Spreadsheet programs are powerful tools to view, calculate, and visualize sets of tabular data. The tables have values, equations, and functions that are manipulated in cells that are organized into rows and columns. As values within the spreadsheet change, the dependent calculations in the workbook are updated.

Both Microsoft Excel and Google Spreadsheets will be used in this course although other tools such as OpenOffice can also be used.

Microsoft Excel is not a programming language but does include an integrated development environment for recording and running macros. Excel macros are a series of commands that can be repeated to operate repeatedly on different sets of data. This language is known as Visual Basic for Applications. This course first reviews spreadsheet programming and then extends the spreadsheet capabilities with Visual Basic for Applications.

As an introduction to Excel, the following tutorial demonstrates how to navigate through a workbook, create worksheets, select active cells, input equations, browse available formulas, and other basic Excel functions.

Generative AI Learning

Use these prompts to test your understanding after working through the tutorial. Direct the AI - build the worksheet yourself before asking it anything.

Tip: This is also the week to set up your AI toolchain for the semester: complete Part 1 of Engineering Computing with AI Assistants, which installs the course TA skill and sets the specify-generate-verify pattern used in every assignment that follows.

What to Turn In

Submit a short report (PDF, 1-2 pages) with your homework that curates your results into a demonstration of what you learned. You may use Generative AI to help write the report, but you must guide it to the correct worksheets, justifications, and assumptions. Answer these questions:

1. Build a small engineering table (for example, tank volume V = pi*r^2*h for 5 tank sizes, or a temperature unit-conversion table) and include two screenshots: normal view and formula view (Ctrl+`). Point out one relative and one absolute reference and say why each is the right choice.
2. Change one input cell and show that dependent cells updated. Verify one updated value with a hand calculation.
3. From the flawed-explanation prompt: what was the planted error, and did your 3-row test worksheet confirm the correct behavior?
4. From the quiz prompt: one question you missed and the corrected answer.