Building Financial Accuracy into Spreadsheets

Students learning how to apply spreadsheets to accounting problems are not always well served by the built-in financial functions. Problems can arise because of differences between UK and US practice, through anomalies in the functions themselves, and because the promptings of Wizards' engender an attitude of filling in the blanks on the screen, and hoping for the best. Some examples of these problems are described, and suggestions are presented for ways of improving the situation. Principally, it is suggested that spreadsheet prompts and 'Help' screens should offer integrated guidance, covering some aspects of financial practice, as well as matters of spreadsheet technique.