oceanswims

Q: Numbers won't sum numbers

This problem has been raised before but the solution given doesn't work for me. Numbers won't add a column of numbers. Result always is zero. Advice earlier in this forum was that Numbers won't sum numbers if numbers are formatted as numbers, which doesn't seem to make sense. However, I tried summing both as numbers, as text and as currency, and nothing worked. My list is about 12 whole numbers, no decimal points, just numbers. Total is only 49.

On adjacent column, I tried a test, summing three numbers, and this worked fine. Why won't the main list work?

IPad, Mac OS X (10.5.2)

Posted on Jun 4, 2010 10:00 PM

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Q: Numbers won't sum numbers

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  • by jaxjason,

    jaxjason jaxjason Jun 5, 2010 5:57 AM in response to oceanswims
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    Jun 5, 2010 5:57 AM in response to oceanswims
    The only reason that I can find for numbers not being summed or working in equations is if you have the column as a header column or the rows included as header rows. I just teed and this does make a difference. Header information is considered outside the data range, which actually makes perfect sense when doing a sum.

    This fits in with your statement that the next column works fine.

    Jason
  • by oceanswims,

    oceanswims oceanswims Jun 7, 2010 4:38 AM in response to jaxjason
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 7, 2010 4:38 AM in response to jaxjason
    Thanks for your response, Jason. It's not a header column or row. It worked later after, taking the advice of a respondent to an earlier post, I keyed the data in again. But why only then?

    I'd also like to know how to sort using a column of numbers? Any ideas?

    Best wishes

    Paul
  • by jaxjason,

    jaxjason jaxjason Jun 7, 2010 8:39 AM in response to oceanswims
    Level 4 (3,729 points)
    iWork
    Jun 7, 2010 8:39 AM in response to oceanswims
    it could have been multiple things, numbers pasted from another location or extra characters that forced it to be seen as text only.

    for the sorting, tap once on the header thing that floats above the table when a cell is selected. then tap sort and then a new menu bar appears that says ascending ro descending.

    Jason
  • by oceanswims,

    oceanswims oceanswims Jun 7, 2010 3:20 PM in response to jaxjason
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 7, 2010 3:20 PM in response to jaxjason
    thanks for the sort advice.

    Re the summing, it was all original. I wondered whether, in first playing with Numbers, I had done something inadvertently to formatting, but I couldn't figure out what.

    Thanks for the help. Appreciated greatly.
  • by Carleton Butler,

    Carleton Butler Carleton Butler Dec 26, 2011 1:55 PM in response to jaxjason
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 26, 2011 1:55 PM in response to jaxjason

    I am trying to get Numbers to sum a column of numbers in currency format (US $).

    It refuse to recognize $s as numbers.. If I select the column and change the format to "number with 2 decimal places the formula works fine and it also allows me to change the total back to currency... Go figure?

     

    I select a column of currency values.. Use the SUM formula and get a total of zero

    I change my column to number - 2 decimal places.. The SUM formula does it's duty.. The total shows 2,999.30

    I then select the column and change its format back to currency and the total now shows $2,99.30...

  • by Lady Logger,

    Lady Logger Lady Logger Oct 16, 2015 3:30 PM in response to oceanswims
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Oct 16, 2015 3:30 PM in response to oceanswims

    I had the same problem, when I tried to sum a column of numbers it would give me "0" but now I found that if I go & select the whole column and change the cell data format to numbers then I can sum them and get an actual number.  Data format was on automatic & it should have been number!