Line/printing issues in tables

[Janelle]

I am creating financial statements in Word 2007 using tables.

I am able to create a table with 4 to 5 columns and numerous rows. In the
last two columns I key numbers and dollar signs or lines. I am able to get
my numbers, lines and dollar signs to line up on my computer screen. Once I
print the financial statement, I am able to get the numbers and dollar signs
to line up but not the lines. This is an ongoing problem that I am hoping to
get cleared up soon. I am not sure what I am doing wrong. Any suggestions
would be greatly appreciated.

 

[PamC via OfficeKB.com]

By "lines" do you mean dashes indicating no value? If so, have you tried
aligning the numbers on a decimal tab and separately centering the dashes or
other nonnumeric entries?

PamC

 

[Janelle]

No the dashes indicating no value are not the issue. The line or lines in
question are the equals line or lines. It isn't easy to explain because I
have no way of showing you.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

The lines above totals? I usually use underlines, typing as many extra
spaces at the beginning as required to make the line as wide as the total.
In a table, you can also apply a bottom border to the cell. If you want to
get really fancy, you can apply a bottom border to the paragraph in the cell
instead, using paragraph indents to make the border the right width.

 

[Janelle]

I have tried to do what you have said but for some reason I can't get these
lines to print right. No matter what I do I can't get the lines to print
evenly. I am not Word savvy so I am wondering if there is anything else that
can be done.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Since you haven't really defined "evenly" or "lined up," it's hard to offer
further advice.

 

[Janelle]

There are approximately 25 rows and 4 to 5 columns in my table. The last two
columns of my table contain amounts. The amounts can range from 30 to
4,598,999. I can get the amounts to line up evenly by aligning them to the
left of the cell. And I can get the dollar sign and lines above the totals
to line up evenly on my computer screen. So everything is in neat columns.
But the minute I print the table to paper the lines above the totals print in
different lengths. They do not line up evenly. The numbers and dollar signs
are fine though. Hope this helps more.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Why are you not right-aligning or decimal-aligning them?

 

[Janelle]

We don't use decimals. We use only whole numbers. And all the rows in the
last 2 columns are right aligned. I gave you the wrong information the last
time around, I am sorry.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

You don't have to have a decimal point to decimal-align figures. The beauty
of decimal alignment is that it aligns figures on the first non-numeric
character (other than the thousands separator) after a series of numbers,
which means that if you have some numbers in parentheses or some with a note
reference mark following, they will still align perfectly. And in tables you
don't even need a tab character for decimal alignment.

 

[Accounting nerd]

The problem that Janelle is describing has been a problem since SP3. If you
embed an Excel table in Word 2003, and use the underline format, the
underlines may not print. It doesn't matter if you use accounting underline
or the normal underline, some lines do not print. I have tried removing the
underlines and putting them back. The results vary from time to time. Once
you succeed in having an underline print then another one does not print. I
found that if you double click the table and open it on a computer without
SP3, exit the table and save the file, the underlines will print. The
underlines that do not print, will not show in a PDF file or any other print
capture file. They show on the screen but are missing on the ouput. I sent
sample files to Microsoft months ago. The tech was clueless but confirmed
that there was a problem. In addition, the file size in the one where the
underlines didn't print was more than twice the size of the non-SP3 file.
PLEASE HELP