Spreadsheet Professional

• Set up sheet in standard format - This tool enables you to create spreadsheet models in the best practice standard format. It has been shown that spreadsheets built in this format contain less errors and are easier to understand.

• Build Bar - The build bar is designed to reduce the number of key strokes required to enter a formula, format the formula and copy it across the spreadsheet. The build bar enables you to enter all these details and then simply apply the formula the number of times required - no more dragging and dropping. As the build bar remembers the last entered details, it is possible to create, format, choose colour, select borders and copy a cell with a single key stroke, thereby encouraging proper formatting and colour coding of cells and saving significant time.

• Translation bar - The translation bar provides a translation of the current formula into English at the bottom of the screen. This enables you to quickly verify the accuracy of the formulas that you have entered. The Publisher has found that the translation bar is normally best anchored to the bottom of the spreadsheet, and provides a quick and easy way to ensure that the formulas entered make sense. By providing a visual check in English of the meaning of the formula, it enables you to quickly identify any errors that may have occurred when inputting the formula.

• Spreadsheet Painter - The spreadsheet painter colour codes each of the cells of the spreadsheet depending on what is contained within it. This has two benefits - It enables the users of the spreadsheet to see what cells require inputs, and it enables you to quickly spot where the pattern of formulas and inputs does not seem correct (for example - when a formula has been inserted into the middle of a row of inputs).

• Spreadsheet Formula Tracer - The spreadsheet formula tracer enables you to trace the antecedents of any formula to any depth and so understand how it was derived. It does this by providing a visual representation of how each formula is calculated. This visual representation can be altered in a number of different ways in order to suit your particular needs. The representation can also be saved or printed, thereby providing an easy way to document the relationships between the different formulas within the spreadsheet.

Although it is never possible to guarantee that a spreadsheet is completely free from errors, Spreadsheet Professional will enable you to quickly eradicate many of the most common errors that occur.

Documenting tools:

Spreadsheet Professional contains a full range of tools to automatically document your spreadsheet. This documentation significantly enhances the value of the spreadsheets that you produce by enabling them to be understood and maintained by others. The product also enables you to document spreadsheets that you have inherited from other people, making them easier to understand and to use.
A description of each of the reports is given below.

• The Summary Report - This report is a brief summary of the spreadsheet model, when it was produced, the sheets within it etc.

• The Range Name Report - This report contains a list of the range names and external references used within the spreadsheet model and what they refer to.

• The Maps report - This report contains a map of the spreadsheet, showing where all the inputs, unique formulas etc occur. It is useful to identify inputs and potential anomalies within the spreadsheet.

• Translation of Calculations report - Possibly the most useful report. This report translates each of the unique calculations into English so that it is easy to understand. Blank input sheets and current input values report. The blank input sheet report identifies each input within a spreadsheet and prepares a blank input sheet that can be used to collect the data. The current input values report details the value of each input on the spreadsheet.

• The test reports - These reports detail potential errors that may have occurred during the building of the spreadsheet.

• The sensitivity and breakeven analysis tool - This tool enables you to quickly produce and report sensitivity and breakeven analyses for any cell within the spreadsheet. The sensitivity analysis enables you to select a range to vary any input cell and see the impact on any other cell within the spreadsheet. The breakeven analysis enables you to see what value the input cell has to be so that the other cell has a value of zero (or any other value that you are trying to achieve). This is particularly useful when you are trying to establish answer such questions as 'How far can revenues drop before we stop making a profit'. Using this tool it is possible to run many analyses very quickly and produce answers and reports for discussion.

• The Spreadsheet Comparison tool - Very often you will want to compare two different spreadsheets, two versions of the same spreadsheet or even two runs of the same spreadsheet. This tool enables you to perform these comparisons and produces a table showing the differences. The tool enables you to select whether you want to see the differences in the inputs, the formulas or the results of the spreadsheet.