Table behaviour: disappears, Filter results not visible

Hi Guy,

I tended to slide my tables off to the left. It was not hard to stop the behavior but I can't tell you how I did it.

1. I don't thik so.

2. I don't think you can lock the table position w/o locking the whole table.

3. See 4.

4. Not automatic but the Arrange tab will help you here.

The Position area shows that my table is 1.76 in off the canvas. Edit the y coordinate to a positive or zero to bring it back.

quinn

Ques 1

The results from applying a Filter that returns a small number of results from a large number of rows, when you are down the bottom end of the rows, never shows the results – because Numbers stays at the bottom end, and doesn't move to the top (where the results are). Can I tell Numbers to make the results visible without me having to move the scroll bar?

Maybe. The Table's location is determined by the location of its top left corner. When you filter, the 'show' rows will move up to fill the space left by the 'hide' rows. You do have to select a cell to place focus on the table and make the sort and filter controls show to the right. Here I selected last cell in column A (note that this is a row that will be hidden—not a necessary choice, one that was used to find out if the user needed pre-knowledge and had to choose a cell that would be visible after the filter was engaged. Apparently not.:

This is what happened when I clicked the Filter checkbox to engage the filter:

The selection stayed at pretty much the same location relative to the document window, but moved up three rows to the closest available cell still visible. Still a need to scroll to get to the top of the table, but not far in this case:

Test 2: what happens if there are only a few visible rows after filtering?

I selected all but four of the "show" rows and pasted in the word "hide". As the filter was still engaged, those rows immediately disappeared from view. I disengaged the filter and again scrolled to the bottom of the table and selected the last cell on column A.

When I engaged the filter again, this was the result:

I suspect, but haven't tested that the first test would have resulted in all remaining rows of the table being on the screen if I had scrolled the table to placed the bottom row at the bottom of the screen before selecting the cell and engaging the filter.

Ques 2

If I slip a Table upwards far enough, the results of a Filter may not be visible, and can't be made visible even by scrolling. Can I lock a Table in position so that it can't be slipped?

I'm not certain what you mean by "slip" a table upward. My best guess is that you have Freeze Header Rows turned on, and the table has fewer rows shown than have been moved beyond the the top of the document window.

Here's the same table, with Freeze Header Rows turned on. The only header row on this table is row 1, so the header will remain visible as long as there is room for it between the top of the document window and the top of the last visible row of the table.

So here we are at the bottom of the table, with the last cell in column A selected. The first visible row below the header row is row 251, meaning there are 249 rows above the edge of the sheet, and there are only four that will pass the filter.

Engage the filter and...

Well!! Tht was a surprise!!

Let's try it again, this time with Freeze Header rows turned off:

Same screen as before (with the header row off somewhere above). Engage the filter and...

Same result! No change at all from the previous image.

Perhaps I've misunderstood what you mean by "slip a table upwards".

Questions 3 and 4 responses in a separate message below.

Barry

Ques 3

A Table with a small number of rows, can be slipped all the way past the top of the frame so that not even the bullseye is visible. How do you get it back again without Undo? This behaviour, for this beginner, seems ridiculous. I tried a similar thing in Photoshop. You can move an image out of frame – but you can also move it back again.

New document. Table is the default Table 1, filled wth the visible 'data' from the filtered table above. Now you see it..

And now, after it has been dragged out of the document window, you don't.

If you act while the table s still selected (note the Table name checkbox in the Table Inspector), AND know which direction it was moved, you can get it back in sight using the down and or right arrow keys (with the shift key as an accelerator).

If it is (or if you suspect it is) not selected, you will need to select the table before you can move it.

The usual methods aren't available to you (dfficult to click on something you can't see), but all is not lost.

If there are other objects on the sheet and they are visible, click one to select it, then press command A to select all objects. You will be moving the selected object(s), so deselect all but one of the visible ones by command-clicking on each in turn.

With the hidden table and on visible object selected, click and drag the visible one down and to the right until the missing table comes into view.

If the Table is the only object on the sheet, add a second from the shapes button. Select it, select All, then drag.

Here I've positioned the new shape near the top of the document window and about as far from the left edge of the document as I remember the table to have been., where it has a good chance of being close to the hidden object.

Press command A to Selet All (objects), then go to the Align pop-up in the inspector and choose Right to move all selected objects Right to aling their right edges to the right edge of the rightmost object:

Click in an empty area of the sheet to deselect both objects, then click on the shape and press delete to delete that object.

Ques 4

If a Table is slipped, is it possible to automatically reset its position to the top left? As it stands, I have to manually judge that it's in the right place and that the data has not slipped from view.

Align might be your friend here as well, but the alignment is always to the furthest object in the direction of the alignment—not too useful for tables that are partly off screen to the top or right. Could be accomplished in two or three steps if you kept an object well to the right and well blow the full height of the table, and another at the top left corner of the document.

Click Select the Table and the bottom object, Align right, thenAlign bottom.

Deselect the bottom object and select the top one (the table is still selected). Align left, Align top.

Regards,

Barry

Hi Guy,

The bullseye is part of the set of row and column reference tabs. When the table or a cell on the table is selected, the tabs appear to give you the numbers of the visible rows and letters of the visible columns. As long as at least one cell of the table is on the screen, the tabs for its row and column (and the bullseye will remain visible, either at the top left of the table or at the top left of the visible part of the table. Notice that when you drag the table up and away from the document window, the table continues to move in concert with the mouse pointer, but the bullseye stops at the edge of the window, and disappears when no table cells are visible.

Quinn's suggestion to use the Position coordinates as a locater for (and means of moving) the table is a good one. It does, though, depend on the table being currently Selected.

If not, and the table is the only object, use my Insert Shape, Select Shape, Select All (command-A) to select both the shape and the off screen table, then command-click the shape to remove it from the selection, and use Quinn's suggestions regarding the Position coordinates. BTW, the coordinates tell the position of the top left corner of the table wrt the Sheet.

Current test:

After step three, this is the view of the top few visible rows:

Note that the first fully visible row number is 10, indicating, since filters have been disengaged, that there are most certainly more rows above. After step 4:

As described in your post.

Steps to take: If you feel this is a bug, submit a bug report via Numbers (menu) > Provide Numbers Feedback, Describe the issue, including how to reproduce it. Send the reort.

Meantime, use My suggestions and Quinn's to move the table back onto the sheet, and take care that the top of the table is on the sheet before engaging or disengaging filters.

Regards,

Barry

Test is Numbers 3.6.2 on El Capitan (OS X v10.11.6)

Hi Guy,

Ques 4

If a Table is slipped, I have to manually judge that it's in the right place

This may help:

Menu > Numbers > Preferences > Rulers > Show size and position when moving ojects.

Also tick all Alignment Guides

Give it a try. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

It shows the top and left page margins when an object is "on" them.

Works great to manually align several objects.

Also Menu > View > Show Rulers (command r) is often handy.

Regards,

Ian.

Hi Guy,

A note on selecting tables that you can't see. It is easy with the tab menu.

While I have dragged Table 1 so far off the canvas I can's see it (Arrange says -4.17 in.) It is easy to select here.

I think you should consider creating a report table on a different sheet. It would gather its data from the disappearing table. Set it up with its filter always on and positioned so the upper rows are visable. Since you will not be entering data here there is less likely you will inadvertently drag it out of position. With the spread sheet I use daily I rarely even consult the Main Table. I enter data into a form in iOS (some people set up a data entry table on the Mac to protect formulas from editing) and view different report tables when I want to see what is going on. Clicking on a sheet is easier than turning a filter on and off in my book.

quinn