Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Deleting Table Columns with Track Changes Turned On.

Deleting Table Columns with Track Changes Turned On

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 13, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


1

If you are editing a document with Track Changes turned on, you know that it is a great tool for keeping a record of what was changed in a document. There is a problem, however—not all actions can be tracked. From an editing standpoint, one big thing that cannot be tracked is the deletion of columns in a table. You can delete rows and the edit is tracked just fine, but if you try to delete a column you'll see a dialog box that says "This action will not be marked as a change. Do you want to continue?" Choose Yes, and the edit is made (the column is deleted), but there is no change noted in the document. Choose No, and the deletion is abandoned.

There is no way to force Word to delete the column and track the change. This appears to be because deleting a column is too complex of an edit for Word to track. All you can do is come up with ways to work around the limitation.

One way is to select the column you want to delete and then press Ctrl+C. This copies the column to the Clipboard. You can then press the Del key, which lets Word know you want to delete the column. Assuming Track Changes is on, you'll see the dialog box mentioned earlier. Go ahead and click Yes, and the column is deleted. You can then insert a comment just before the table and, within the comment, press Ctrl+V to paste the deleted column into the comment. The result is that you delete the column but still keep "track" of what used to be contained within the column.

Another option is to copy the whole table and paste it beneath the original table. Then, delete the original table (select the whole thing and press Del) and delete the unwanted column from the newly pasted table. You then have the original in the document, marked correctly by Track Changes, and the inserted table that represents your final, edited table.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (439) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Deleting Table Columns with Track Changes Turned On.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Getting Rid of 'Mail To:' in E-mail Links

If you convert e-mail addresses to hyperlinks, you could end up with some 'mailto:' verbiage at the beginning of the ...

Discover More

Determining How Many Windows are Open

Does your macro need to know how many windows Excel has open? You can determine it by using the Count property of the ...

Discover More

Entering Info into Multiple Cells

Want to make an entry of the same value into a group of selected cells? It's easy to do with just one small change in how ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Changing How Changes are Noted in Word

Do you want to modify how Word marks changes in your document? It's easy to do, depending on your version of Word.

Discover More

Colors for Tracking Changes not Acting Properly

When the Track Changes feature is turned on, Word, by default, displays the edits made by each document editor in ...

Discover More

Protecting Tracked Changes

Track Changes is a great tool for editors and collaborators to use when creating documents. An author, seeking changes ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 6 - 0?

2022-04-28 05:50:54

L. Botes

Thanks for this post/tip, proved useful in figuring out how to track changes made to tables in Word


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.