The following table shows the symbols most commonly used in numeric format masks.
Symbol |
Description |
---|---|
9 |
Represents 1 numeric character. The number of 9's determines how many digits the text item can display. |
0 |
Displays leading zeroes when present. |
$ |
Prefix number with a dollar sign. |
B |
Displays preceding zeroes as blank spaces. |
MI |
Displays "-" after a negative value. |
PR |
Displays negative value in <angle brackets>. |
, (comma) |
Displays a comma in this position as required. |
. (decimal) |
Displays a decimal in this position. |
Embedded Characters in NUMBER Values You can embed a character string in a NUMBER value by enclosing it in quotes in the format mask. Embedded characters are usually used in fixed-length values such as standard part numbers and telephone numbers.
The following format mask embeds dashes in numeric values:
Format Mask |
Displayed Value |
---|---|
999"-"99"-"9999 |
566-23-5733 |
The position of an embedded string is fixed within the text item, and does not change depending on how many digits are in the stored value.
Example
The following table shows examples of format masks for NUMBER values:
Format Mask |
Number Entered |
Result |
---|---|---|
999 |
223.4 |
223 |
$9,999.99 |
3445.34 |
$3,445.34 |
999"-"999"-"9999" |
4083543957 |
408-354-3957 |
99.9 |
00027.48 |
27.5 |
099.9 |
00027.48 |
00027.5 |
B99.9 |
00027.48 |
27.5 |
99.9MI |
-24 |
24.0- |
99.99"%" |
66.17 |
66.17% |
About formatting text item values with format masks
Assigning a format mask to a text item