How do I stop Numbers from changing my data into duration

Is there a function or a setting to stop numbers from changing information automatically? This has never helped me at all, it's always a hurdle, no matter what I am trying to do.


I have a script that has an offset of 10 seconds, I am trying to change the value of every number in a column by -10 seconds. Now the formatting of times codes in videos is 00:00:00:00.


So this is my formula, there is probably an easier way, but I have no numbers or excel experience. I just do movies.



It kills a digit on those first numbers and that makes this whole table useless.



And no matter how often I try to change duration to text, it doesn't change a thing. if I click on another column and back to it, it changes it, it says it's still a duration.


Is there no global way to never have numbers automatically set the column and just keep it as text or something general that doesn't auto format?

MacBook Pro 15″, macOS 12.4

Posted on Aug 27, 2022 3:05 AM

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Posted on Aug 27, 2022 9:37 AM

There is no data format for timecodes. Your textual timecodes are being interpreted as durations of days:hours:minutes:seconds when you do math on them. The only way it can do math on text is to interpret the text as something numeric. Even if it formatted the result as you wish, the math would be incorrect when it involved frames. SGIII put together a spreadsheet a while ago to show how to do timecodes and math on timecodes where you can specify the number of frames so it comes out correct. Hopefully that will guide you to a solution.


https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252142434?answerId=254071786022#254071786022


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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 27, 2022 9:37 AM in response to KazeU

There is no data format for timecodes. Your textual timecodes are being interpreted as durations of days:hours:minutes:seconds when you do math on them. The only way it can do math on text is to interpret the text as something numeric. Even if it formatted the result as you wish, the math would be incorrect when it involved frames. SGIII put together a spreadsheet a while ago to show how to do timecodes and math on timecodes where you can specify the number of frames so it comes out correct. Hopefully that will guide you to a solution.


https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252142434?answerId=254071786022#254071786022


Aug 28, 2022 8:33 AM in response to KazeU

I do not understand. The result of that formula in his spreadsheet is text. What part of it is killing "the regular code" and what is "the regular code" that it is killing? Is it giving incorrect results? It has to convert the string "time codes" into numeric format (such as duration) so it can do math on them. Then it converts the result to a string.

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How do I stop Numbers from changing my data into duration

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