Hello,

I have a thorny problem that I am hoping for a creative solution to - I have
scripts that convert Word tables to tab-separated text, but because some
cells are (intentionally) left empty in the source document, I need a way to
mark them before they are collapsed so that in their collapsed state there
are not two consecutive tabs left behind, rather, a tab followed by a
placeholder string of my own devising, followed by the second tab. My script
consolidates consecutive tabs into a single tab later (because the vast
majority of consecutive tabs in such documents are truly unnecessary).  The
only way to properly re-constitute the table that has an intentionally empty
cell in a number column is to mark the cell beforehand with a placeholder
string.

Sometimes, a cell directly above or below such cells will have a value in
it, so there is the possibility to script something that takes that into
account.  But this is not always the case.  I suppose a more reliable
scenario would be to check if ANY other cells in the same column have values
in them, which would validate leaving a placeholder in that particular empty
cell.

But what if the column has rows running through it that contain merged
cells? What if the cell is part of a row that is completely empty all the
way across - just there to add vertical space?  How can you truly automate
this if there are so many potential forms of interference with a clear-cut
approach?

I don't know if this newsgroup allows attachments, so I have not included
one.  But if requested, I'll post again with a sample table that has a
yellow cell that illustrates my dilemma.

BTW, my solution will be VBA code executed via AppleScript.

Many thanks in advance,

Bill Planey