  Most spreadsheet surveys both for reporting use and error focus on the
practical application of the spreadsheet in a particular industry. Typically
these studies will illustrate that a particular percentage of spreadsheets are
used for optimisation and a further percentage are used for 'What if' analysis.
Much less common is examining the classes of function, as defined by the
vendor, used by modellers to build their spreadsheet models. This alternative
analysis allows further insight into the programming nature of spreadsheets and
may assist researchers in targeting particular structures in spreadsheet
software for further investigation. Further, understanding the functional
make-up of spreadsheets allows effective evaluation of novel approaches from a
programming point of view. It allows greater insight into studies that report
what spreadsheets are used for since it is explicit which functional structures
are in use in spreadsheets. We conclude that a deeper understanding of the use
of operators and the operator's relationship to error would provide fresh
insight into the spreadsheet error problem. Considering functional spreadsheet
operator usage suggests the value of Example Driven Modelling for Decision
Support Systems
