Microsoft KB Archive/95407

= WD: Negative Numbers Miscalculated in Word Table =

Article ID: 95407

Article Last Modified on 1/18/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Word 2.0 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Word 2.0a
 * Microsoft Office Word 2003
 * Microsoft Word 2.0c
 * Microsoft Word 6.0 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Word 6.0a
 * Microsoft Word 6.0c
 * Microsoft Word 6.0 for Macintosh
 * Microsoft Word 6.01 for Macintosh
 * Microsoft Word 95 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Word 97 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Word 98 for Macintosh

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This article was previously published under Q95407



SYMPTOMS
Word miscalculates negative numbers in a table in the following cases.

Case 1 (Word 2.x and Word 6.x)
When you use the SUM function, and the negative marking (such as a minus sign or parentheses) is to the right of the dollar sign

$ -300.0

$ (300.0)

Word adds the number instead of subtracting it.

NOTE: If you bookmark the values, Word reads the minus sign or parentheses as a string character, which causes the bookmarked number to have a value of 0 (zero) when you use the bookmark name in a calculation.

Case 2 (Word 6.x and Later)
Numbers enclosed within parentheses are ignored if they are more than one column away from the formula. In the following table, the result of the calculation is 7, instead of the expected result of 6:

1 (2) 3 4 {=SUM(LEFT)}

When Word encounters the parentheses, it treats the number as text and disregards any other numbers to the left of it.



Case 1
Move the dollar sign to the immediate left of the number. For example, change this

$ -300.0 $ (300.0)

to this:

- $300.0 ( $300.0)

Case 2
Method 1:

Use negative signs instead of parentheses.

Method 2:

Change the formula to refer to the cell range. Change the formula in this table

1 (2) 3 4 {=SUM(LEFT)}

to this:

1 (2) 3 4 {=SUM(A1:D1)}



STATUS
Microsoft is researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

Additional query words: above right below

Keywords: kbbug KB95407

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