Microsoft Excel provides a variety of online help to assist you in learning how to use the program's features. Click Help on the menu bar to see (and access) what is available.
The Office Assistant(Microsoft Excel Help)
Quick access to information can be obtaining using a Help feature called "The Office Assistant". Click the Microsoft Excel Help button — a question mark (?) — on the toolbar at the top of the window, or click Help on the Menu Bar and choose Show the Office Assistant. The "Office Assistant" will appear — as a paperclip (or some other icon) — with a dialog bubble where you can pose questions. Simply type the question (or word or phrase) in the space provided, click the Search button to get a list of possible topics, and then click the topic desired. Unless you turn this feature off by hiding or disabling the assistant, the "Office Assistant" automatically pops up on your screen whenever it thinks you may need some help with what you're doing. In this case, the dialog bubble will ask if you need help with the task the "Office Assistant" thinks you are trying to accomplish. To hide or disable the Office Assistant, please see Office Assistant Options below.
You can close the dialog bubble but leave the Office Assistant on the screen by clicking the Close button. To end your Office Assistant session, click the Close button [X] in the upper right-hand corner of the little Office Assistant window.
Office Assistant Options:
If the Office Assistant is hidden or disabled, then on the main menu bar click Help. ChooseShow the Office Assistant.
When the Office Assistant is active, you may temporarily hide the assistant by right clicking on it and choosing Hide from the pop-up menu.
If you would like to disable the Office Assistant (so that it doesn't automatically pop up while you're working), then follow these steps:
Right click on the Office Assistant while it is active.
ChooseOptions.
Click on the Options tab if it is not already highlighted.
Uncheck Use the Office Assistant by clicking on the box to the left of it.
Click OK at the bottom of the screen.
This will disable the Office Assistant until you choose to activate it again by clicking on Help and then Show the Office Assistant.
Microsoft Excel Help
If you disable the Office Assistant (as described above), you can take additional advantage of the Microsoft Excel Help feature. By clicking on the Microsoft Access Help button or by going to Help on the main menu and then clicking on Microsoft Access Help, you will be able to look at a list of Contents, use the Answer Wizard (the equivalent of the Office Assistant), or access an Index of alphabetised topics. To use any of these features, simply click the appropriate tab. Double click on the topic that you are interested in or type the topic or question when prompted. On the right-hand side of the help screen, you will see your topic in more detail. If you would like to print the information for later use, simply click on the Print button at the top of the screen. Once you have obtained the information you need, click on the Close [X] button in the upper right-hand corner to close Help.
What's This?
When you choose What's This? from the Help menu, the mouse pointer changes to an arrow with a question mark next to it. Point to any menu item or feature button to get a brief description of what it does and how to use it. When you've read the information, click anywhere in the document portion of the Word "workplace" to continue.
You can also use What's This? to display the formatting characteristics of a paragraph or character. Click What's This? on the Help menu and then click on a character in the paragraph you want to check. A dialog "bubble" will describe paragraph and font characteristics. When you finish checking the text, tap the ESC key.
Office on the Web
The Office on the Web menu option takes you to the Excel page of the Microsoft Office Update website. Browse the site for helpful information about Excel and answers to questions you may have. You need Internet connectivity and a Web browser in order to make use of this feature.
Guide created by California State University, Northridge
Assistant". Click the Microsoft Excel Help button — a question mark (?) — on the toolbar at the top of the window, or click Help on the Menu Bar and choose Show the Office Assistant. The "Office Assistant" will appear — as a paperclip (or some other icon) — with a dialog bubble where you can pose questions. Simply type the question (or word or phrase) in the space provided, click the Search button to get a list of possible topics, and then click the topic desired.
