try
=if(or(a1="",a1=" "),1,2)

--
Don Guillett
SalesAid Software

"wdanner" wrote in message
...
In a data file I just received, many blank fields show a single-quotation
mark in the formula. The <<if statement does not recognize these fields
as
blank. I have tried to 'find and replace' the marks using a search for
<<'
and also for <<~' both without success. How can I fix these fields, in
bulk, so they behave like blanks?