Beginning Excel What-If Data Analysis Tools
Getting Started with Goal Seek, Data Tables, Scenarios, and Solver
Book Review

By Dale Farris, Reviews Coordinator Golden Triangle PC Club October 2007 General Overview The Excel “what-if” data analysis tools let you experiment with your data to project future results. In turn, these predictions will lead to better decision making and unlock the mystery of many business analysis scenarios. For example, what-if data analysis tools will enable you to forecast how lowering the price per unit while increasing projected unit sales might affect your profit margins. Beginning Excel What-If Data Analysis Tools explores the use of Goal Seek, Data Tables, Scenarios, and Solver to help you get insight on your data. This book is focused and to the point, and it provides tutorial treatment of what-if tools in a practical, hands-on manner. Goal Seek You use Goal Seek in Excel when you want to work backward from a solution to a problem - when you know the result of a single worksheet formula but not the input value the formula needs to figure out the result. For instance, Goal Seek would be a good way to get a rough estimate of how much you could afford to pay for a home mortgage if you already know the mortgage's interest rate, the mortgage term, and how much you were willing to pay on the mortgage each month. Data Tables Data Tables are helpful when you want to view and compare the results of all the different variations of a formula on a worksheet. A simple example of this might be one of those multiplication tables or metric conversion tables you learned in school. Scenarios Scenarios are a great tool for saving, in a worksheet, sets of values that Excel can switch between automatically so that you view different results. For instance, you could create best-case and worst-case scenarios, and then compare the scenario results next to each other. Solver You use Solver when you want to work backward from a solution to a problem. It is similar to Goal Seek, but you use Solver when you want to apply restrictions on the problem. Using the previous Goal Seek example, you could use Solver if you wanted to further restrict the total home price to not exceed a certain price. Table of Contents The five (5) chapters include: 1)  Goal Seek 2)  Data Tables 3)  Scenarios 4)  Solver 5)  Case Study: Using Excel What-If Tools The 4 appendixes contain the following: Appendix A - Excel What-If Tools Quick Start Appendix B - Summary of Other Helpful Excel Data Analysis Tools Appendix C - Summary of Common Excel Data Analysis Functions Appendix D - Additional Excel Data Analysis Resources Target Readers This book is packed with tutorials and exercises to help you learn about and master the Excel what-if tools at your own pace. The author's hope is that you use this book first to learn about the tools, and then come back to it as often as you need further help or a technical refresher. Note that the book's sample exercise data is available from the www.apress.com site. Book Contents 192 pages; about the author; acknowledgments; introduction; figures; tips; tables; screenshots; detailed index Author Paul Cornell About the Author Paul Cornell works at Microsoft on the documentation team for Microsoft Visual Studio Tools for the Microsoft Office system. He worked as an editor, writer, and columnist on the MSDN Office Developer Center and edited the Microsoft Office Visual Basic Language Reference. Cornell also founded the Power User Corner, on Microsoft Office Online, where he was a frequent contributor. Paul has worked as a web site editor and frequent web columnist for the Office Developer Center on the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN). ISBN December 2005 - First Edition ISBN10: 1-59059-591-2 ISBN13: 978-1-59059-591-6 List Price $34.99 $17.50 - eBook Price About Apress Apress is a publishing company devoted to meeting the needs of programming professionals. Apress' unique approach to computer book publishing grew out of conversations between Dan Appleman and Gary Cornell, Apress' founders, who believe that too many programming books are of such low quality that they are a complete waste of time. Computer professionals need quality books that are not just rehashes of documentation. The "A" in Apress stands for The Author's Press, and their books have "The Expert's Voice." Apress acquires manuscripts of the highest quality by attracting the best authors and technical experts that the world has to offer. Apress makes authors partners in the publishing process, doesn't impose a "house style" on authors, and doesn't make them conform to a series that straightjacket's them. Apress also makes sure that authors are treated equitably. Another key feature of the Apress approach to publishing books is taken from the software industry. Apress treats the technical review process as seriously as the best software companies treat the quality assurance process. Apress is convinced that the innovations listed above make it possible for them to produce the highest quality books, recruit the highest quality authors, and publish titles that information technology professionals need and want. The Apress management team ensures that the distribution and fulfillment of Apress titles is second to none, and that the capital is available to move aggressively and take advantage of any publishing opportunities that arise. To accomplish this, Apress has entered into a partnership with Springer-Verlag, one of the world's most respected publishing houses. Springer-Verlag is convinced that Apress will be the publisher of quality trade computer paperbacks in the years to come. Apress will continue to publish titles of the highest quality, and has compiled a team of authors that reads like a veritable "Who's Who" list of the computing industry. The company founders have published over 200 software titles by leading software professionals, all of whom have "The Expert's Voice." Publisher Contact Cheryl Martinez Marketing Coordinator Apress 2855 Telegraph Avenue, Suite 600 Berkeley, California 94705 510-549-5930 ext. 129 FAX 510-549-5939 cheryl@apress.com www.apress.com