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Line Sort Does Not Alphabatize Correctly |
The information in this document applies to:
WordPerfect® 5.1 for DOS
Problem
You are sorting by line, and the Sort feature does not alphabetize as you expect. |
Answer:
Set the proper tab stops for your document. It is easiest to set the tab stops before you begin typing the list. If you change the tabs after the list has been typed, you will have to remove the extra [Tab] codes after the new tab setting takes effect. 1 Press Format (Shift+F8), then choose Line (1). 2 Choose Tab Set (8). Delete all the existing tabs and only set new tabs where you need them. 3 Press Ctrl+End to delete all of the tabs. For this example, you only need one tab to separate the name and phone number. 4 Type a position number for the tab (such as 3 inches), then press Enter. 5 Press Exit twice to return to your document. You are now ready to start the line sort. For this example, sort by the phone number, which is field 2. 1 Press Merge/Sort (Ctrl+F9), then choose Sort (2). 2 Press Enter twice to accept the input and output fields. You need to define the sort order for your list. 3 Choose Keys (3). 4 Type n to designate that the field is numeric. 5 Type 2 to designate field 2 as the field to sort on. 6 Press Exit, then choose Perform Action (1). Your list will be sorted by phone number. See Also Sort in the WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS reference manual Tab Set in the WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS reference manual |
Details:
If lines contain an inconsistent number of tab codes and fields, they will not sort consistently. In a line sort, each line of text can be divided into fields. A tab or indent marks a field boundary. Each field can be divided into words, which are separated by spaces. To sort by fields in a line, you must have the same number of tabs or indents (and therefore the same number of fields) on each line. For example, if you have created lines of text with two columns of information (name and phone number), you may have more than one tab code between columns. The lines might appear in Reveal Codes as in the following example: Mike Black[Tab][Tab][Tab]555-1234[HRt] Sandra Wallace[Tab][Tab]555-3456[HRt] Jennifer Christensen[Tab]555-5678[HRt] In this example, there are four fields in the first line but only two fields in the third line. In the first line, field 1 contains the name, fields 2 and 3 are empty because there is no text between the tabs, and field 4 contains the phone number. To sort the lines correctly, you must have only one tab between the name and the phone number, as in the following example. Mike Black[Tab]555-1234[HRt] Sandra Wallace[Tab]555-3456[HRt] Jennifer Christensen[Tab]555-5678[HRt] You should set tab stops for the document so that you only need one tab or indent between columns. The solution below lists the steps for setting tabs. It also explains how to do a line sort. |
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