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Your LimeSurvey version: Version 2.05+ Build 140915
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Hi,

I'm having a problem exporting the values entered in a short text box type of question.
I need a type of question that allows the users to enter, if it is the case, one leading zero.
Numerical type of questions don't allow that, inasmuch as they "eat" the zero.
In the text box I used a regular expression for the validation of the data: /^[0][1-9][0-9][0-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-9][0-9][0-9]/
The data entered should always have 5 digits, should have only one leading zero, if it is the case. To meet these requirements, besides using the mentioned Regex, I've also setted the field to admit up to 5 characters only.
It all worked fine in the tests. But when I exported the results to an excel file, the leading zeros introduced per each user disapeard.
How can I solve this?

Thank you very much!

This is the behaviour of Excel 
Excel recognises a number 
Usually there are no leading zeros in a number.
Therefore Excel removes them.

You have to set a special format in these Excel columns.

Joffm
And you will get only little help for your nearly 8 years old version.
Nearly nobody will have an installation of it.

Thank you very much.
The problem, though, is previous to setting the excel column into a format type allowing leading zeros. It happens during the exportation. When I get to the excel file generated in the process it's already too late: the zeros just aren't there.
I know my company's LS version is totally outdated, but it is the one I have to work with.
Is this not happening in recent versions?
And isn't there a way of solving my problem in the older version?

Thank you very much for your help.

Nuno

Of course it happens, as it is not LimeSurvey related.
You know that Microsoft always thinks to know better what you want to do.
The same: When I enter "23/7" Excel "knows" that it is a date and changes to "23.Jul"

When I get to the excel file generated in the process it's already too late: the zeros just aren't there.

And? So what?Just change the fomat of these columns. Work of 5 minutes.
Or you create a macro and run it each time.

Another way:
I think you know how to force a string in Excel by prepending a "'".
So, as you enter your number in a "short text" you may use Expression Manager to prepend this string with "'".
Was Expression Manager already implemented in 2.05?

Joffm

BTW: Did you export to csv and had a  look at that file?

 

Yeah, my first idea was also exporting to CSV. But I bet MS will do the same thing as soon as you import the CSV into your excel.

So probably the best way to solve this issue with leading zeros (beside MS getting their shit together, which is probably not an option... ) is Joffm's idea with adding a ' to the beginning of the string. This should force Excel to think it is text rather than a number.

But just like Joffm said: Not a Limesurvey problem, but a MS Excel problem. I am sure in the CSV and SPSS exports the leading zeros will show up.