HELP Spreadsheets (Excel) ?!!?

I just got a MacBook air, which is great. However I am finding it is impossible to do anything more then the basics with spreadsheets. Pivot tables, Vlookups either do nothing, or crashes Excel. I am going to have to send this thing back if I cant figure it out. Quick search says this is a known issue. What is the known solution?

I don't know what a new MacBook Air has to do with Excel not working right? But if you're having difficulty with Excel, perhaps the folks at the Microsoft Mac Office forums can help. The link is here. If your problem is truly with the MBA, then by all means take it to Apple for resolution.

My problem is not with my Mac book, my problem is I cant do my job using a Macbook air, unless someone has a solution to run spreadsheets. I am asking for alternatives to Excel...I am aware the problem is with MS, but thanks anyway. Very helpful post...

Since you have a new MacBook Air, you should have been notified by Apple that you can download their iWork applications for free from the Mac App store. Although I have Microsoft Office for the Mac 2011 which includes Excel, I prefer instead to use "Numbers" which is part of the iWork suite. My spreadsheets are not complex though, so you should give Numbers a try first before deciding on using it in lieu of Excel. Since it's free, you've nothing to lose.

Same as the above post regarding Libre Office, a free download.