Python programming language support is now extending to Microsoft Excel. After closed beta testing, the Public Preview is now going live for the developers. It is a boon for developers, statistical engineers, data analysts, and other roles using Python. The Beta for Python in Excel was already there for some time, but with the Public Preview, it is made available to a wider user base.
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Python in Excel: How to use it?
The Python code will be executable in Excel using the =PY function without any requirement for additional software. It is accessible via Microsoft 365 which is based on Microsoft Cloud with enterprise-level security. In other words, the code is executed in a secure environment on Azure Container Instances that isolates the code fully from other services. Such a Modus Operandi surely improves security and the structure acts as a firewall to the systems.
“Now you can do advanced data analysis in the familiar Excel environment by accessing Python directly from the Excel ribbon,” Stefan Kinnestrand, the GM for Modern Work at Microsoft, explains. “No set up or installation is required. Using Excel’s built-in connectors and Power Query, you can easily bring external data into Python in Excel workflows.”
Interested users can enjoy the Python integration on Microsoft 365 Insiders Beta Channel. The feature will be available only on the desktop version of Excel. Some useful functions such as xl() and =Py() can be used to authorize operations and ensure data security.
The company is using Anaconda Python on Azure systems to compile the programs using different libraries such as seaborn, pandas, Matplotlib, NumPy, etc. However, some capabilities will be behind the paywall and the details about those will be made shared once the product will be ready for public stable rollout.
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