The first thing we are going to do before delving fully into the meaning of the term spreadsheet is to know the etymological origin of the two main words that give it shape:
-Leaf, first of all, derives from Latin, exactly from “folium” which can be translated as “leaf”.
-Calculus, secondly, also emanates from Latin. In your specific case, it comes from “calculus”, which is synonymous with “little stone”.
The concept of spreadsheet appears in the field of computing to refer to a type of document based on columns and rows of cells that contain numbers, text and/or formulas. The software that works with this type of documents is also known as a spreadsheet.
Microsoft Excel y Apache OpenOffice Calc están entre las hojas de cálculo más utilizadas. Estos programas son indispensables en cualquier oficina e incluso pueden tener una gran utilidad para gestionar y controlar el presupuesto familiar.
In the same way, we have to establish that spreadsheets are also used by many teachers when giving grades to their students when the evaluations arrive each quarter. And, thanks to this set of cells and columns as well as the formulas, they can establish the quick calculation of each student's grade taking into account the percentages that correspond to the exams and those that belong to their behavior in class, to the jobs you have already done your daily tasks.
Spreadsheet information is displayed on the screen and can be printed on paper . With the input data, on the other hand, graphs can be generated.
The origins of the spreadsheet date back to the 1970s . Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston are identified as its creators from the development of VisiCalc , a program launched in 1978 .
The cell is the basic structure of a spreadsheet. It is formed from the intersection of a column (vertical) and a row (horizontal) and the data is entered there. Each cell is identified with a letter (corresponding to the column) and a number (linked to the row). For example: A8 , B2 , C14 , etc.
By establishing a formula , the spreadsheet can solve operations automatically. Thus, it is possible to keep a balance of monetary income and expenses, for example, obtaining a balance that is updated as more data is incorporated. A family can detail in one column all the income it obtains (from salaries, investment profits, etc.) and in another column, the expenses (expenses). With the appropriate formula, the balance will be indicated in a cell.
Regarding Excel, it is established that the advantages of using its spreadsheets are the following:
-It makes it significantly easier to understand the different operations.
-Thanks to their formulas, they save time and great effort in carrying out calculations, especially those that are very complex and long.
-In the same way, they are very useful for obtaining graphs quickly and very accurately from any data set in question.