Sorting with a Custom List Bug

[Chazzs]

I need to sort grades in order, e.g., A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, etc.

Normal sort places has the order B, B-, B+, and using the custom list with the grades in perfect order results in, A-, B+, B-, C+,C-, A, B, C, D, F.  It somehow places all +/- grades first and then the others.

Is there any workaround?  I would expect a custom list to dictate the order of sorting.

I'm using Excel for Mac 2011.

Thanks,

Chazzs

[#2]

@Chazzs , on Windows it sorts correctly if add custom list from from File->Options->Advanced (imported from column E here)

Perhaps something similar for Mac, not sure

[#3]

@Sergei Baklan 

Thanks Sergei.  I did a little more investigating.  When I TYPE in random grades and sort with a custom list it's correct, but when I copy and past a list of grades off of a website the sorting is incorrect.  Something is being copied from the webpage that is confusing the sorting.  I'll see if I can save it as a text file and then try a new sort.  Interesting.

Chazzs

[#4]

SOLVED!!!!!

When a table is copied from a webpage it needs to be Paste Special as Unicode Text.  This strips whatever malicious formatting is hiding in each cell, and  now can be sorted correctly with a custom list. Whew.

Chazzs

[#5]

@Chazzs , yes, when you just copy/paste from web, quite often you copy with your data invisible characters from HTML code which you shall to remove after that.

Anyway, so far so good.