For more information about the names of the different symbols for division, you can check out Names for the Division Sign at MathMojo.com
Recently a reader wrote in with the following question:
Hi. I enjoyed discovering your website about math mojo.
Do you by chance know how to create the long division symbol in a word processing document or PowerPoint that allows someone to insert the dividend under a vinculum?
Right now, I’m just using an underline key, entering, and then typing the numbers on the line underneath. This solution is less than optimal. If you have a better solution, how happy you’d make me by sharing it.
Thanks,
- A. Reader
Professor Homunculus sez:
The symbol the reader is referring to is this one:
Great question. Lots of people have asked about it before, and it’s time I got to it. I’ve tried this so many ways, and have downloaded lots of math software trials, only to find that none of them have included that symbol. The rest of this post are instructions and a video of how to do this.
I’ve used the following method to accomplish what you are trying to accomplish, on a Mac, using Keynote (it’s like PowerPoint). I just tried PowerPoint for the first time in my life, and it worked with that, as well. It will also work similarly with a Word Document.
(Don’t worry, you don’t have to do this part. I’m just including it for the sake of completeness.) First I created the image I wanted in Photoshop, using the text tool to make a right parenthesis and a series of underscores. Then I rasterized the layer, moved the underscores till they were touching the parenthesis. Then I flipped the image vertically, and cropped it. Next I saved it for the web as a .jpg file. Then I loaded it to this post. You don’t have to do any of that, obviously, but you can use the same technique to make all sorts of stuff to add to your other documents if you have Photoshop or something like it.
This is all you have to do to use that graphic for your own files:
If you’re on a Mac, click on the image and drag the above image to your desktop. (If you’re on a machine from CosmoDemonicSoft, do whatever you need to do to download that image to your computer.)
Now open a PowerPoint document. Type the numbers you want in the positions you want them. Then go up to the menu bar and click on “insert” > picture > from file” and navigate to the file you just downloaded (it’s entitled “division_sign_with_vinculum.jpg”). Click on it, and it will be inserted somewhere into your document. Drag it to the place you want, between the numbers you want.
You will notice that it is not transparent, and it will block out the numbers behind it. No problem. While the picture is selected, you will see the formatting palette for graphics, click on the section that says, “size, rotation and ordering,” then click on the “layering” button and chose “send to back.”
You’re done.
You can resize the graphic by dragging on its handles.
One thing to keep in mind, when you insert the graphic, do it from the menu bar, like I mentioned above. Do not insert it using the “insert graphics” button in the formatting palette. That will add the graphic, but in a square file, with extra room around the edges, and that can mess you up. Doing it from the menu bar will only insert the properly cropped file.
Remember, I’m using PowerPoint on a Mac, so if you’re using a computer from The Dark Side, your interface may look slightly different.Let me know how you do.
Extremely useful, hopefully in the future it will start being incorporated into fonts too
This was very helpful.
fyi: In Word 2007 I set the font to 20 (Calibri), shrank the picture to 0.34″ X 0.77″, and used three spaces with the Normal formatting option.
Interesting and very informative.. can’t wait to try this. Thanks for sharing the steps.
I still can’t get it to work in a table in a Word document. Any suggestions?
I don’t, sorry. I no longer have any Microsoft software on my computer (I’m on a Mac) so I can’t go fiddle around with it to figure it out for you. If you do find a solution, would you be kind enough to come back and share it with other readers?
Good luck!
Brian
Use the Math Add In from Microsoft found here: http://www.microsoft.com/downl.....e505b3bf09
Great to find this, I have always struggled to apply this to word documents! In 2010 if you don’t want to have problems moving and inserting numbers after inserting it into your doc–leave it with the handles on so that you have the picture tools up. If you dont just click onthe division symbol and the picture tools will come back. Go to , go to “format tab, arrange group, and click on wrap text down arrow and select “behind text”. After that you can move, rearrange and place it anywhere, incuding typing under it. Thanks!
Here are 2 ways to make a Long Division Sign (with the Vinculum bar) in Powerpoint:
1. Click the Insert tab, then click Shapes.
2. Insert a curved line.
3. Left click the curve and pull the yellow diamond down to make a curve.
4. Insert a straight horizontal line (under shapes) and attach it to the curve from step 3. (This creates your vinculum bar.)
5.Group the two objects — By left-clicking the curve, Hold the shift button and left-click the line. Right-click on of the objects and select “Group” twice.
6. Click the Insert tab, and then select Equation. You will get a message saying “Type equation here.”
7. Move your division symbol created in step 5 on top of the words that say “Type Equation here.” Type equation here.
8. Resize the vinculum bar if needed.
9. Group the two images as described in step 5.
10. Repeat step 6. The words “Type equation here” to the left of the image shown in step 7. This will be your divisor.
11. Group the images.
12. Extend the vinculum line if needed.
13. Now you can type any equation or number to replace the words “Type equation here.”
Another way is to Go to “Insert”. Click “Object.” Then click “Microsoft Equation 3.0.” Click the button the has the division and radical sign. The division sign is located in that section.
One more thing. If you use the first method that I discribed, you can cut and paste it out of Powerpoint into MSWord and it will work just fine. For some reason, it will not work if you do steps 1 – 13 in MSWord. Go figure! :-)