Getting Started with StretchSheets

What is StretchSheets?

StretchSheets is the spreadsheet app in StretchSuite. You use it to build workbooks — grids of rows and columns where you enter data, write formulas, format cells, and add charts. It works like the spreadsheet tools you already know, but everything lives safely inside your own organization's workspace, is versioned automatically, and can be edited by your whole team at once.

Key concepts

• Workbook — a single spreadsheet file. Each workbook contains one or more sheets; a new sheet starts at 120 rows by 40 columns and grows as you work.
• Cell — one box in the grid, addressed by column letter and row number (for example, A1, B7, D42).
• Status — every workbook is Active, Draft, or Archived, so you can separate live work from work-in-progress and history.
• Folder — a label used to group related workbooks (for example, Finance or Operations). New workbooks land in General until you organize them.
• Templates — ready-made workbook starters (Budget tracker, Sales pipeline, Inventory count, Project plan) that pre-fill columns and a sample row.
• Governed & scoped — StretchSheets runs behind the workspace gateway, so you only ever see and edit workbooks that belong to your organization. Every save is persisted and audit-ready.

The StretchSheets layout

A navigation rail on the left switches between five sections:

1. Dashboard — a portfolio overview with stat cards and charts summarizing all of your workbooks.
2. Workbooks — the library table of every workbook, with status, folder, and last-updated details.
3. Templates — business starters you can create from with one click.
4. Insights — how governance, audit, versioning, and structure apply to your sheets.
5. Editor — the live grid where you edit the selected workbook, with a toolbar, name box, and formula bar.

Your first 5 steps

1. Open StretchSheets from your StretchSuite workspace. You land on the Dashboard. If you have no workbooks yet, you'll see an empty state inviting you to create the first one.
2. Create a workbook. Click the New workbook button in the top-right of the header. Enter a name when prompted (for example, Q3 Budget) and confirm. StretchSheets creates the workbook and opens it in the Editor.
3. Enter some data. Click any cell, type a value, and press Enter to move down (or Tab to move right). The name box on the far left of the formula bar always shows your current cell (like A1).
4. Try a formula. Click a cell, type = followed by an expression that references other cells — for example =B2-C2 or =SUM(B2:B10) — and press Enter. The cell shows the calculated result while the formula bar shows the formula.
5. Save your work. Click Save in the editor toolbar. Your workbook content is persisted to StretchSheets and will be there next time you open it. Each save also captures a version snapshot so earlier states are never lost.

A realistic example

Say you want a simple monthly expense tracker. Create a new workbook named March Expenses. In row 1, type the headers Category, Budget, Spent, and Remaining across A1 to D1. Add a few rows of data below — for example Software, 500, 420. Then in D2, type =B2-C2 and press Enter; StretchSheets shows 80. Copy that pattern down the Remaining column, and at the bottom add =SUM(C2:C10) to total everything you've spent. Click Save, and you have a living tracker you can return to any time.

Tips

• The name box doubles as a quick jump: it always tells you which cell is selected, which is handy when you're deep in a large grid.
• Prefer to start from a proven structure? Skip the blank workbook and use the Templates tab — see Creating Workbooks from Templates.
• Press F2 (or double-click) to edit a cell in place without retyping its whole contents.
• Set a workbook's status to Draft while you're still building it, then flip it to Active when it's ready to share.

Troubleshooting

• "You do not have access to this workspace app." Your membership doesn't include the Sheets app. Ask an owner or admin in your organization to enable Sheets for your account (owners and admins always have access).
• You don't see a workbook a colleague mentioned. Workbooks are scoped to your organization and to the app permission — confirm you're in the same organization and that the workbook wasn't archived or deleted.
• Your edits didn't stick. Make sure you clicked Save (or that autosave completed) before closing the tab. The editor shows a saving indicator while it persists.

Where to go next

• Creating Workbooks from Templates — start fast with pre-built business layouts.
• Editing Your Grid: Formulas, Formatting, and Charts — the day-to-day of working in a sheet.
• Organizing and Managing Your Workbook Library — rename, set status, and manage workbooks at scale.
• Real-Time Collaboration and Presence — work in the same workbook as your team, live.