>> Let me state it another way: >> A user opens Calc and creates a new spreadsheet. He enters >> "2009-12-13" into cell A1. He expects that text to remain "2009-12-13" >> when he presses Tab. What must I configure beforehand to ensure that >> he gets what he expects? >> > > No spreadsheet I'm aware of implements this kind of artificial intelligence. > A tool with such a "deep level of understanding" would be rather > unproductive.
This is how MS Office works at my university. I type 2009-12-13 into a cell, and it stays 2009-12-13. When I edit the date, I am editing it as yyyy-mm-dd. > Professional spreadsheet users are familiar with consistent formatting > together with short input methods, I guess. This is how these tools use to > work since decades. > You might be used to OOo Calc changing your date formats for you on the fly, but I enter dates in the format that I would like to use them. MSO Excel respects this, at least as configured at my university. How can I configure OOo Calc to do this as well? > I enter 13/ 14/ 15/ on the num-pad in German locale context and get: > 13.12.09 > 14.12.09 > 15.12.09 > The default format indicates that my sloppy input is taken as intended. > The numbers of subtype "Date" appear neat and clean one below each other and > I can change the formatting later. > I enter arbitrary figures with trailing % and € and get 2-decimal percent > values and currencies without losing accuracy in case of more decimal > digits. > > Second variant: > I hit Ctrl+Space, Ctrl+Shift+F12 and the entire column is formatted as ISO > date since the latter shortcut is bound to my "ISODate" cell style. > I continue entering numeric expressions and all of them are shown as uniform > ISO dates, even percents or currencies. > I can format hundreds of ranges, rows and columns across the document and > later I can modify all of them in one go, simply modifying the cell style. > That is nice, but it is not what I need. I need the dates to be set as yyyy-mm-dd by default, as opposed to their current default which is confusing to those not familiar with American dates. -- Dotan Cohen http://what-is-what.com http://gibberish.co.il --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
