Numbers in parentheses
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What country is the MSC and/or the client in?
It's Regal. They're US based.
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Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
I do work for them and I have never had that requirement. Maybe it is coming from the client. You know how weird those pesky clients can be!
Weird. Must be. This is for their biggest client.
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Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
A guess:
The client wants an easy way to search for numbers in reports and chose to use parentheses as search terms.
The client wants an easy way to search for numbers in reports and chose to use parentheses as search terms.
I have never encountered that kind of requirement. Did they apply it on your report?
Nope. It's just what they do, apparently.
The reason I thought to ask is because I saw a friend post to Facebook using the same style. I asked her why she did that and she told me she's always written numbers just that. Apparently the nuns at Catholic school beat that into her as a kid.
The reason I thought to ask is because I saw a friend post to Facebook using the same style. I asked her why she did that and she told me she's always written numbers just that. Apparently the nuns at Catholic school beat that into her as a kid.
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Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
LOL. I grew up with nuns and I don't remember that rule. But that was long time ago. 
Client wants, client gets.
Someone pointed it out, but in my neck of the woods, I typically write like this in the engineering consulting world: one (1), two (2), etc.
Someone pointed it out, but in my neck of the woods, I typically write like this in the engineering consulting world: one (1), two (2), etc.
Shopping the Greater Denver Area, Colorado Springs and in-between in Colorado. 33 year old male and willing to travel!
My sister majored in Accounting. I was always under the impression that numbers inside parenthesis meant credit.. here in Colorado, it means the opposite.
When the number is ten or less, I spell it. I use digits for 11 and above.
I think @amberngriffinco brings up a good point: in Excel documents, numbers in parentheses often mean negative numbers. Especially when they're formatted as currency.
Shopper in California's Bay Area
@CaliGirl925 wrote:
I think @amberngriffinco brings up a good point: in Excel documents, numbers in parentheses often mean negative numbers. Especially when they're formatted as currency.
Just because it's a format in Excel doesn't mean it's universally used in practice though.
Shopping the Greater Denver Area, Colorado Springs and in-between in Colorado. 33 year old male and willing to travel!
@Tarantado wrote:
@CaliGirl925 wrote:
I think @amberngriffinco brings up a good point: in Excel documents, numbers in parentheses often mean negative numbers. Especially when they're formatted as currency.
Just because it's a format in Excel doesn't mean it's universally used in practice though.
Didn't say that it was. I don't have a background in accounting, but I do have experience with using Excel, so that's what I talk about: things I have experience with. I guess I was just trying to make a point that there's no universal format out there, and when an MSC or a client wants something very specific, it can seem counter intuitive to people who might be familiar with other specialized formats.
Shopper in California's Bay Area
what is it that I say always seems to induce a fight????
@amberngriffinco wrote:
what is it that I say always seems to induce a fight????
Lol what? Just because we're responding to each doesn't mean we're fighting
Shopping the Greater Denver Area, Colorado Springs and in-between in Colorado. 33 year old male and willing to travel!
I agree, numbers in parentheses are negative. It's not just excel it's math.
When we write numbers symbols mean things, it is a language and there are rules.
When we write numbers symbols mean things, it is a language and there are rules.
@JerryBrian wrote:
I agree, numbers in parentheses are negative. It's not just excel it's math.
When we write numbers symbols mean things, it is a language and there are rules.
In accounting, numbers in parenthesis are negative numbers, not just in Excel, you use parenthesis instead of a preceding minus sign. It's a worldwide accepted standard (oddly enough, using a comma in place of a decimal point varies from country to country, as do date formats...). In most legal documents, you include both the number spelled in parenthesis, after the digits (though I think I've seen it the other way around).
As for this specific requirement, beats me. I don't know why would anyone ask for that to be done.
That's a bizarre "rule," and I've never heard of it. I sometimes use the format others have mentioned, and that is to write out the number (if less than 10), then place the numeral in parens after it. E.g., "It takes two (2) to tango." I only do that when there's a possibility for confusion, I'm writing something technically oriented, or I want to be as precise as possible.
If the client wants that, the client should get it, but I personally think it's weird! And, I agree than numbers in parens mean, in accounting speak, negative values. It's not just in Excel. Back in the stone age, when ledgers were done by hand, that's how negative values were indicated.
If the client wants that, the client should get it, but I personally think it's weird! And, I agree than numbers in parens mean, in accounting speak, negative values. It's not just in Excel. Back in the stone age, when ledgers were done by hand, that's how negative values were indicated.
I learn something new every day, but not everyday!
I've learned to never trust spell-check or my phone's auto-fill feature.
I've learned to never trust spell-check or my phone's auto-fill feature.
Virtually all style guides say numbers ten and under are to be spelled out, while 11 and higher are written numerically. I think Sybil2 hit the nail on the head. The client is interested in the numbers and is using the ( ) as a search item in their reports.
"To be persuasive we must be believable; to be believable we must be credible; to be credible we must be truthful." Edward R. Murrow
Thou shalt not steal. I mean defensively. On offense, indeed thou shall steal and thou must.--Branch Rickey
Thou shalt not steal. I mean defensively. On offense, indeed thou shall steal and thou must.--Branch Rickey
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