How to Use the Spreadsheet View in GeoGebra
GeoGebra has a built-in spreadsheet, which you can access by clicking Spreadsheet under 
View in 
Menu.
The individual boxes in a spreadsheet are called cells. Each cell can store both text and numbers. The cells are named according to their column name (letters) and row number. For example, the cell in the third column and the fourth row is called C4.
The calculations in Spreadsheet are done using formulas. These are the mathematical expressions themselves, but they need to be entered in a specific way, always starting with an equals sign =. You’ll learn how to use formulas in Item 4 below.
You can also use commands inside cells, but we’re not going to look at those in this entry. Instead, they’ll be reviewed in the GeoGebra entries for their respective topics.
GeoGebra Instruction 1
Calculations in Spreadsheet Using Formulas
- 1.
- Open
Spreadsheetunder Viewin Menuso you can follow along with these instructions. - 2.
- When you want to do calculations in
Spreadsheet, insert each of the numbers used in your calculations in an individual cell first. Say you want to compute . Enter36in cellA1, then enter87in cellA2. - 3.
- Type
=in an empty cell, sayA3. Then, type your calculation, but instead of entering the same numbers again, use the names of the cells where your numbers are. The contents of this cell now look like this:=A1+A2
This is an example of a formula—specifically, the formula for adding the two numbers in cells
A1andA2. PressEnterwhen you’re done. The answer123should be displayed. - 4.
- The main advantage of typing your numbers individually in
Spreadsheet, is that you can change the numbers in a cell, and the calculations using that number will update automatically. If you change the number36in cellA1to46and pressEnter, you’ll see that the number in cellA3changes from123to133. This is because the formula is set to add the numbers of cellsA1andA2, as mentioned earlier. So changing any of the numbers in the other cells, changes the sum as well.
GeoGebra Instruction 2
Displaying Formulas
By default, the formulas in the cells are hidden, and the cells instead show the results of computations given by the formulas. To display/hide formulas in Spreadsheet, press Ctrl+D on PC or Cmd+D on MAC.
