Number 244 - September 2003

My Favorite Applications Excel 4
by Carl Tenning, Tacoma Open Group
Another favorite application of mine is Excel 4. Basically, I like Excel Version 4 because it does everything I need and it is the same version that I originally learned on the Macintosh at work in the 80's and 90's. So, I have become familiar with it. I was able to obtain Excel 5 at a reasonable price, but I still prefer Excel 4. In versions after Excel 4, Microsoft changed the layout of the pull-down menus. For example, the Formula pull down in Excel 4 has been eliminated and its functions integrated into other pull downs. Also, the Format pull down was completely revised. The Format pull down is one which I use frequently and the change in subsequent version of Excel was annoying. Also, the Options pull-down was eliminated. I used it frequently to set the print area. I still don't know how to do that in Excel 5    Occasionally I will receive a spreadsheet file from a friend and since the friend will be using a newer version of Excel, the spreadsheet will not load into my Excel 4. Sometimes the friends spreadsheet will load into Excel 5. But most often the friend is using Excel 97 or later and I cannot open it with either if my versions. I have found two solutions to this problem. The first is a free spreadsheet reader from Microsoft, which is satisfactory if all you need to do is display or print the spreadsheet. But this does not allow me to edit the spreadsheet. The second solution solves that problem.	To edit a spreadsheet created from Excel 97 or later it is possible to read the spreadsheet with Star Office(1). Version 5.1 of Star Office was originally available for free(2). Star Office will open an Excel spreadsheet, permit you to edit it, and then save back to an Excel format. Star Office 6 is and upgrade for sale at a reasonable $89.95 which I am using now. Editor's Notes:    (1) StarOffice is a suite of programs including a Spreadsheet, a Word Processor, and a Presentation Manager, among others. You can import an Excel spreadsheet into a blank StarOffice spreadsheet and manipulate it as Carl describes above. Version 5.2 of StarOffice is still available in our library and is suitable for most purposes.    (2) You are not limited to importing and manipulating Spreadsheet files in either Excel or StarOffice. You can also import DataBase files, certainly dBASE (.dbf) files (we have done it) and probably files from other data management programs as well. Again, if you import a dBASE (.dbf) file into the Spreadsheet and make changes to it, you can then save back as a dBASE (.dbf) file in the source directory. Isn't that neat?
Number 244 - September 2003