Expanding the utility of spreadsheets through the integration of visual programming and user interface objects

ABSTRACT

One of the primary uses of spreadsheets is in forecasting future events. This involves investigating "what-if" scenarios --- creating a spreadsheet, experimenting with different values for inputs, and observing how they effect the computed values. Unfortunately, current spreadsheets provide little support for this type of interaction. Data values must be typed in, and computed values can be observed only as numbers, or on simple charts. In this work we extend a spreadsheet which makes use of a visual language for expressing formulae to also incorporate the use of user interface objects. This allows the user to create any type of input and output interfaces they wish, increasing the utility of spreadsheets for investigating "what-if" scenarios.

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