Knowledge Base

OFF98: Using the Undo Feature with Inserted Objects

Article ID: 183279

Article Last Modified on 11/25/2003

Microsoft Office 98 for Macintosh
Microsoft Excel 98 for Macintosh
Microsoft Word 98 for Macintosh
Microsoft PowerPoint 98 for Macintosh

This article was previously published under Q183279

SYMPTOMS

In the programs listed at the beginning of this article, if you click an object that you have inserted into a document in another program, the undo list for the object may be cleared.

CAUSE

This problem occurs when the following conditions are true:

You insert a Microsoft Excel worksheet object, a Microsoft Excel chart object, or a Microsoft Word document object into a document in another program. -and-
You make changes to the object and then deactivate the object. -and-
You then click the object to activate it.

STATUS

This behavior is by design of the programs that are included in Microsoft Office 98 Macintosh Edition.

MORE INFORMATION

Each program in Microsoft Office 98 Macintosh Edition includes an Undo command. This command allows you to undo certain actions after you perform them; for example, if you type a value in a worksheet cell, you can undo the action. To use the Undo command, do either of the following:

Click Undo on the Edit menu. -or-
Click the Undo tool on the Standard toolbar.

When you click the Undo arrow on the Standard toolbar, you can see a list of the actions you have performed. This list is sometimes called the "undo stack." Normally, this list is cleared only when you perform an irreversible action, such as closing a file. When you reopen the file, no items are listed.

When you deactivate an object that you have inserted into a document in another program, the undo stack for the object is automatically cleared.

Note that you cannot insert Microsoft PowerPoint 98 presentations or slides into documents in other programs.

Example

To see an example of this behavior, follow these steps:

In Microsoft Word 98, create a new document.
On the Insert menu, click Object. In the Object Type list, click Microsoft Excel Worksheet and click OK.
In the Microsoft Excel worksheet object, type random values in some of the cells.
Click the Undo arrow on the Standard toolbar.

Note that the list contains several items, such as Typing. When you are done, click a cell in the worksheet object.
Deactivate the worksheet object by clicking Close & Return To Document1 on the File menu.
Activate the worksheet object by double-clicking it.

Note that you cannot click the Undo tool on the Standard toolbar because the undo stack has been cleared.

For more information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

172542 OFF97: Using the Undo Feature with Inserted Objects

Additional query words: XL98 WD98 redo reactivate undo stack

Keywords: kbinfo kbui KB183279