1.1 Glossary

This document uses the following terms:

active sheet: The sheet that is currently selected.

array formula: A formula that performs multiple calculations on one or more sets of values, and then returns either a single result or multiple results. Array formulas are enclosed in braces ({}) and are entered by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER.

AutoFilter: A mechanism that can be used to filter tabular data based on user-defined criteria such as values, strings, and formatting.

automatic calculation mode: A calculation mode in which formulas in a worksheet are recalculated automatically whenever the data changes. See also manual calculation mode.

calculate: The process by which computations in a workbook are performed.

calculation mode: A setting that determines whether the formulas in a worksheet are recalculated automatically or manually. See also automatic calculation mode and manual calculation mode.

cell: A box that is formed by the intersection of a row and a column in a worksheet or a table. A cell can contain numbers, strings, and formulas, and various formats can be applied to that data.

cell error value: Any of a number of special values that are returned as a result of an unsuccessful formula calculation.

chart sheet: A single logical container that is used to create and store charts in a workbook.

checked out: A publishing level that indicates that a document has been created and locked for exclusive editing by a user in a version control system.

column: A single set of data that is displayed vertically in a worksheet or a table.

confirmation: A message that asks a user to verify an action before the user performs it.

connected data: Data that is stored in the same workbook from which it is being referenced, or data that is stored in a database repository.

cube: A set of data that is organized and summarized into a multidimensional structure that is defined by a set of dimensions and measures.

data connection: A collection of information, such as the type and location, that defines how to connect to an external data source, such as a database, web service, SharePoint list, or XML file.

data culture: The language that is used to specify number formatting for data.

data provider: A known data source that is specific to a target type and that provides data to a collector type.

data table: A range of cells that is designated to perform what-if analysis for formulas, based on various input values.

default filter value: The filter value that is used if no filter is specified.

dimension: A categorization of data in rows or columns in an Excel worksheet.

document library: A type of list that is a container for documents and folders.

edit session: A session (2) that is based on a workbook file and during which changes by one or more users are persisted to that file.

farm: A group of computers that work together as a single system to help ensure that applications and resources are available. Also referred to as server farm.

filter: A mechanism by which a set of data is scoped to display only those entries that meet specified logical criteria.

formula: A logical equation or function that produces a result in a spreadsheet application.

grow: The process of increasing the number of rows or columns in a PivotTable report.

Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP): An application-level protocol for distributed, collaborative, hypermedia information systems (text, graphic images, sound, video, and other multimedia files) on the World Wide Web.

Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS): An extension of HTTP that securely encrypts and decrypts web page requests. In some older protocols, "Hypertext Transfer Protocol over Secure Sockets Layer" is still used (Secure Sockets Layer has been deprecated). For more information, see [SSL3] and [RFC5246].

Information Rights Management (IRM): A technology that provides persistent protection to digital data by using encryption, certificates, and authentication. Authorized recipients or users acquire a license to gain access to the protected files according to the rights or business rules that are set by the content owner.

item: A unit of content that can be indexed and searched by a search application.

level: A relative position in a hierarchy of data. A level is frequently used when describing how to navigate a hierarchy in an Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) database or a PivotTable report.

license key: An array of bytes that enables access to a control according to the usage policies for that control.

list: An organization of a region of cells into a tabular structure in a workbook.

locked: The condition of a cell, worksheet, or other object that restricts edits or modifications to it by users.

manual calculation mode: A calculation mode in which the formulas in a workbook are calculated only when specified by a user. See also automatic calculation mode.

manual filter: A filter that lets users select a set of individual data items or dimension hierarchies by using a user interface that displays levels from the hierarchies.

merged cell: A single cell that is created by combining two or more adjacent cells.

named object: A list, PivotTable report, chart, or range that can be referenced by name. A sheet is not a type of named object.

named range: See defined name.

new workbook session: A session (2) that is not based on an existing workbook file.

non-contiguous range: A selected range that includes non-adjacent cells.

number format: A property of a cell or other type of object that determines how numerical data is displayed or interpreted. For example, a currency number format affixes the proper currency symbol to the number.

Online Analytical Processing (OLAP): A technology that uses multidimensional structures to provide access to data for analysis. The source data for OLAP is stored in data warehouses in a relational database. See also cube.

Open Item permission: An authorization that enables users to retrieve an entire file.

permission: A rule that is associated with an object and that regulates which users can gain access to the object and in what manner. See also rights.

PivotTable: An interactive table that summarizes large amounts of data from various sources by using format and calculation methods. Row and column headings can be rotated to view different summaries of the source data, filter the data, or display detail data for specific areas.

PivotTable member: An individual data item within a specific dimension as it is displayed in a PivotTable report. For example, a member in the Geography dimension might be North America.

