XL2000: Custom Scientific Number Format Is Displayed Incorrectly

In Microsoft Excel 2000, when you create custom scientific number formats, you may experience unexpected results.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

The default scientific number format included in Microsoft Excel is as follows: This format shows one number before the decimal point and two numbers after. If you create a custom scientific number format that has more than one place indicator before the decimal point, the numbers before the decimal point may not appear as you would expect.

For example, the following table shows a number, how the number is displayed in Microsoft Excel with the 0.00E+00 format code, how the number is displayed with the 00.00E+00 format code, and how you might expect it to be displayed with the 00.00E+00 format code. Versions of Microsoft Excel earlier than Microsoft Excel version 5.0 display the number as shown in the "Expected" column. Depending on the number in the cell and the number of significant digits before the decimal point in the custom format code, Microsoft Excel 2000 may or may not show the number as expected.

For more information about creating custom number formats, click Microsoft Excel Help on the Help menu, type create a custom number format in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topic.