Using Excel Add-ins

From time to time, you might have noticed the Add-Ins item on the Tools menu and wondered what that option does. Excel add-ins are worksheet tools that bring more power to your desktop. Table 14.2 lists the Excel add-ins and explains what they do.

Table 14.2. Excel's Add-ins

Add-in	What It Does
Analysis ToolPak	Gives you several worksheet functions and macro functions for financial and scientific data analysis for use in a workbook, the Function Wizard, and the Tools menu.
Analysis ToolPak VBA	Provides developers with Analysis ToolPak syntax tools and functions for financial, statistical, and engineering analysis.
Conditional Sum Wizard	Assists you with summing data in lists.
Euro Currency Tools	Lets you format values as euros and provides the EUROCONVERT worksheet function for converting currencies.
Internet Assistant VBA	Allows developers to publish Excel data to the Web by using Excel 97 Internet Assistant syntax.
Lookup Wizard	Allows you to create formulas to find data in Excel tables.
Solver Add-in	Lets you determine answers to complex what-if questions or equations by analyzing cells and determining the optimum value adjustments to arrive at a desired result.

Determining Whether an Add-in Is Installed

If you want to know whether an add-in is installed, choose Tools, Add-Ins. The Add-Ins dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 14.29.

Figure 14.29. The Add-Ins dialog box.

A list of add-ins that are available in Excel appears in the Add-Ins Available list box. If a check mark appears in the check box next to the add-in feature in the Add-Ins Available list, your add-in is installed. If a check box is empty, that add-in isn't installed.

If you want to install an add-in, use the Add/Remove Programs feature in the Windows Control Panel and your Microsoft Office or Microsoft Excel installation CD-ROM.