Get started with Oda in Excel

DataMind Oda in Excel is a chat pane that works with the workbook you have open. Ask a question and the answer arrives beside your sheets. This page walks through your first run, from connecting and signing in to the parts of the pane you work with, and covers the language and the look the pane uses. For what the add-in is, which versions of Excel run it and how to open the pane, see Oda in Excel.

Your first run

1. Open the DataMind Oda pane in your workbook. While it connects to your DataMind server, it shows Connecting to DataMind….
2. If this computer is not signed in yet, the pane shows its sign-in screen. Click Sign in to DataMind; while the sign-in runs, the button reads Signing in…, and the chat opens when it completes.
3. The empty chat shows What should we work on? with an example: For example: “Summarize the selected table” or “Add a growth column to Sales”. Type your question in the message box and send it.

If the pane cannot reach your DataMind server or the sign-in does not complete, it shows a message instead; Fix problems with Oda in Excel lists what each one means. A sign-in you close before finishing leaves no message in the pane; start it again when you are ready.

The parts of the pane

• Header: New chat starts a fresh chat, History lists this workbook's earlier chats, and Sign out ends your sign-in and removes the Excel chats stored on this computer. See Chats and history in Excel and Sign in to Oda in Excel.
• Transcript: your messages and Oda's answers, formatted with headings, lists and tables, with a row for each step Oda takes.
• Message box: where you write your next question; Enter sends it and Shift+Enter starts a new line.
• Mind chip: when you can use more than one Mind, the Asking: chip above the message box shows which Mind answers; see Choosing the Mind.
• Permissions: under the message box, choose how often Oda asks before it changes the workbook. Accept edits is the default; see Permission modes and approvals in Excel.

There is no model picker in the pane: Oda answers with the model your DataMind server marks as its default; if none is marked, the first it lists.

Language and look

• Language: the pane shows its text in English or Georgian, following your Office display language. The pane chooses its language when it loads, so after you change the display language in Office, reopen the pane.
• Look: the pane is light by default and follows your operating system's dark theme when it has one. There is no separate theme control in the pane.

The pane and your workbook

The pane follows the workbook you use it in. Chats and history in Excel explains when the pane reopens with your file and which chat it loads.

Questions, answered

Can I change the language of the pane?

The pane shows its text in English or Georgian, following your Office display language. To change it, change the display language in Office and reopen the pane: the pane chooses its language when it loads.

Can I make the pane dark?

The pane is light by default and switches to its dark look when your operating system uses a dark theme. There is no separate theme control in the pane; it follows your operating system.

What should I ask first?

Try the workbook in front of you: ask about the table you have selected, or for a change such as a new column. You can also ask about your company's data; Oda asks your company's Minds and can pull a full result into a new sheet. See How Oda works in your workbook and Ask about data and pull it into Excel.

Will Oda change my workbook without asking?

In the default mode, Accept edits, Oda writes into empty cells and adds sheets and tables without asking, and asks before it overwrites your data or removes anything. Choose Ask before edits under the message box to approve every change. See Permission modes and approvals in Excel.

When does the pane open with my workbook?

After your first message in a workbook, the pane reopens with that workbook. See Chats and history in Excel.

Do I have to sign in to use the pane?

Yes. Until you sign in, the pane shows its sign-in screen instead of the chat. The sign-in is your company's DataMind sign-in; Sign in to Oda in Excel walks through it, and Fix problems with Oda in Excel explains every message.