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: Valid Numbers in Form Fields.

Valid Numbers in Form Fields

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 2, 2015)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


1

Becki has a form that she created in Word, using form fields. The values entered by users need to be numbers. However, the form field allows users to enter things such as a digit, a space, and another digit, which is not a valid number. Becki wonders how she can ensure that a user enters valid numbers in a form field.

The trick is in how you configure the properties of the form field. With the document unprotected, right-click the form field and choose Properties from the resulting context menu. Excel displays the Field Options dialog box for the form field. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Field Options dialog box for a form field.

You want to make sure the Type drop-down list is set to Number, and you should use the Number Format drop-down list to choose 0. (This means that the field will only accept straight numbers.)

When you set the field properties in this manner, the user isn't precluded from entering a digit, a space, and another digit, but when the field is exited the space between the digits is removed automatically.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (8691) 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: Valid Numbers in Form Fields.

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

Adding Page Numbers in Headers or Footers

While Word has a default format for page numbers, you can design and specify how you want them to appear in your ...

Discover More

Adding Diagonal Borders

Want to add a border diagonally, through the middle of a table cell? It's easy if you follow the formatting steps ...

Discover More

Unhiding Multiple Worksheets

You can hide a bunch of worksheets at the same time, but Excel makes it much more difficult (depending on your version of ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! Are you ready to harness the full power of Word 2013 to create professional documents? In this comprehensive guide you'll learn the skills and techniques for efficiently building the documents you need for your professional and your personal life. Check out Word 2013 In Depth today!

More WordTips (menu)

Safely Relocking Forms

In order to use a form in Word, it must be protected. This means that you cannot make any changes to the form, even if ...

Discover More

Working with Form Fields

You know you want to use form fields in your document (they are essential in creating forms, after all) but you need to ...

Discover More

Stopping Enter from being Pressed In a Form

If you create a form using Word, chances are good that you don't want a user to mess up the layout of the form by ...

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 7 - 7?

2015-05-02 05:32:27

ARUNACHALAM

just i started using your tips and is useful.


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.