I am trying to create a record of number changes (y axis) in a spreadsheet, including mathematical + and - signs in each cell. This over a number of dates (x axis). This process automatically adds an = sign, which I don’t want, at the start of each cell, and shows the text on the spreadsheet as an arithmetical calculation. e.g entering “+ 43 - 22” (without the quotes) shows as 21 on the sheet.
Nothing found on search: I have been given advice on convert text to numbers!
Any suggestions?
Either pre-format the column as text, ot start each cell with '
Entering numeric text into an arithmetic calculator is a questionable concept. Whatever you are going to do with these figures, it would save you a lot of trouble if you saved these pairs (43 and -22) as numeric values in separate cells.
Number format code +#;-#;0 displays positive numbers with a leading +, even if you enter them without. But this is only a cosmetic issue. The main concern should be the cell values rather than formatting.