No more categories in numbers 3.0?

Since this discussion topic now has a second page, I'm restating the following:

Please request that Categories be restored to Numbers 3.0 via the Numbers Feedback site. Thanks!

Opt-Arrow was always my method to add rows or column. In a newly created v3 file, it works as before. In ver 2 files, adding rows only works on some files.

In ver 2 files which had Categories, its completely greyed out. No keyboard shortcut. No right click mouse. No Menu bar option. No chance to add row at end of table or in between. But adding columns isn't a problem anywhere...

I gave up trying to work around the problem after 3 hours. Recovered the old apps using Time Machine. Used file versioning to revert back to old files before they were "destroyed" by ver 3.

I use Categories for every document I have. To catogorize by year, month or whatever!

Did an angry feedback post from the link above.

Hi all,

besides to leaving a feedback on the apple website, maybe you could also leave a feedback in the App store ...

They've probably simplified / cut a some features to integrate the iOS + OS platforms...

I was taken aback by this new positioning, and CATEGORIES was by far the thing I needed the most...

Another feature that no longer exists: Links!

On iWork 09 when you cut a table from Numbers and Paste it on Keynote or Pages, it was referenced to the original numbers file.

It was a pretty powerful feature and I miss that as well!

Uuuugh, Apple... what were you thinking!!! Categories were one of the many, but perhaps the best, reason for not using Microsoft. So far, not impressed at all with the new suite. Sending feedback to Apple.

I teach journalism.

I used to teach Numbers along with Excel (and OpenOffice Calc too), mentioning that Categories were much simpler to use than Pivot Tables.

But with the Categories features stripped out of Numbers 3.0, there is no need to mention Numbers to my students. I'll recommend that they DO NOT buy it, since it is now useless for what journalists need to do with a spreadsheet.

Jean-Hugues Roy

École des médias

Université du Québec à Montréal

Feedback form filled.

Hopefully, it'll be brought back!

JHR

MTL, QC

If there is functionality missing in Numbers 3.0 that you really miss can I suggest besides submitting feedback that people submit a product rating/review via the App Store

Yes this is one of a few disastrous choices in the new version. Embarrasing.

I quote: Message to everyone who views this: Please request that Categories be restored to Numbers 3.0 via the Numbers Feedback site. Thanks!

Less is not always more.

There are some functions that should never be removed without a viable replacement. This one is so basic to business spreadsheet use that it will be utterly impossible for anyone to take iWork seriously without it.

I don't care if Apple kills Categories, but please, please replace it with pivot tables or something that lets us aggregate data.

I really don't understand that they took it out !

(going back to the old Numbers.....)

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I suspect Categories was removed because the Categories feature was hindering the use of the functions that were designed to provide the same functionality in a cleaner, richer, more flexible way.

The proper method is to use the SUMIFS, the COUNTIFS and the AVERAGEIFS functions and others like them to build your pivot tables.

1. Create a new table to summarize your data.
2. Add a header column with the list of categories you want to summarize.
3. In the header row, add the cross referencing information you want to summarize with.
4. In the cells, place SUMIFS or similar functions to generate your data.
5. Make sure to check the "Preserve Collumn" option for each argument in the formula and the "Preserve Row" option where it references your header row.

See this example.

1) You can do that in old Numbers too, can't you?

2) Does this in any way replace a row with a flip up/down functionality?

Example: A list of transactions categorized by month for easy overview.

1) You can do that in old Numbers too, can't you?

Yes, you can, which is why I said:

I suspect Categories was removed because the Categories feature was hindering the use of the functions that were designed to provide the same functionality in a cleaner, richer, more flexible way.

As to "flip up/down functionality":

2) Does this in any way replace a row with a flip up/down functionality?

I'm guessing you mean the ability to hide or show the sample data under categories.

When you build a summary or pivot table that is seperate than your data table, it is no longer necessary to show and hide your data. I personally found it quite troublesome to constantly have to hide and show my data when I had hundreds of rows and needed to see dozens of categories lines up. A seperate table solves that issue because you can see all your data and your summary at the same time.