorial Overview. 133
Exhibit 6.5 Partial list of tutorials available in Quattro Pro. Exhibit 6.6 Quattro Pro online tutorial screen. 134
Electronic Spreadsheets 135 Excel 2007 offers a series of options, as shown in Exhibit 6.7, selected by a left mouse click on the question mark symbol in the top right of the Excel frame. In addition to the global help, content specific help is offered in select program options as shown in Exhibit 6.8 for the Pivot Table feature. Exhibit 6.7 options. Excel 2007 Help Exhibit 6.8 Pivot Table program Help.
136 Chapter 6 CREATING A SPREADSHEET As shown in Exhibit 6.9, in a decedent s estate, the calculation involved may be as simple as multiplying the number of shares owned by a decedent by the value on the date of death, and then calculating the profit or loss when the stock was sold. Without a computerized spreadsheet, all of the calculations would have to be done manually, using a multicolumn form known as a spreadsheet or accountant s working papers. The information then would have to be typed in a report format for submission to the court, the beneficiaries, and/or the taxing authorities. Using a computerized spreadsheet such as Microsoft Excel or Corel Quattro Pro, the numbers are entered in cells, and a formula assigned to the cell in which the result is to be displayed, such as: multiply Column E [Number of Units] by Column F [Cost per Unit] and display the result in Column G [Original Cost] CREATING A BASIC SPREADSHEET First Start with what you want the spreadsheet to show or calculate. Creating a Spreadsheet Checklist What do you want to do? What are the inputs? What is the desired outcome? What are the formulas? What columns are needed? Exhibit 6.9 Estate Asset Ledger modified from an Excel 2007 template downloaded from the Microsoft Excel website.
Electronic Spreadsheets 137 For example: Create a Dollar-Euro Conversion Chart, another chart where one item (column) will be multiplied (or divided, added, or subtracted) by another item (column) to arrive at a total. What do you want to do? What are the inputs? What is the desired outcome? What are the formulas? Example Calculate the number of Euros I will get for a dollar. Number of dollars Current value of Euro Number of Euros Dollars times Euro conversion rate $100 0.86 = 86 Euros Second Create the column labels. Setting up an electronic spreadsheet is a little like setting up the columns in a table, with each column having a heading; in this example, Dollars, Conversion Rate, and Euros. The label can be in any row, but in this example it is in Row 1. Third Enter a formula. The cell (row and column) in which the answer will be calculated must contain the desired formula. In the example shown in Exhibit 6.10 it is Cell C2 (the intersection of Column C and Row 2). Each time you place your cursor in a cell, a window opens for input of the formula in the property bar (Quattro Pro) or formula bar (Excel). Electronic spreadsheets have many potential formulas that can be used from the very simple (add two numbers) to the complex (calculate the present or future value of a number). In Quattro Pro the @sum( ) formula is the most basic and with a little effort can be used for most applications. The @sum symbol-word combination tells the program you want to calculate the information found between the parentheses ( ); in this example, to multiply the amount in Cell A2 times the amount in Cell B2 and put the result in Cell C2. Note: In Microsoft Excel the = sign is used instead of the @ used in Quattro Pro. Exhibit 6.10 Dollar-Euro conversion spreadsheet. Note that the calculation resides in Cell C (intersection of Column C and Row 2).
