How to make a table in Word for Mac 2011

[davidlaing]

I want to make a table to put into a manuscript. I need 3 columns with names of chemical species in the first column. This first column needs to be about 2 inches wide, with the header "Chemical Species." The next two columns can be smaller, like about an inch, and contain percentages present in river water and sea water, the first headed by the header "In Rivers," and the second by the header "In the Sea." I've tried everything I can think of, but nothing works. How do I do this, please? Thanks. My email address is (e-mail address removed).

 

[honestone]

Hi and welcome.

It's not a good idea to "publish" your EMail address, as you could be inviting "spam".

Since you have Word 2011, do you have Office 2011? If you do, then you should have Excel 2011, and thus it would be much easier to do what you need to in Excel.

Additionally, what version of Office 2011/Word 2011 do you have? I believe the latest version is V14.7.1. You can get it from here:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=54504

I forgot that you have another possible option. With any MacOS installation, it should install Pages and Numbers. Those two Apple products are "close" to Word and Excel. Pages is similar to Word, and Numbers is similar to Excel. (I do not user them as I have Office 2016 (and thus Word 2016, Excel 2016, and Outlook 2016)). So, if for some reason you do not have Excel 2011, you could use Numbers to accomplish what you want.

 

[davidlaing]

Thank you for your advice regarding publishing my email address, however I'm not too worried about that on this forum.

I have Word for Mac version 14.0.0. I'll consider doing the upgrade.

I used Excel 2011, and now I have more questions:
1) How do I get terminal zeroes to show, like 31.90, not 31.9?
2) How do I left-justify all figures in the cells?
3) How can I type a "-" (no value), without having something unwanted come up?

Tx.

 

[honestone]

First, you are WAY behind regarding versions. The first thing you must do is do download and install Microsoft Office for Mac 2011 Service Pack 1 (14.1.0), from here:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=17198

Download it, and install it. Then, download and install the V14.7.1 from the link::

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=54504

Now, as far as your "formatting" questions:

1. To have zeroes after the decimal point remain (like 14.00), click on a cell, then go to the Format Menu. Click on Cells, then select "Number" from the next screen.

2. For justification, to the right of the Font Color symbol (should be a Red Capitol A), you'll see 3 boxes containing dashes. The first one is Align Left, the next one is Center, and the next one is Align Right.

3. For having nothing appear in a cell (ie, just blank), just tab from that cell to the next.

 

[davidlaing]

Tx! All ridiculously simple. I was actually hoping just to use "-" to indicate "no value," but I guess I can use "x" instead. "-" turns into information about the cell in question when I move along, and I was hoping that this unwanted information wouldn't appear in addition to the "-." I'd appreciate it if you could tell me how to fix this, too, but if not, the "xs" will serve.

 

[honestone]

Oops! I misunderstood what you wanted in that cell. You did not want a blank, but instead "-", ie, a minus sign. Well, the solution is, fortunately, simple. Let's say you have two adjoining cells, Cell #1 needs to contain -8.50, and Cell #2 needs to contain just the minus sign you want. For Cell #1, just format it as Number, and for Cell #2, format it as General.

By the way, did you upgrade Office 2011 to V14.7.1?

 

[davidlaing]

OK, tx!

No, I didn't upgrade yet. Normally, as long as everything is working OK for my rather simple purposes, I don't bother to upgrade things, partly because I have an old Mac (2009), and sometimes it can't handle upgrades too well. From what I could tell, the main advantages I'd gain from the new version are in the security arena, and since I work alone, I don't have to worry about anyone else messing up my writings. Also, sometimes the more secure upgrades won't let me do things I want to do, and that's a major nuisance.

 

[honestone]

I'd understand if you were a couple of upgrades behind, but that's not the case here. Also, just because you have an older machine makes no difference. The two upgrades I mentioned are quite easy to apply. Just in case, you are making backups to an external device, right?

But, it's up to you.

 

[davidlaing]

Thank you. Of course it's up to me, but perhaps you could explain to me the advantages of upgrading, which you haven't really done so far. I'd be happy to listen, and if it all makes sense, then naturally I'll do it. Yes, I do back up to an external hard drive about every two weeks or so. Tx.

 

[honestone]

Well, first of all, software updates also correct bugs. While one may not yet have encountered such bugs, it could happen one day with an older release.

Secondly, Microsoft has done a real good job in terms of making the versions of Office on Windows and Macs as compatible as possible, and updates continue to do that even more.

Third, as you mentioned, there are the security issues that are addressed. While you might be working "isolated" enough now, again there could be instances in the future where such protection is vital.

Fourth, there could be improvements in performance, and that is always welcomed.

I forgot to mention one pertinent thing, though. Sometimes updates are released for specific Mac OS compatibility. I had been using Office 2011 for quite some time before moving to Office 2016 back in October, but I believe there was an earlier release of Office 2011 that was specifically for El Capitan compatibility. Here is an example:

http://www.macrumors.com/2015/10/07/microsoft-office-2011-outlook-fix/

So, it looks like V14.5.5 of Office 2011 was specifically released for El Capitan compatibility. Fortunately, I am not having any issues at all using Office 2016, and I use (and depend upon) Outlook for my EMail needs. (By the way, when I was answering your detailed Excel questions, I was actual getting that information from Excel 2016).

In actuality, if you are using any third party software, you need to insure that it is compatible with whatever Mac OS you are using. That might require downloading and installing updates for such software.

By the way, one of the primary reasons why I upgraded to Office 2016 is that it's just a matter of time before Microsoft stops both updating and supporting Office 2011. Just something for your consideration.

 

[davidlaing]

OK, tx! That certainly gives me plenty of food for thought about upgrades. I'll take it all under advisement, and come to a decision soon. Thanks very much for your input and advice.

 

[honestone]

Understand. But, you should upgrade at least for OS compatibility. It is always wise (and sometimes mandatory) to have third party software updated for OS compatibility. Word and Excel might work as is (assuming you have a "later" Mac OS version, like Yosemite, El Capitan, or Sierra), but there could come a time when you'll regret it.

 

[davidlaing]

Yes, but I still have Mavericks on the advice of my computer specialist, who says that it's the best operating system for my ancient Mac.

 

[honestone]

OK, that is an "older" Mac OS. But, still downloading the latest version will do more good than harm.

 

[davidlaing]

Tx!