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Copying and Pasting Numbers Tables.

Hello Folks! I have been facing a problem since macOS Sequoia. Back on MacOS Ventura & Sonoma, I used to copy Tables or Selected Rows/Columns and paste them into other apps like WhatsApp and Messenger, and it used to be pasted as an Image, which was a great convenience for sending price lists to customers. But since macOS Sequoia, the copied Tables or Selected Rows /Columns are pasted as just Text into Other apps and not as an image. Has Apple changed something regarding this, or is this a bug in macOS Sequoia?

Mac mini, macOS 15.1

Posted on Oct 30, 2024 11:20 AM

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6 replies

Oct 30, 2024 1:04 PM in response to kashif_aulakh

What does it do when you create a new Preview app document from it?

Copy the cells/table, go to Preview app, command N to create new from clipboard.

It used to, and hopefully still does, create a scalable image that can be enlarged without getting pixelated like a screenshot would. If it still does this, I think it is safe to say the data you want is being copied to the clipboard.


Assuming the above worked, a clunky workaround ubtil something better comes along could be to use Preview as a go-between. Create a new Preview document from the clipboard (which you will discard later, not save) then drag the thumbnail from Preview to your messaging app. Mine always defaults to not showing the thumbnails so you might have to do View/ Thumbnails to see the thumbnail.

Oct 30, 2024 7:45 PM in response to kashif_aulakh

I don't notice any change in behavior with Sequoia 15.1.


Going through Preview still works here.


You can also try this: make your selection in Numbers and choose Edit > Copy Snapshot and paste the results of that.


These all work well with Mac apps on my machine. I don't have WhatsApp or Messenger If none of these approaches is working for you, then it might be because of changes in WhatsApp and Messenger?


Also, to clear out any mysterious gremlins you could try restarting your Mac.


SG

Oct 31, 2024 10:43 AM in response to kashif_aulakh

The result does seem to vary depending on the app. I'm not sure which apps paste as an image, or when/why it changed.


The short version is when you copy data (such as a table in Numbers), the application can put multiple formats on the clipboard (such as 'image', 'rich text', and 'plain text'), and when you paste it's up to the target application which format it takes - some will accept the rich text version, others the plain text, etc.). You have very little control over this. Maybe Numbers used to include an Image version and it no longer does... I don't have an older version to test.


However, if an image is what you want, then a screenshot is probably the best way to go right now. If you use Ctrl-Shift-Command-4 you can grab an area of the screen and it's copied to the clipboard as an image, where you can then paste it wherever you like (command-shift-4 is the classic screenshot key-combo... adding Ctrl saves to the clipboard rather than to a file on disk)

Copying and Pasting Numbers Tables.

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