138 Chapter 6 Exhibit 6.11 To change a label in Quattro Pro, type the desired words in the property bar. Basic Mathematical Function Symbols Used in Spreadsheets Multiply * Divide Add + Subtract - To add a set of numbers you enter a formula, such as, @sum(a1+b1+c1) To multiply a series of numbers @sum(a1*b1*c1) To divide one number by another @sum(a1/b1) Note that there are no spaces between formula symbols, letters, and numbers. While the example shows the numbers in adjacent columns, they don t have to be. Any cell can be used from anywhere in the spreadsheet with any other cell in the spreadsheet, such as @sum(a1+c3+e40). EDITING A LABEL Just as a formula can be entered or changed by editing it in the property bar, so can a label. A label can be entered by typing it in a cell, or by selecting the cell and typing it in the property bar (see Exhibit 6.11). Editing is easier if done in the property bar since all the letters do not have to be retyped. If you edit words in a cell, all of the letters have to be retyped. SPREADSHEET TEMPLATES Many offices save spreadsheet templates in the same way that sample word processing documents are saved for future use. For example, a real estate settlement spreadsheet with formulas and headings may be saved without amounts. Because the formulas do not change and the form has proven accurate, it may be used as a template for other clients real estate settlements. Exhibit 6.12 shows a HUD real estate settlement Excel
Electronic Spreadsheets 139 Formula in Active Cell Columns Menu/Toolbar Rows Active Cell: Column H Row 32 Exhibit 6.12 Excel spreadsheet template created for HUD real estate settlements. spreadsheet with its parts identified. Notice the similarity in the menu bar and toolbar between Excel and MS Word. Corel s Quattro Pro electronic spreadsheet is similar in function and appearance to Microsoft s Excel. As shown in Exhibit 6.13, Quattro also allows for personal customization in the way the program functions and displays items. In most programs a selection from the active screen is made by using the mouse to point to it and left-clicking the mouse button. Some readers may wonder what the right mouse button is for; the right mouse button usually brings up context sensitive options, like the Quattro Pro Options menu. Pointing at the top of the Quattro page in the bar with the name of the program and file name and location and right clicking brings up the Options menu for the program. Selections are then made using the left button. TEMPLATES PROJECTS Quattro provides the option when creating a new spreadsheet to use Project Templates or Projects (see Exhibit 6.14). These are similar to the templates provided in Excel for use in Excel.
Exhibit 6.13 Options in Quattro Pro spreadsheet allow for personal customization. Exhibit 6.14 Selecting the project Legal from Quattro Pro s options menu. 140
Electronic Spreadsheets 141 One question often asked is, can Excel templates be used in Quattro Pro? As described in the following boxed insert, the answer is no. TEMPLATES FROM MICROSOFT A number of spreadsheet templates are available for download from the Microsoft website by selecting the template option when creating a new spreadsheet. Most of the templates will work with the more current versions of Excel; however, some will only work with a specific version, such as Excel 2007. Always check the compatibility before downloading. The spreadsheet in Exhibit 6.15 is a weekly timesheet template downloaded from the online Microsoft template resource. Cell G24 has been selected and highlighted to show the formula in the formula bar (Excel) or property bar (Quattro) used to calculate the total of the entries that will be made in column G. Note that the references are to a total (SUM) of the cells G7 through G23 using this formula shortcut: =SUM(G7:G23). The same total could be calculated using the formula: =SUM(G7+G8+G9+G10+G11+G12+G13+G14+G15+G16 +G17+G18+G19+G20+G21+G22+G23). Note again that there are no spaces between symbols, numbers, and letters. FAQ FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS OPENING A MICROSOFT EXCEL TEMPLATE IN QUATTRO PRO Question Can I open Microsoft Excel templates.xlt files in Quattro Pro? Answer No, you can t open Microsoft Excel templates.xlt files in Quattro Pro because they are not supported. Microsoft Excel and Quattro Pro have similarities, but they are proprietary applications that are built using different architectures. This makes it difficult to successfully convert templates. Exhibit 6.15 Weekly Timesheet Template in Excel 2007 showing formula for total hours.
142 Chapter 6 SPREADSHEET SECURITY Most office suite applications can be password controlled for security. The example in Exhibit 6.16 from the Excel 2003 tutorial shows the method for limiting access to an Excel spreadsheet. For comparison purposes Exhibit 6.17 shows the Review tab, Changes group options, and the Protect Workbook commands in Excel 2007. As with other Office 2007 programs, an Office Button feature Prepare provides a number of security options, including inspections of the document for hidden metadata as shown in Exhibit 6.18, as well as the ability to encrypt the file with a password, or to restrict access similar to that shown in Exhibit 6.17. SPECIAL FEATURES OF ELECTRONIC SPREADSHEETS Each spreadsheet has a choice of tools and features that may be displayed on the toolbars for quick use. Exhibit 6.19 shows the Microsoft Excel standard buttons. Exhibit 6.16 Limiting access in an Excel 2003 spreadsheet.
