I've used Excel, too. If you go to the MicroSoft Office website, they even have a template so you don't even have to set one up. If finding a good job were as easy, I'd be much happier!
I'm working part time now, so according to the statistics, I am no longer unemployed, just UNDER employed.
My own job hunting experience has been that ads seldom list company names, and even after interviews, followup is nearly impossible.
Right on my desktop, I keep a copy of my resume, and another sheet with former employers/dates/contact info and school info. Nearly every online app needs the same basic stuff, so I can copy and paste my way through them instead of tediously filling out each one keystroke by keystroke. One site that I've had some good leads from is Indeed.com
Monster and HotJobs are so full of hucksters that they have very little office work for me.