Spreadsheet tools have grown exponentially in popularity since their inception at the advent of personal computer. Initially they were used for accounting purposes by bean counters. They were great at showing how much money was made during period X or creating a bar chart of widget produced each month. In the beginning, the amount of creativity one could apply toward a spreadsheet application was limited, as the products available had very little flexibility as well as functionality.



However, right now, there are so many tools exist to analyze data, and so many transforms and algorithms can be applied to data that a clever person can shape any set of data to reflect the properties he or she wishes to see in the results. It doesn't matter if you work at a bank that needs to prepare financial reports or if you work at home with your home business, you can utilize one of them to help you solve your problems.

So what are the options?

You must already familiar with Microsoft Excel. But is it the best spreadsheet program on the market? Well, arguably, no. There is actually a dominant player in terms of market share for spreadsheet programs. It's Origin by Origin Labs. It has more comprehensive macro language than Excel, and it can handle more math intensive problems than Excel. The graphics are also superior to those found in Excel.

There are two downsides to Origin, though. First, the macro language is C-based and is about three times more difficult for a novice to learn how to use. Second, the package cost three to four times as much as Excel, depending upon whether the standard version or professional version is purchased. If the work to be done is very scientific in nature, as opposed to financial or industrial, Origin is worth a hard look. However, the people who want to take charge of their finances come from all walks of life, and not all of them are computer experts.

Much of the appeal of Excel is due to the fact that it's so versatile. Excel's forte, of course, is performing numerical calculations, but Excel is also very useful for non-numerical applications. Here are just a few of the uses for Excel:

- Number crunching: Create budgets, analyze survey results, and perform just about any type of financial analysis you can think of.

- Creating charts: Create a wide variety of highly customizable charts.

- Organizing lists: Use the row-and-column layout to store lists efficiently.

- Accessing other data: Import data from a wide variety of sources.

- Creating graphics and diagrams: Use Excel AutoShapes to create simple (and not-so-simple) diagrams.

- Automating complex tasks: Perform a tedious task with a single mouse click with Excel's macro capabilities.

Excel is a general purpose data manipulation program that includes many tools for working with finances. Most importantly, it is already installed on millions of computers. However, the vast majority of users has not yet utilize most of the features that are incorporated into Excel product.

Do realize that your Excel can do a lot more than you could ever think about. There are a lot of free Excel tutorial out there in the internet. Why don't you invest your time to learn and maximizing your Excel into its highest potential.