Calc as a Simple Database
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This is Chapter 13 of the OpenOffice.org 3 Calc Guide, produced by the OOoAuthors group.
A PDF of this chapter is available from this wiki page.
Introduction
A Calc document is a very capable database, providing sufficient functionality to satisfy the needs of many users. This chapter presents the capabilities of a Calc document that make it suitable as a database tool. Where applicable, the functionality is explained using both the GUI (Graphical User Interface) and macros.
In a database, a record is a group of related data items treated as a single unit of information. Each item in the record is called a field. A table consists of records. Each record in a table has the same structure. A table can be visualized as a series of rows and columns. Each row in the table corresponds to a single record and each column corresponds to the fields. A spreadsheet in a Calc document is similar in structure to a database table. Each cell corresponds to a single field in a database record. For many people, Calc implements sufficient database functionality that no other database program or functionality is required.
While teaching, a spreadsheet can be used as a grading program. Each row represented a single student. The columns represented the grades received on homework, labs, and tests (see Table 1). The strong calculation capability provided in a spreadsheet makes this an excellent choice.
Table 1. Simple grading spreadsheet
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Name | Test 1 | Test 2 | Quiz 1 | Quiz 2 | Average | Grade |
2 | Andy | 95 | 93 | 93 | 92 | 93.25 | |
3 | Betty | 87 | 92 | 65 | 73 | 79.25 | |
4 | Bob | 95 | 93 | 93 | 92 | 93.25 | |
5 | Brandy | 45 | 65 | 92 | 85 | 71.75 | |
6 | Frank | 95 | 93 | 85 | 92 | 91.25 | |
7 | Fred | 87 | 92 | 65 | 73 | 79.25 | |
8 | Ilsub | 70 | 85 | 97 | 79 | 82.75 | |
9 | James | 45 | 65 | 97 | 85 | 73 | |
10 | Lisa | 100 | 97 | 100 | 93 | 97.5 | |
11 | Michelle | 100 | 97 | 100 | 65 | 90.5 | |
12 | Ravi | 87 | 92 | 86 | 93 | 89.5 | |
13 | Sal | 45 | 65 | 100 | 92 | 75.5 | |
14 | Ted | 100 | 97 | 100 | 85 | 95.5 | |
15 | Tom | 70 | 85 | 93 | 65 | 78.25 | |
16 | Whil | 70 | 85 | 93 | 97 | 86.25 |
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