SharePoint choice fields do not save blank rows. What this means is that once a user has selected an item from the choice list and they want to now select a blank row they cannot! Blank rows are removed by SharePoint once a choice has been saved.
This rather annoying situation can be resolved using the following steps:
1. Go to the column drop down list in question.
2. At the first entry on the list do a return to create a blank space.
3. Inside that blank space place your cursor and press and hold down the ALT key while typing 0129 on the NUMERIC KEYPAD. This will enter another type of “blank character” that SharePoint cannot wipe away.
4. In the Default Entry setting do the same.
5. Save and you are done.
You now have a blank entry at the top of the drop down list that defaults to it and cannot be wiped away by SharePoint 🙂
Thats a good point… There’s a difference between a null and a blank…
Hello,
Yes this is a great solution and does work. However I would like to inform you that if you do this to an existing list that already has items with default blank values you will find an “(empty)” and ” ” value show up in the filter menu. The invisible character shows up as a new filter choice.
But how can I calculate with formula if is blank then do this?
Thank you 🙂
This is a very good tips. Thank you so much!