Formatting numbers

Hi all,

I have a huge column of numbers that I wish to sort into increasing value.
They all contain 8 digits (eg 12345678), but a large number have leading
zeros (eg 00001234), which I want to retain. How do I format the column so
that when I run a sort I do not lose the leading zeros please? I am using
Excel 2003.

Thanks

Robin

Format > Cells > Number > Custom

Then enter 00000000
in the type field. This will retain the leading zeros and still allow the
sorting.
--
Gary's Student


"Robin Blackwell" wrote:

> Hi all,
>
> I have a huge column of numbers that I wish to sort into increasing value.
> They all contain 8 digits (eg 12345678), but a large number have leading
> zeros (eg 00001234), which I want to retain. How do I format the column so
> that when I run a sort I do not lose the leading zeros please? I am using
> Excel 2003.
>
> Thanks
>
> Robin
>
>
>