Report

To generate the multiple spreadsheets for this assignment, I used Microsoft Works Spreadsheet. I didn’t have any other option on my computer. For some reason I have a lot of Microsoft software, but not Excel. Anyway, I used Works to create my spreadsheets. Originally, this was a problem because my blog on WordPress doesn’t accept .xls files, which is what Works is. I tried saving it differently, but it wouldn’t. So, I tried copying it onto Microsoft Word, but it wouldn’t save as anything except .bmp, and that wasn’t what I needed either. I needed GIF or JPEG. Eventually, I discovered that if I made the spreadsheet on Works, then opened it in Microsoft Picture Manager and cropped it to an acceptable size, then opened it in Paint… then I could finally save it as a GIF. This process took me an hour to figure out, but it was worth it because then I could publish my whole project on my blog.

To get all of the numbers I used in the spreadsheets, I used two books, Lonely Planet Western Europe and Europe by Eurail. For the spreadsheets that were about my current and future finances, I used my bank account and my mother, who is a teacher and knows about teacher salaries, as resources.

The method I used in making these spreadsheets was annoying and convoluted. If I ever do a cost analysis on something again (highly likely), then I will use different software more equipped for my intentions. For some other task, I could use my Bank of America website. It has an application that can track your expenses and categorize them. Sounds like a good thing to utilize.