This issue is part of a more comprehensive issue describing major design flaws
of existing spreadsheets.

I have posted already major design flaws parts (1.)(issue 79924) and (2.)(issue
80139) and this will contribute to part (4.) [it is only a subpart of a future
part (4.) - Major Design Flaws in the Spreadsheet Structure; Part (3.) will deal
with Multidimensional Spreadsheets - also a Spreadsheet Structure issue].


A.) SUMMARY
===========
Allow a spreadsheet to begin with a separate LOGO/HEADER that is defined outside
of the table proper. This header should be more like a Writer-type document
(therefore NO spreadsheet, and NOT the existing - very limited - page header).


B.) SPREADSHEET STRUCTURE
=========================

  1.) COMPANY DATA
  ================
  The first 4-to-20 rows of every professional spreadsheet contain some company
specific data.

  Most often this data is a *company logo* and some company *specific text*.
Virtually every official spreadsheet that I have done at work, will have this
design.

  This is not something limited to my business. I will append to this issue an
image from the IBM Symphony Demo depicting exactly this company logo.

  2.) TITLE
  =========
  After the company specific data, there will be some text describing the
spreadsheet: a title and various other informations.

  3.) COLUMN HEADERS
  ==================
  Only at this point will be the column headers/names.
  [This is truly spreadsheet data.]


C.) RATIONALE
=============

  1.) WRITER-LIKE TEXT STREAM
  ===========================
  Both the 'Company specific data' and the 'Spreadsheet Title' are truly
formatted text + some graphic elements. They are *NOT table data*, therefore
they would be more easily created in a Writer-like application. Indeed, the text
formatting is best done inside a text-processing application.
  It is especially cumbersome to format this text written inside table cells,
when really it should flow like a paragraph. [Remember, you cannot adjust the
column width, because you would break the actual table. Merging cells is an
absolute NO because of many bugs with copy/paste/insert - I feel sorry for
anyone who lost precious work after merging cells.]
  Also, you want this text printing only on the first page, and NOT being cut
somehow between the first page and the page to the right (2nd or n-th, depending
on printing preferences). This is especially cumbersome.

  2.) BREAK TABLE STRUCTURE
  =========================
  These text-graphic streams break the concept of the spreadsheet. Especially in
light of multidimensional spreadsheets, they have NO place in the spreadsheet
proper. They are NOT data. They are really only text that does NOT fit into the
concept of columns. [Unlike column headers, that are indeed table-specific.]

  This will also break various spreadsheet operations, e.g.
  SORT!!!
  It is impossible to simply select a table column and sort it, because this
non-table data will interfere with the sort.
  [The column headers will partially interfere with the sort, too, BUT IF they
would represent another special table element, this issue would be also solved.]

  AUTOFILTER
  Becomes non-trivial to select and to set. Sometimes, the data within the
autofilter makes no sense (like TOP items).

  3.) REUSABLE HEADERS
  ====================
  It is likely that these headers would be reusable inside a company. The title
will change, but everything else remains the same.

  4.) TIME
  ========
  Most often a spreadsheet is first created without the headers, and then you
have to insert dozens of rows and afterwards insert the graphics and text making
the header.
  Simply attaching a HEADER/LOGO-file to your spreadsheet would be way easier.

  5.) NAVIGATING the Table
  ========================
  With dozens of rows of irrelevant data at the beginning of the spreadsheet, it
becomes increasingly difficult to navigate the data. [One could hide them, but
this is really best solved with a separate header that can be shown/hidden
globally, see solutions -> point 4.)!]

D.) SOLUTION
============

1.) Break spreadsheet into functional domains

2.) The column headers and actual data are the spreadsheet proper

3.) The spreadsheet header/title is written as a Writer-Document and attached to
the spreadsheet proper.

4.) Allow displaying/hiding of this spreadsheet header within the spreadsheet.


I will attach a picture taken from the IBM Symphony Demo showing a Spreadsheet
with a company logo to prove how unnatural is this data to a real spreadsheet.
Real Company text + Logos usually span far more than 4 rows and do NOT fit at
all in the rigid table structure of the spreadsheet.