entering a 16 digit number - last value changes to 0

[Guest]

On a new spreadsheet - I enter a value 1234567890123456 and hit enter - it
converts to 1234567890123450 ...... No matter what I do - it continues to
change the 6 to a 0 - Why does this happen and how can I get the correct
value to appear?

 

[Ron Rosenfeld]

On a new spreadsheet - I enter a value 1234567890123456 and hit enter - it
converts to 1234567890123450 ...... No matter what I do - it continues to
change the 6 to a 0 - Why does this happen and how can I get the correct
value to appear?

From Excel HELP Specifications:

Feature Maximum limit
Number precision 15 digits

Excel, and most spreadsheet programs, conform to IEEE specifications which
includes this level of precision.

The only way I know of to enter a 16 digit number into Excel is as TEXT.
Either pre-format the cell as text, or precede your entry with a single quote.



--ron

 

[N Harkawat]

you need to enter a apostrophe (') before entering any whole number greater
than 15 digits or
simply format the cell as text and then enter. If entering credit card
number you could separate blocks of 4 digits with a -
Of course with any of the above you cannot do any kind of calculation since
excel is evaluating it as text instead of number