To use the Help Task Pane, select the Help menu from the menu bar near the top of the Excel screen, and select the option labelled Microsoft Excel Help. You can also find the question mark button on the toolbar and left click it. Both of these actions will display the Help Task Pane.

As with the office assistant, you can use the help Task Pane to search for information based on a term or phrase you enter. You can also access the Microsoft Office Online website by clicking on the Connect to Microsoft Office Online link that is below the Task Pane’s search field. If your computer is connected to the internet, search results will include results and updates from Microsoft’s online information database. If you do not have an internet connection, search results will include information from the Microsoft offline database that is stored locally on your computer.

Directly under the search box is a Table of Contents link. Clicking on this link will display a list of Excel subject links in the task pane. If you click on any one of these subject headings a more precise sub-list of topics related to the subject will be shown.

 If you prefer not to use Excel’s search functions, this table of contents provides a great alternative for finding the help and information you need.

Whether you use the search boxes, or the table of contents, the information that that is found will be presented in a Help window.

You can print the information in the Help Window by left clicking the printer icon in the upper left area of the window. You can also find more information on the subject by following any of the related links provided near the bottom of the Help window. When working with Excel, remember that there is an extensive library of information made available to you by these help features. Practice using the Office Assistant, the Help Task Pane, the table of contents, and Microsoft Office Online to explore all of your help options.