Electronic Spreadsheets 143 Exhibit 6.17 Excel 2007 Protect Workbook options. Exhibit 6.18 The Office Button shows security options in Excel 2007. One of the more useful is the AutoSum button, shown as the Greek letter sigma (Σ) found in Excel 2007 (highlighted in Exhibit 6.20) in the Home tab and in the Formulas tab in the Function Library Group as shown in Exhibit 6.21. This applies the selected function; for example, Sum (add up), the selected cells in any row or column without typing any formula.
Exhibit 6.19 toolbar. Standard options available on Excel Exhibit 6.20 Choose Σ for the AutoSum feature in Excel. 144
Electronic Spreadsheets 145 Exhibit 6.21 Excel 2007 Formulas tab. Exhibit 6.22 Choosing a graph template in Excel 2003. GRAPHING IN SPREADSHEETS Data in a spreadsheet are frequently better explained in the form of a graph. In Excel any selection of cells can be converted to a graph using the Chart Wizard button on the toolbar. The Chart Wizard automatically converts the information in the cells into any one of a number of graphic representations, as shown in Exhibit 6.22. This is a graph of a portion of the information from a template downloaded from the Microsoft website. The new Ribbon style screen view of Excel 2007 is shown in Exhibit 6.23. CHANGE As mentioned in Chapter 5, change is as inevitable in software as it is in life. There have been significant changes in the functionality of the Quattro Pro and Excel spreadsheets from prior versions. What has not changed is the basic function to compute rows and columns of numerical data. The changes generally make the job easier, minimizing the number of keystrokes required, like the use of the sum function shown in Exhibit 6.20. Prior users will find the older functions, but possibly in a different location, and additional features. INTEGRATED SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS A number of specialty software programs provide practice-area specific software. The real estate practice software such as that from Softro prepares all the necessary forms to complete a real estate transaction instead of using multiple individual software programs including spreadsheet, database, and word processing software. The Excel spreadsheet template in Exhibit 6.12 is an example of the individual spreadsheet templates created
146 Chapter 6 and used in many offices. The template provides spaces for the entry of the information and embedded formulas are used for automatic computations. Programs such as Soft- Pro use a series of input screens, as shown in Exhibit 6.24, to capture and calculate the necessary information that is then transferred to the appropriate forms to create the Hud-1, as shown in Exhibit 6.25. The information is saved in a database for use in producing the other documents required for the real estate closing and title documents, including deed descriptions and tax reporting forms. Exhibit 6.23 Excel 2007 Ribbon view of graphing options. Exhibit 6.24 SoftPro Escrow Automation Solutions input screens.
