Excel 2000 for Windows for Dummies

I used this book in lieu of sending a large group of our people to training classes. After doing so, the "help" requests for Excel went to absolute zero. Heck, I'm VP of IT and been working in spreadsheets since VisiCalc, and I picked up a couple of things.

This book not only took the mystery out of spreadsheets, but made me a spreadsheet junkie. I keep it by my desk for reference. A definite for people who want a quick start into the world of spreadsheets.

Although I was into Mainframes twenty years ago, I entered the PC world only two years back. I find that most software makers do not give us "How to" information on their product by a step-by-step method. After installing Microsoft Office I could use very little of its potential by muddling thru and making many mistakes. Having graduated from "Idiot's Guide to Windows 98" I surfed the 'net and found EXACTLY what I was looking for--Excel 2000 for Windows for Dummies. It is written in clear, unambiguous, step-by-step format and I was off-and-running within hours after I received the book. Keep up the good work and you will keep hearing from this Dummy over and over again because Windows Me has got me hooked!

The author knows what the reading public wants -- hands on experience from the get go. The theory and constructs are covered in the context of real-life needs. I withheld one "star" from the rating due to things that should have been explained and a couple (unforgiveable) typos.In contrast, the bk: "VBA For Dummies" (auth: Steve Cummings)doesn't seem to know where it is going. It flounders in "too much information" (details) that is not what I wanted or needed. You've heard of people who like to hear themselves talk, well this guy just like to see how many pages he can write and still leave his audience wondering what they just read.Incidently, both books are the same number of textual pagers: 370. The diffence is, I learned more in the first 10 pages of Walkenbach's book than I did in the first 200 pages of the latter.

This is my first for dummies book, and I'm very impressed by the step-by-step straightfoward instructions. There is very little in the way of fluff here. It explains all the items on the tool bars,and takes the mystery out of all those dialog boxes. I'm negotiating my spread sheets with ease now. Cutting or copying and pasting, using windows to work on multiple worksheets at the same time, and printing just the way I want using headers and footers, and page breaks where I want them. I am amazed by the depth of this program. I'm only half way through the book, and can't wait to finish. Every chapter is helping to make my work easier.