Introduction to Excel Yitzchak Rosenthal

Order of Operations

Complex formulas

• You can use several operations in one function
• You can group those operations with parentheses
• Examples

=3*2+1

=c1*(a1+b1)

=(100*a2-10)+(200*b3-20)+30

=(3+2*(50/b3+3)/7)*(3+b7)

Order of operations

• When using several operations in one formula, Excel follows the order of operations for math.
• first: all parentheses - innermost first
• second: exponents (^)
• third: all multiplication (*) and division (/). Do these starting with the leftmost * or / and work to the right.
• fourth: all addition (+) and subtraction (-). Do these starting with the leftmost + or - and work to the right.

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

• The sentence "Please excuse my dear aunt Sally" is a popular mneumonic to remember the order of operations: Menumonic Meaning
• Please parentheses
• Excuse exponents
• My Dear mulitplication and division (going left to right)
• Aunt Sally addition and subtraction (going left to right)

Order of operations

• The value of 3 + 2 * 5 is 13 NOT 25!

Order of operations

3 + (100 - 20) / 10 - 6 * 2 / 4 + 9
3 + 80 / 10 - 6 * 2 / 4 + 9
3 + 8 - 6 * 2 / 4 + 9
3 + 8 - 12 / 4 + 9
3 + 8 - 3 + 9
11 - 3 + 9
8 + 9
answer: 17

Cntrl-`

• To see the formulas in the worksheet
• Press the Cntrl key at the same time as you press the ` key (i.e. Cntrl-`)
• Press Cntrl-` again to see the values

Functions

What is a function?

• A function is a "named operation"
• Functions have
• a name
• parentheses
• parameters/arguments inside the parentheses
• The words parameter and argument mean the same thing
• you can have many parameters for one function separated with commas (,)
• The number of parameters is one more than the number of commas.