Look up / Why citation code 4.10 turns into 4.1
Why citation code 4.10 turns into 4.1
Toy standard section numbers look like decimals to a spreadsheet. Excel drops the trailing zero, and the certificate ends up citing a different rule.
| You typed | Excel keeps | What CPSC's list says |
|---|---|---|
4.10 | 4.1 | 4.1 is a real code, but a different one: ASTM F963: Material quality. 4.10 is ASTM F963: Wires or Rods. |
4.20.1 / 4.20.2 | unchanged | Two dots, so Excel treats them as text. |
4.30 | 4.3 | 4.3 is not in CPSC's code list. |
4.40 | 4.4 | 4.4 is not in CPSC's code list. |
How to stop it
- Select the Citation Codes columns and set the format to Text before typing.
- If the codes are already there, retype the ones ending in zero; changing the format afterwards does not bring the zero back.
- A cell holding several codes, such as
4.6; 4.10; 1278a, is already text and is safe.
Why 4.1 is the dangerous one
4.3 and 4.4 are not in the code list, so they can be caught: API Specifications V4 lists error 3006, "Lab <#> could not find citation <#>", for a code the Registry does not know. 4.1 cannot be caught that way: it is a real code, so a file that meant 4.10 cites Material quality instead of Wires or Rods and nothing looks wrong. CPSC's own code workbook stores these codes as numbers and relies on cell formatting to show the zero. The validator on this site flags every row that cites 4.1 without 4.10 so you can check it against the test report.