UNIT-1

INTRODUCTION TO WORD PROCESSOR, SPREADSHEET AND

PRESENTATION TOOLS

A word processor (more formally known as document preparation system) is

a computer application used for the production (including composition, editing,
formatting, and possibly printing) of any sort of printable material.

A word processor may also refer to a stand-alone computer unit similar to a

typewriter, but often including technological advancements such as a screen,
advanced formatting and printing options, and the ability to save documents onto
memory cards or diskettes. Word processors almost invariably allowed the user
to choose between standard typing and word processing modes by way of a
switch. Such word processors should not be confused with an electric typewriter.

Word processors are descended from early text formatting tools (sometimes
called text justification tools, from their only real capability). Word processing
was one of the earliest applications for the personal computer in office
productivity.

Word processing is the ability to create documents using a word processor. It

can also refer to advanced shorthand techniques, sometimes used in specialized
contexts with a specially modified

Although early word processors used tag-based markup for document formatting,
most modern word processors take advantage of a graphical user interface. Most
are powerful systems consisting of one or more programs that can produce any
arbitrary combination of images, graphics and text, the latter handled with type-
setting capability.

Microsoft Word is the most widely used computer word processing system;
Microsoft estimates over five hundred million people use the Office suite. There
are also many other commercial word processing applications, such as
WordPerfect. Open-source applications such as OpenOffice's Writer and KWord
are rapidly gaining in popularity.

Characteristics

Word processing typically refers to text manipulation functions such as automatic

generation of:

• batch mailings using a form letter template and an address database (also
called mail merging);
• indices of keywords and their page numbers;
• tables of contents with section titles and their page numbers;
• tables of figures with caption titles and their page numbers;
• cross-referencing with section or page numbers;
• footnote numbering
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History of word processing

Word processing developed as specialised programs on mainframe computers

during the 1970s as online computing with the use of personal terminal devices
having keyboards and display screens became more common. These programs
evolved from text based editors used by programmers and computer
professionals. Microprocessors and, in the late 1970s, the ability to place
intelligent devices on the desks of workers at reasonable cost including cheaper
and smaller printers, led to the introduction of machines dedicated to "word
processing". These were primarily aimed at typists, particularly those in
centralised typing pools where other workers sent handwritten notes or
dictaphone tapes to be transcribed into documents that could be printed and
returned for reviewing. Considerable time saving economies were achieved by
word processing operators. This resulted from:

• the faster typing speeds achieved by as a result of electronic keyboards

• the assistance of the word processing software for functions like layout
and spell checking.

Time savings

Further time savings were gained because the originators of documents could
mark corrections and additions, return them for revision in the electronic files and
then re-review without checking the entire document again for new errors but
only checking the updates. Not only were economies gained but superior
presentation and layout was achieved with the use of multiple fonts and superior
print quality, when compared with typewriters. These advantages led to a rapid
replacement of typists with word processing operators, especially as the word
processing systems evolved to give more powerful functions and the power to
cost ratio for electronic equipment continued upwards exponentially (refer to
Moore's Law).

Personal computers

For a few years word processing was very much centralised in the way that
typing was. The special word processing systems were still too expensive and
complex to become general issue. However, this began to change rapidly as the
PC began to appear on desktops throughout organisations, with general staff
doing their own typing and document preparation.

By the early 1990s, the typing and word processing pool had disappeared. The
evolution of word processing software continued with both increased ability and
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ease of use as PC's increased in power and as graphical user interfaces (GUIs)
became the norm. The early text only applications become powerful document
creation packages able to manipulate images as well as text to create
publications to a standard that would previously only be achievable by
professional typesetters and printers. Not only had the typing pool disappeared
but the career of typist too, with ordinary workers doing all their own typing and
document creation and increasingly by direct entry from thoughts into electronic
form, via a PC keyboard, without any drafting of ideas onto paper.

Commercial evolution

This evolution from typing using mechanical devices to electronic word

processing systems to a do-it-yourself PC based packages, provided commercial
opportunities as well as pit-falls. Companies rose and grew strong and then
declined and even disappeared as a result of the fast changes that were
occurring. Perhaps the best example of a company that became very successful
on the back of specialised word processing systems was Wang Computers but
then collapsed when it lost its revenue from word processing systems and was
not able to substitute newer forms of computing quickly enough. Olivetti is
another company that struggled to migrate from mechanical typewriter devices to
word processing systems and then to PC computing.

Introduction to Using Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet application that allows you to easily track,

manage, perform calculations on, and
Analyze almost any type of data. You can enter the data yourself or you can
import it from another source. In
Addition, you can use the data that you store in a spreadsheet to make
customized graphical charts for
Presentations that can be placed on the web or printed for distribution.
Excel consists of a grid with rows and columns that make it easy to keep your
information organized. Once you
have entered information into the cells of your spreadsheet, you can format the
data in any way that you wish.
Excel allows you to apply formulas to adjacent cells so that you can add,
subtract, multiply and divide numbers.
Excel also provides you with easy-to-use built-in functions that perform even
more complex calculations from
averaging to time calculations. Whether you want to sort lists containing
volunteer information, create an easy to
use time-sheet, or calculate costs for events; Microsoft Excel can be a valuable
tool in helping you keep your
program organized and efficient.
By the end of this session, you will be able to:
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• Recognize the components and functions of the Excel interface