Electronic Spreadsheets 147 Exhibit 6.25 HUD-1 produced using the SoftPro ProForm software. Source: Images courtesy of SoftPro, www.softprocorp.com. SUMMARY INTRODUCTION TO ELEC- TRONIC SPREADSHEETS CREATING AND WORKING WITH SPREADSHEETS NAVIGATING IN ELECTRONIC SPREADSHEETS RESOURCES FOR LEARNING AND USING ELECTRONIC SPREADSHEETS Many areas of legal practice involve calculating and presenting financial information. The computerized spreadsheet, when laid out in the format acceptable to the court, can be printed without reentering the data, or copied into word documents. For many applications there are templates with formulas for calculating the information needed, such as an electronic spreadsheet version of the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) sheet used in real estate settlements. The use of computer spreadsheets reduces the errors associated with manual mathematical calculations and errors in retyping the information. A spreadsheet in its most basic form is any two items with some relationship that is acted upon mathematically and the result presented in a third location. Spreadsheets use standard terms to describe the parts of the spreadsheet, such as rows, columns, cells, formula bar, active cell and formula, and workbooks. As seen in the chapter on word processing, most vendors of software provide help in learning and using the software. Microsoft offers a number of online tutorials. (continued)
148 Chapter 6 CREATING A SPREADSHEET EDITING A LABEL SPREADSHEET TEMPLATES SPREADSHEET SECURITY SPECIAL FEATURES OF ELEC- TRONIC SPREADSHEETS GRAPHING IN SPREADSHEETS Using a computerized spreadsheet such as Microsoft Excel or Corel Quattro Pro, the numbers are entered in cells, and a formula assigned to the cell in which the result is to be displayed. Start with what you want the spreadsheet to show or calculate. What do you want to do? What are the inputs? What is the desired outcome? What are the formulas? What columns are needed? Just as a formula can be entered or changed by editing it in the property bar, so can a label. A label can be entered by typing it in a cell, or by selecting the cell and typing it in the property bar. Many offices save spreadsheet templates in the same way that sample word processing documents are saved for future use. Most office suite applications can be password controlled for security. Each spreadsheet has a choice of tools and features that may be displayed on the toolbars for quick use. AutoSum button, shown as the Greek letter sigma ( ), applies the selected function; for example, Sum (add up) the selected cells in any row or column without typing any formula. Data in a spreadsheet are frequently better explained in the form of a graph. KEY TERMINOLOGY Cell Column Formula bar Property bar Row Workbook CONCEPT REVIEW QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES 1. What are macros? What is the danger in using them? 2. What are the security features available in Excel? 3. Define the terms used to identify the parts of an electronic spreadsheet. 4. What steps may be taken to locate and use the resources for learning how to use Excel or Quattro Pro programs and their features?
Electronic Spreadsheets 149 5. List the steps in creating and saving an electronic spreadsheet. 6. Create a spreadsheet that shows your grades for a course, or a list of five numbers in the range of 1 to 100, including the average of all the grades or numbers listed. Use the graphics feature to prepare a graph. 7. What are the steps that can be taken to protect an Excel workbook? 8. Use the Euro to Dollar conversion chart as a guide to creating a spreadsheet to calculate total billing by multiplying a number of hours (try 26.4 hours) by a billing rate (try $125). What is the difference in billing if the rate is reduced to $90 per hour? 9. Prepare a spreadsheet for a. support calculations b. payroll computations c. time and billing worksheet INTERNET EXERCISES 1. Download the Investment Ledger from the Microsoft website. Print out the graph Investment Chart. 2. Complete the Microsoft Office online tutorial Audio Course: Get to Know Excel: Create Your First Workbook. 3. Complete the Microsoft Office online tutorial Get to Know Excel: Enter Formulas. PORTFOLIO ASSIGNMENTS 1. Prepare a procedure and related forms for requesting the creation of a spreadsheet. 2. Prepare a presentation on the uses of an electronic spreadsheet as a productivity tool. SCENARIO CASE STUDY Use the opening scenario for this chapter to answer the following questions. The setting is an attorney and paralegal preparing for a labor negotiation session. 1. What should the attorney know about using a spreadsheet in the negotiation session? Prepare a memo for the attorney to use in preparing for the negotiation session. 2. What information should the attorney convey to the paralegal to enable the paralegal to prepare an electronic spreadsheet? 3. How much of the spreadsheet can be set up ahead of time? Explain fully with examples. 4. What hardware or software will the attorney need for the meeting? Be specific and explain the reasons.
150 Chapter 6 CONTINUING CASES AND EXERCISES 1. Prepare a spreadsheet for recording the time slips for the office. a. What headings are needed? b. See the rates previously mentioned. c. Enter all of your time information accumulated since Chapter 1. d. Sort the information by the billing function performed. 2. Prepare a spreadsheet for calculating the payroll for the office. ADVANCED EXERCISES 1. Copy the table created in Chapter 5 and paste it into a spreadsheet. 2. Modify the table to add the necessary formula to calculate billing and payroll information. 3. Identify the additional functions that the spreadsheet can perform.