The Spreadsheet Component lets you create a spreadsheet in a design program for run-time access in a Web browser or other run-time environment. Microsoft Excel, Microsoft FrontPage, and Microsoft Access are design programs that you can use to create and modify spreadsheets.

The run-time features discussed in this topic are available to users who have the Microsoft Office Web Components installed. They can do this by installing Microsoft Office XP or, if their company has an Office XP site license, by downloading the Office Web Components from their corporate intranet. Users should also have a Web browser such as Internet Explorer 4.01 or later that fully supports interactive spreadsheets. If you plan to create spreadsheets for use in a program other than a Web browser, such as a Microsoft Visual Basic form to be viewed as part of a custom solution, see Help for your design program to find out how users of your work can access and interact with the spreadsheet.

To view and fully interact with a spreadsheet on a Web page, your users must have Microsoft Internet Explorer version 4.01 or later and the appropriate Office license.

Users can interact with the spreadsheet   In the browser at run time, users can activate a spreadsheet and interact with it by using the same toolbar and Commands and Options dialog box that you use while you are designing the spreadsheet. However, browser users don't have access to some features that are available to you in the design program, including the ability to import data, set or remove protection, and advanced features such as setting the viewable range of the spreadsheet.

Users can enter and calculate data   Subject to any restrictions you set when you design the spreadsheet, users can add, delete, or change data; create or modify formulas; and apply formatting options — just as you can in the design program.

Users can access Help   The browser user has access to two types of Help: the Help system in the browser itself, and the additional Help content provided from within a spreadsheet. The latter explains how to use the commands and features that are available in the spreadsheet. To view this run-time Help, activate a spreadsheet in the browser and then click Help on the spreadsheet toolbar. You can also provide your own custom instructions for a spreadsheet in the browser.

You can restrict what users can do in the browser by setting protection options, such as locking cells, controlling the display of the toolbar or Commands and Options dialog box, and controlling the areas of a spreadsheet that can be viewed.