• Build a spreadsheet structure that fits your particular program’s needs
• Enter data into the spreadsheet and perform necessary edits
• Understand the basics of working with formulas
• Format your worksheet to have a consistent look and feel
• Create a chart using the data from your spreadsheet
• Save and/or print your spreadsheet in multiple formats

A spreadsheet is a rectangular table (or grid) of information, often financial

information. The word came from "spread" in its sense of a newspaper or
magazine item (text and/or graphics) that covers two facing pages, extending
across the center fold and treating the two pages as one large one. The
compound word "spread-sheet" came to mean the format used to present
bookkeeping ledgers—with columns for categories of expenditures across the
top, invoices listed down the left margin, and the amount of each payment in the
cell where its row and column intersect—which were traditionally a "spread"
across facing pages of a bound ledger (book for keeping accounting records) or
on oversized sheets of paper ruled into rows and columns in that format and
approximately twice as wide as ordinary paper.

Microsoft Excel Features

Find and replace Finding and replacing data in Excel includes great new options
to match formats and search an entire workbook or worksheets.

Sending a range Sending out mid-month reports and summaries just got easier.
Select a range on your worksheet, click E-mail on the Standard toolbar, type an
introduction to the report, and then send it without spending extra time on the
task.

Insert and delete columns while filtering You can insert and delete columns with
AutoFilter turned on in Excel. You can even undo the action and preserve any
applied filtering.

Cell Pointer (Active Cell): The cell pointer indicates the currently selected Cell.
Menu Bar: The various menus provide you with access to the features and
Commands used in Excel.
Edit Line: Displays the contents of the selected cell. You can edit content here or
in the cell itself.
Standard Toolbar: Provides standard file management, text editing and Proofing
commands.
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Formatting Toolbar: Provides commands for formatting cells and the Content of
cells.
Column Heading Buttons: The labels for the columns. You can select a Column
by clicking on the column heading button.

Introduction to Using Microsoft Excel

Row Heading Buttons: The labels for the rows. You can select a row by Clicking
on the row heading button.
Tab Scrolling Buttons: These buttons allow you to scroll forward or back a Sheet
or to jump to the first or last sheet.
Sheet Tabs: The labels for the sheets. You can select a particular sheet by
Clicking on the appropriate sheet tab.
Status Bar: The status bar provides you with information about the current Sheet
or operation being performed.
Scroll Bars: The scroll bars allow you to move the view of the document. Scroll
through your document by clicking the arrows next to the scroll bars or clicking
and dragging the bars themselves.

Working with Data Entering Data

When you open Excel, a new workbook will open for you. The workbook can be
made of a single worksheet or multiple sheets. We will be entering data on the
first worksheet, with headings at the top of each column of data we will be adding
to our spreadsheet. Excel gives you the ability to customize the page to look any
way you like. In this example we will be entering typical volunteer
information that we will then use for other functions in Excel, such as totaling,
sorting and gathering.
To enter data into cell in your spreadsheet, you must first move to the cell. Either
click on the cell with your mouse or use the arrows to navigate to the cell in which
you would like to enter data.

About creating presentations

Creating a presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint involves starting with a basic
design; adding new slides and content; choosing layouts; modifying slide design,
if you want, by changing the color scheme or applying different design templates;
and creating effects such as animated slide transitions. The information below
focuses on the options available to you when you start the process.

The New Presentation task pane in PowerPoint gives you a range of ways with
which to start creating a presentation. These include:

Blank Start with slides that have minimal design and no color applied to them.
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Existing presentation Base your new presentation on one that you have already
written and designed. This command creates a copy of an existing presentation
so you can make the design or content changes you want for the new
presentation.

Design template Base your presentation on a PowerPoint template that already

has a design concept, fonts, and color scheme. In addition to the templates that
come with PowerPoint, you can use one you created yourself.

Templates with suggested content Use the AutoContent Wizard to apply a

design template that includes suggestions for text on your slides. You then type
the text that you want.
A template on a Web site Create a presentation using a template located on a
Web site.
Create a presentation using blank slides
 On the Standard toolbar, click New.
 If you want to keep the default title layout for the first slide, go to step 3. If
you want a different layout for the first slide, in the Slide Layout task pane,
click the layout you want.
 On the slide or on the Outline tab, type the text you want.
 To insert a new slide, on the toolbar, click New Slide , and click the layout
you want.
 Repeat steps 3 and 4 for each new slide, and add any other design
elements or effects you want.
 When you finish, on the File menu, click Save, type a name for your
presentation, and then click Save

Create a presentation using a design template

 If the New Presentation task pane isn't displayed, on the File menu, click
New.
 Under New, click From Design Template.
 In the Slide Design task pane, click a design template that you'd like to
apply.
 If you want to keep the default title layout for the first slide, go to step 5. If
you want a different layout for the first slide, on the Format menu, click
Slide Layout, and then click the layout you want.
 On the slide or on the Outline tab, type the text for the first slide.
 To insert a new slide, on the toolbar, click New Slide , and click the layout
you want for the slide.
 Repeat steps 5 and 6 to keep adding slides, and add any other design
elements or effects you want.
 To save the presentation, on the File menu, click Save; in the File name
box type a name for the presentation, and then click Save.