Dates Truncated When You Save Worksheet as PRN File (189908)

SYMPTOMS

In the versions of Microsoft Excel listed at the beginning of this article, if you save a worksheet using the "Formatted Text (Space delimited)" format (PRN file), dates in the worksheet may be truncated in the PRN file. For example, the date

   01/01/1999

may appear as

   01/01/199

in the PRN file. If you reopen the PRN file in Microsoft Excel, the date is still truncated.

Note that other data may also be truncated. This problem is not restricted to dates.

CAUSE

This problem may occur when either of the following conditions is true:

In the worksheet, the cells that contain the dates are formatted using a proportional font, such as Arial or Times New Roman.

-or-
In the worksheet, the cells that contain the dates are formatted using a non-proportional (fixed width) font, such as Courier or Courier New. However, the column that contains the dates is not wide enough to display the dates properly.

RESOLUTION

To prevent this problem from occurring, format all of the cells in the worksheet to use a fixed-width font, such as Courier or Courier New. To do so, follow these steps:

Select all of the cells in the worksheet.
On the Format menu, click Cells. Select the Font tab. In the Font list, select a fixed-width font. Then, click OK.

Then, adjust the column widths in the worksheet so that all data appears correctly. To do so, follow these steps:

Select all of the cells in the worksheet.
On the Format menu, point to Column, and click AutoFit Selection.

You can now save the worksheet as a PRN file. Dates and other data should not be truncated.

If the problem has already occurred, you will need to manually correct any affected dates or data by re-entering them.

STATUS

This behavior is by design of Microsoft Excel when you save a worksheet as a PRN file. Because of the method used by Microsoft Excel to save information into a PRN file, data may be truncated when a cell does not use a fixed-width font or if the cell is not wide enough.