PivotTable page field: A filter in a PivotTable report that applies to all of the data in the report, including any hierarchies.

published: A condition of portions of a workbook that are marked as being available to the user when that workbook is processed by a protocol server.

published item: A specific named object that is in a published workbook.

published items snapshot: A snapshot that contains only the published items or published sheets from a workbook. If no published items are defined, a snapshot contains an entire workbook.

published sheet: A sheet (2) that is published.

query: A formalized instruction to a data source to either extract data or perform a specified action. A query can be in the form of a query expression, a method-based query, or a combination of the two. The data source can be in different forms, such as a relational database, XML document, or in-memory object. See also search query.

range: An addressable region that is in a workbook. A range typically consists of zero or more cells and represents a single, contiguous rectangle of cells on a single sheet.

refresh: A process that retrieves values from a data source and populates a workbook with those values.

row: A single set of data that is displayed horizontally in a worksheet or a table.

session: (1) A unidirectional communication channel for a stream of messages that are addressed to one or more destinations. A destination is specified by a resource URL, an identity URL, and a device URL. More than one session can be multiplexed over a single connection.

(2) A representation of application data in system memory. It is used to maintain state for application data that is being manipulated or monitored on a protocol server by a user.

session identifier: A key that enables an application to make reference to a session.

sheet: (1) A part of an Excel workbook. There are four types of sheets: worksheet, macro sheet, dialog sheet, and chart sheet. Multiple sheets are stored together within a workbook.

(2) A worksheet. The term sheet frequently refers to a worksheet because worksheets are the most common type of sheet.

site: A group of related pages and data within a SharePoint site collection. The structure and content of a site is based on a site definition. Also referred to as SharePoint site and web site.

slicer: A mechanism that is used to filter data in one or more PivotTable reports or cube functions.

snapshot: A copy of a workbook that contains only values and formatting. It does not contain any formulas or data connections.

SOAP: A lightweight protocol for exchanging structured information in a decentralized, distributed environment. SOAP uses XML technologies to define an extensible messaging framework, which provides a message construct that can be exchanged over a variety of underlying protocols. The framework has been designed to be independent of any particular programming model and other implementation-specific semantics. SOAP 1.2 supersedes SOAP 1.1. See [SOAP1.2-1/2003].

SOAP action: The HTTP request header field used to indicate the intent of the SOAP request, using a URI value. See [SOAP1.1] section 6.1.1 for more information.

SOAP body: A container for the payload data being delivered by a SOAP message to its recipient. See [SOAP1.2-1/2007] section 5.3 for more information.

SOAP fault: A container for error and status information within a SOAP message. See [SOAP1.2-1/2007] section 5.4 for more information.

table: A list that is defined in a workbook.

trusted location: A directory from which files can be opened without being checked by the security features of a Microsoft Office application.

UI culture: The language that is used to display strings and graphical elements in a user interface.

Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): A string that identifies a resource. The URI is an addressing mechanism defined in Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax [RFC3986].

Uniform Resource Locator (URL): A string of characters in a standardized format that identifies a document or resource on the World Wide Web. The format is as specified in [RFC1738].

Universal Naming Convention (UNC): A string format that specifies the location of a resource. For more information, see [MS-DTYP] section 2.2.57.

user-defined function (UDF): A function that is coded in a Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) module, macro sheet, add-in, or Excel Linked Library (XLL). A UDF can be used in formulas to return values to a worksheet, similar to built-in functions.

view session: A session (2) that is based on a workbook file and during which the file can be viewed by one or more users. Any changes to the file, such as sorting or filtering data, are not persisted to that file.

view-only mode: A display mode in which data in a workbook can only be viewed, sorted, and filtered by users. Users cannot change any of the data in the workbook and any changes to the display of the data are not persisted to the workbook file.

visible: A condition of an object that allows it to be displayed in rendered output.

web service: A unit of application logic that provides data and services to other applications and can be called by using standard Internet transport protocols such as HTTP, Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), or File Transfer Protocol (FTP). Web services can perform functions that range from simple requests to complicated business processes.

Web Services Description Language (WSDL): An XML format for describing network services as a set of endpoints that operate on messages that contain either document-oriented or procedure-oriented information. The operations and messages are described abstractly and are bound to a concrete network protocol and message format in order to define an endpoint. Related concrete endpoints are combined into abstract endpoints, which describe a network service. WSDL is extensible, which allows the description of endpoints and their messages regardless of the message formats or network protocols that are used.

workbook: A container for a collection of sheets (1).

workbook file: A file that contains a byte stream representation of a workbook.

workbook parameter: A single cell that is designated to receive input from users.

worksheet: A single logical container for a set of tabular data and other objects in a workbook.

WSDL message: An abstract, typed definition of the data that is communicated during a WSDL operation [WSDL]. Also, an element that describes the data being exchanged between web service providers and clients.

WSDL operation: A single action or function of a web service. The execution of a WSDL operation typically requires the exchange of messages between the service requestor and the service provider.

XML namespace: A collection of names that is used to identify elements, types, and attributes in XML documents identified in a URI reference [RFC3986]. A combination of XML namespace and local name allows XML documents to use elements, types, and attributes that have the same names but come from different sources. For more information, see [XMLNS-2ED].

XML namespace prefix: An abbreviated form of an XML namespace, as described in [XML].

XML schema: A description of a type of XML document that is typically expressed in terms of constraints on the structure and content of documents of that type, in addition to the basic syntax constraints that are imposed by XML itself. An XML schema provides a view of a document type at a relatively high level of abstraction.

MAY, SHOULD, MUST, SHOULD NOT, MUST NOT: These terms (in all caps) are used as defined in [RFC2119]. All statements of optional behavior use either MAY, SHOULD, or SHOULD NOT.