J-Walk & Associates, Inc.

Excel 15 Features

Found here:  Exclusive- Microsoft Office 15 features and improvements

Microsoft is aiming to make Excel 15 easier for folks who need to visualize large data sets that they are working with. A new Quick Analysis Lens feature lets Excel 15 users quickly access ways to visually represent data, and Recommended Charts and PivotTables helps surface the best way to visualize certain information based on data patterns. Flash Fill, a new feature to Excel 15, will also simplify the reformatting and rearrangement of data in an Excel spreadsheet. Excel 15's Touch Mode feature is designed to let users browse through charts, graphs, and tables on tablet devices with their fingers and hands.

Excel 15 will also introduce some new chart formatting controls that use a fully interactive interface to fine tune charts quickly. Chart animations will also let chart users see and understand every different change in their charts as new data points are added or existing numbers adjusted along the way. Microsoft is also building in a new Start Experience for Excel 15 that provides access to a collection of professional designed templates, including ones for budgets, calendars, forms, and reports.

I haven't seen it, so I have no idea if this is accurate or comprehensive.

- Reader Comments -

Following are comments in response to this item.
The most recent comment is at the bottom.

1. By Jon Peltier. Comment posted 07 March, 2012 8:23pm

   You read it on the internet, so it must be true.
   
   Besides, don't they give you an advance copy so you can get started on all those books?
2. By Rob. Comment posted 08 March, 2012 2:30am

   So they finally fixed the chart engine they screwed up 6 years ago? Great!
3. By John Walkenbach. Comment posted 08 March, 2012 6:43am

   No advance copy. I'll have to wait for the public beta.
4. By Steve. Comment posted 09 March, 2012 4:34am

   Forget any new features, let's hope Excel 15 gets back to a very stable and reliable platform which Excel 2003 was. the Crashing rate for my customers (over 400) using 2007 and 2010 has gone through the roof! Images on the worksheets still do not always 'anchor' in the same position, screen updating is sparadic.
   
   But the main improvement I'm hoping for is for the developer; a built in Custom UI Editor for 1, a way of opening up a workbook without invoking a custom built ribbon for 2 (hold the shit key down on open for example), as mainting these workbooks are a nightmare.
   
   Sorry to go on...
5. By Mike. Comment posted 15 March, 2012 1:47am

   If John Walkenbach doesn't get an access to technical preview then who does?
6. By John Walkenbach. Comment posted 15 March, 2012 6:52am

   I suspect that the tech preview goes to Microsoft's big customers -- the companies that buy thousands of licenses.
7. By MSimms. Comment posted 20 March, 2012 5:40pm

   But the main improvement I'm hoping for is for the developer; a built in Custom UI Editor for 1, a way of opening up a workbook without invoking a custom built ribbon for 2 (hold the shit key down on open for example), as mainting these workbooks are a nightmare.
   Sorry to go on...

   
   No Steve - I've been wishing this as well.
   It would be CONSISTENT with Access.
   An Editorial: despite all of the "issues" we've seen between Access and Excel that indicate there was little-if-any collaboration between the two development groups, rest assured, that Charles Simonyi, MSFT Excel architect, is living quite well:
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Simonyi
   Check out the BOAT...and the BABE !
   Lots of mistakes were made, yet he was well-rewarded.
   When I make a mistake, I don't get paid !!
   What's wrong with this "picture" ?
8. By Lori. Comment posted 29 March, 2012 1:53am

   The good news is the ribbon has been hidden by default in the latest screenshots. Other info from an early build at softpedia:
   
   "...Office 15 Excel will also sport a new dialog window for the introduction of graphics within spreadsheets; the option to import data via Atom, and a range of conversion enhancements, bit-wise operations and new trigonometry operations."