What Is a
Spreadsheet
Application?
In This Chapter
Getting a working definition of a spreadsheet application
Understanding the difference between a spreadsheet user and a spreadsheet
developer
● Classifying spreadsheet users to help you conceptualize the audience for your
applications
● Discussing why people use spreadsheets
● Exploring a taxonomy of the basic types of spreadsheets
●
●
Spreadsheet Applications
For the purposes of this book, a spreadsheet application is a spreadsheet file (or group
of related
files) that is designed so that someone other than the developer can perform useful
work without
extensive training. According to this definition, most of the spreadsheet files that
you’ve developed
probably don’t qualify as spreadsheet applications. You may have dozens or hundreds
of
spreadsheet files on your hard drive, but it’s a safe bet that most of them aren’t really
designed
for others to use.
A good spreadsheet application has the following characteristics:
� It enables the end user to perform a task that he or she probably would not be able
to do
otherwise.
� It provides the appropriate solution to the problem. (A spreadsheet environment isn’t
always the optimal approach.)
� It accomplishes what it is supposed to do. This prerequisite may be obvious, but it’s
not
at all uncommon for applications to fail this test.