2.1 Excel Start Options
STEP 1: If you are a Microsoft 365 user, you can sign-in to Microsoft 365 by entering into a web browser URL window: office.com
Click on the “Sign in” button as shown in FIGURE 1 below.
Click on the “Sign in” button as shown in FIGURE 1 below.
FIGURE 1
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STEP 2A: Enter your Microsoft 365 account email address and select the “Next” button, as shown in FIGURE 2.
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 FIGURE 2
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STEP 2B: Enter your Microsoft 365 account password and select the “Sign in” button, as shown in FIGURE 3.
Note: If you receive another dialog box asking if you wish to remain signed-in, select the “Yes” response. |
 FIGURE 3 |
STEP 3: Select the Office application you wish you use. Remember that the various app icons displayed on the left margin are the “Online version” of the app; not the desktop version of the app as shown in FIGURE 4. When you select an app’s online version, you save your work to Microsoft OneDrive.
FIGURE 4
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STEP 4: We will show 2 methods for opening Excel desktop version:
STEP 4A: (Method 1) Click on the Windows Start button (symbol is 4 panes of a window located in lower-left corner of screen) and select Excel from the pop-up menu (FIGURE 5). |
 Windows Start Button Method 1 (FIGURE 5)
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STEP 4B: (Method 2) Select the magnifying glass icon next to the Start button and enter “Excel”. You should see the Excel app logo appear at the top of the Search pop-up box (FIGURE 6).
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 METHOD 2 (FIGURE 6)
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STEP 5: After Excel launches, Excel will appear with this start screen (FIGURE 7) instead of opening directly into a blank worksheet. A screenshot of the Excel start screen is shown below in FIGURE 7. An appropriate selection to choose is “Blank workbook” if you are beginning a new file. You would select the “Open” icon followed by selecting “Browse” to locate an Excel workbook already created. If you want to configure Excel to open directly to a blank workbook every time you start Excel, you can select the “Options” choice from the left margin. In the Options section, “Ease of Access” uncheck the box, “Show the Start screen when this application starts”.
Start Screen
The Start Screen (FIGURE 7)
Options available to choose from the Start screen include:
- Selecting one of many pre-made templates categorized by function
- Selecting your own customized templates
- A blank workbook for beginning new projects
- Open other workbooks
- Pinned files
- Recovered files
New Screen
If you want to select one of the many pre-built templates that come with Excel or one of your own customized templates that you created, select “New” from the left margin. The New screen is shown below in FIGURE 8. New would be an appropriate choice if you want to select from one of the many Excel pre-built templates that encompass a wide range of categories including Business, Personal, Lists, Planners and Trackers, Charts, Budgets, Financial Management, and more.
The “Blank workbook” choice at the top can be selected when beginning a new project. Below it, we see two links: Office and Personal. Office is the default choice which shows many pre-built templates. If we select the “Personal” link, we can access any customized templates that we created ourselves.
The “Blank workbook” choice at the top can be selected when beginning a new project. Below it, we see two links: Office and Personal. Office is the default choice which shows many pre-built templates. If we select the “Personal” link, we can access any customized templates that we created ourselves.
The New Screen (FIGURE 8)
Open Screen
The Open screen below (FIGURE 9), is selected by clicking on “Open” in the left margin, provides 3 options for opening existing workbooks: “This PC”, “Add a Place”, and “Browse”. “This PC” choice provides folders for workbook access and “Browse” provides a standard “Open” dialog box for locating workbooks. “Add a Place” choice provide a way to add Microsoft OneDrive including personal and/or business OneDrive access to workbooks.
The Open Screen (FIGURE 9)
Add a Place
When we select “Add a Place” choice below (FIGURE 10), we are prompted to enter the email address associated with the OneDrive for Business account we are adding. As we see, a OneDrive personal account has already been added.
Add a Place Screen (FIGURE 10)
As a result, we see the OneDrive for Business account added (OneDrive – jhsconsulting.com).
OneDrive account added (FIGURE 11)
Section completed. Go to Module 2 Section 2.2 The Backstage View