Add Row duplicates Checkboxes from previous row

Ric Donato wrote:
When the entire column is formated as checkboxes, check a box then insert a row (above or below), this inserted new row checkbox is checked.

Hello Ric.

I don't get this behavior.
I will check the way it behaves under 10.5

Two days ago I discovered a surprising feature. When the same Numbers v1.0.2 is used under 10.5, in the File Menu there is an item which doesn't exist under 10.4.11 (Close All).

So, I may guess that the check boxes behave differently given the used OS.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 11:44:37)

I just made tests under 10.5.5 and got the behavior which I described under 10.4.11.



Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 11:44:37)

KOENIG Yvan wrote:
I don't get this behavior.

I'm not yet convinced that you see different behavior. In your reply tagged "Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE lundi 22 septembre 2008 15:15:15)" there appears to be a cell (C12 in the first image) that is not formatted as a checkbox. This violates the condition that all the entries in that column (except for the header, if present) must be formatted as checkboxes for the newly created cell(s) to inherit the checked or unchecked value of the "parent" checkbox cell, apparently cell C11 in the example. So your examples appear to follow the behavior we have been describing: because the entire column is not formatted as checkboxes, the newly created checkbox cells are unchecked, regardless of the checked or unchecked value of the "parent" cell.

Try repeating the example, starting with the first image's table, but without that last row that is not formatted as a checkbox. Do you now see newly created rows inheriting the checked or unchecked value of the neighboring cell?

If so, you are seeing the same behavior we do.

It seems that I didn't understood your explanations as you wanted.
If absolutely all the cells of a column contain checkboxes, the behavior of the insertion is linked to the status of the selected row.
If the box of this row is checked, the inserted one (above or below) is checked.
If the box of this row is unchecked, the inserted one (above or below) is unchecked.
If we want to get always an unchecked box, a simple tip, already described, is to leave a row with no box at the very bottom (or at the top) of the table.
We may hide it if we don't want it to appear.
But maybe it would be useless because I assumes that having all the existing boxes checked is not so frequent.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 13:41:40)

KOENIG Yvan wrote:
If we want to get always an unchecked box, a simple tip, already described, is to leave a row with no box at the very bottom (or at the top) of the table.

Just to be as clear as possible about this hard-to-describe behavior, the row without the cell formatted as a checkbox can be anywhere: it does not have to be the first or last row. Also note that a header column has no effect on this.

BTW, after a little more experimentation, it has become obvious that something similar occurs with steppers, sliders, & pop-up menus: if *all the cells* in a column are formatted with one of these options, newly created rows inherit the value of the parent cell, but if *any cell* in the column is not so formatted, the value is not inherited.

Here, I use the phrase "parent cell" in a way that I hope is clear: it is either the cell of the row from which one adds a row above or below from the row label's popup menu or the cell in the last row when using the tab at the bottom right of the table to drag downward to create more rows.

Also note the difference between format inheritance & value inheritance: the format is always inherited from the parent cell, regardless of the format of "non-parent" cells in the column. It is only the value of the cell that has this dependence on the entire column's format.

R C-R wrote:

KOENIG Yvan wrote:
If we want to get always an unchecked box, a simple tip, already described, is to leave a row with no box at the very bottom (or at the top) of the table.

It's true. I named the 1st or the last because they are those which are the less annoying in a table layout, mainly when we use the same formula in "quite every cells" of a column. It's easier to use fill down when there is not "special case".
Also, as it seems that just few users take benefit of the "apply to entire column" property of header cells, using the 1st row as a pseudo-header would not hurt.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 15:38:54)

Hello Yvan,
My version of Numbers, 1.0.2 in Leopard 10.5.5

In the Numbers File menu I don't see "Close All". Opened multiple tables and files still don't see "Close All". Maybe it's my tri-focal glasses however, this month I've cleaned them.

Where are you seeing "Close All"? In the code you provided I do see it, shouldn't "Close All" appear in my File Menu as well?

Cordially,
RicD

Hello Ric.

I never saw it in a displayed menu but it exists in the list of menu item returned under 10.5 (not under 10.4).
So, when I want to trigger the menu item Export with an AppleScript,
under 10.4.11 I must trigger the menu item 11 but
under 10.5 I must trigger the menu item 12.

I was aware that a list of menu items may changes when a program evolves from version 1 to version 2 (I saw that with Pages) but I never imagined that the same program may return different lists of menu item given the OS version when the program remains the same.

The problem is treated but I wish to make it public to spare time for other users trying to write some scripts.

There is an other funny thing.
In the Export sheets, the 'buttons' PDF, DOC, TEXT… are really buttons under 10.4 but are checkBoxes under 10.5.

If you are interested, download

for iWork:forNumbers:save2Numbers&PDF&xls&zip.zip

from my idisk.

You will see the ugly pieces of code which I was forced to add.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 19:39:55)

Ric Donato wrote:
In the Numbers File menu I don't see "Close All".

Try holding down the Option key with the File menu open. The option key often reveals otherwise hidden menu variations in a variety of applications. For instance, Safari has a "Close All Windows" File menu item that works the same way as the 'all' option in Numbers, Keynote, etc.

Without rebooting into 10.4.x, I can't say for sure if the option is supported in that version of the OS but my guess is that it is, & that version differences in the way UI scripting works is responsible for what Yvan sees.

If I'm wrong, I'm sure Yvan will correct me. 😉

R C-R wrote:
Without rebooting into 10.4.x, I can't say for sure if the option is supported in that version of the OS but my guess is that it is, & that version differences in the way UI scripting works is responsible for what Yvan sees.

If I'm wrong, I'm sure Yvan will correct me. 😉

Under 10.4.11, holding down the Option key changes nothing to the Numbers's file menu.
In Pages, the menu Close becomes Close All.

I guess that it's why I didn't encountered the problem with Pages but encountered it with Numbers.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 20:47:09)

Hi R C-R,
Just Darn "The ole Options Trick!". In Safari I've used it so why didn't I carry it to Numbers? Ole-Timers perhaps.

Looking now at other Mac applications I see the Option key works in a similar manner. This may be a good thing for others to read as well.

Thanks for the memory jogger.

Cordially,
RicD

Ric Donato wrote:
Just Darn "The ole Options Trick!". In Safari I've used it so why didn't I carry it to Numbers? Ole-Timers perhaps.

Maybe because it doesn't work under 10.4 so after discovering that it was unavailable you didn't tried under 10.5 😉

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mardi 23 septembre 2008 21:20:44)

Hi Yvan,
As usual you're correct. By accident while using 10.5 I found it in Safari, actually our cat stepped on the keyboard saw a change then investigated what had happened. A similar thing happened with my brothers Mac. Their cat walked across the keyboard making the screen text quite large—Universal access large. LOL

Cordially,
RicD

FWIW, the File menu options also work on our iMac G3 running OS 10.4.11 & Safari 3.1.2.

Maybe I was not clear enough.

The option feature apply to Pages under 10.4 but doesn't apply to 10.5

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE mercredi 24 septembre 2008 12:26:20)