Template Conventions

All of the templates have been designed using certain conventions that make it easier for you to get the most out of them.

Each worksheet has an active area displayed with a light gray background. All the active parts of the worksheet are contained in this area—there is no need for you to scroll outside this area looking for something you think you might have missed. If the workbook has multiple worksheets, each has its own active area as described here.

Although some templates use only a single worksheet, others use more than one. In this case, each worksheet is clearly identified by the name on its tab at the bottom of the Excel window.

Cells that contain money values are formatted with Excel’s currency format, with the option selected to display negative numbers in parentheses. Although this is standard accounting practice, some people are not accustomed to it but are more familiar with seeing a minus sign used for negative numbers. I decided to use this format for the sake of consistency and clarity, and I am sure you will soon get used to it.

Individual worksheet cells are formatted depending on their role in the workbook:

• Cells you should not change are formatted with a light gray background. These worksheet cells are locked so you cannot change them by accident.

• Cells where you must enter data are formatted with a white background.

• Cells where the worksheet displays results are formatted with a light blue background.

You see in the templates that some of the white cells—those you are supposed to enter data into—already contain data. This is nothing more than sample data I have included to help show you how the template works. You have to modify this data as needed for your own situation.

Taken From : Manage Your Money and Investments with Microsoft Excel

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