openoffice calc: How to disable auto convert from "- text" to #Name?

stndn

Golden Member
Mar 10, 2001
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Helo,

We're using openoffice calc 2.0.2 on linux, and we found an annoying "feature" we'd like to disable.

When we want to type a list like this (there's a dash in front of the text):
- Data

Inside a cell, openoffice will automatically convert it to:
#NAME?

And when we look at the cell content, it has actually changed to (notice the = at the beginning):
=- Data


Is there a way to disable this smart feature (bleh) from within openoffice calc?
We use the spreadsheet to keep tabs of todo list (among others), and it's going to help to be able to create list items.

Alternatively, how do we make list items in calc? Cant seem to find the option there....


thank you.

-stndn.
 

mayest

Senior member
Jun 30, 2006
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I don't use OpenOffice, but the same thing will happen in any spreadsheet program. The problem is that you are starting with an arithmetic operator (minus sign) so it assumes that you are typing a formula. In this case, it thinks that you are trying to reference a defined name (named range) and it cannot find the name so you get an error. The usual way to stop this from happening is to put an apostrophe first (e.g., '-Data). That will force it to see it as text. Note that the apostrophe will not show up in the cell, only the formula bar.
 

stndn

Golden Member
Mar 10, 2001
1,886
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Hmmm... I always thought spreadsheet programs will only convert the data to formula if I start the data with = sign.
In any case, now that you mentioned it, I remember having to put apostrophe to notify the program to display the data as text.
Tried it just now and it works.

Thank you for the help -)

And oh, fyi, using neooffice (mac os x), the - data didn't get automatically converted to formula, and will be displayed as -data with no problem. I guess some things just work differently..



-stndn.
 

mayest

Senior member
Jun 30, 2006
306
0
0
Glad it worked. This goes back, at least, to the original Lotus 1-2-3 (and maybe VisiCalc) where you started any formula with either a + or - (usually +). For compatibility, every other spreadsheet program I've ever worked with supported that convention. Excel started the = convention (which makes more sense to me). In Excel, you can still use a + or -, but it will automatically add an = in front of it, so you would end up with: =-Data in your case.

Sounds to me like NeoOffice is broken for compatibility purposes. They must have figured that very few people still follow the original convention so they didn't code for it.