If existing characters get replaced as you type in the Create Calculation dialog, the editor has switched into “Overwrite mode.” You can return to the normal “Insert mode” by pressing the Insert key on your keyboard.
This overwrite behavior is not specific to Exploratory — it is a standard Windows text input behavior. Each press of the Insert key toggles between “Insert mode” and “Overwrite mode.”
Symptoms of Overwrite mode
- The cursor changes from a vertical line to a horizontal line blinking at the bottom of the characters.
- For example, placing the cursor between “a” and “b” in “abc” and typing “123” produces “a123” (overwriting the existing text) instead of the expected “ab123c.”
If you can’t find an Insert key on your keyboard
On laptops and compact keyboards, the Insert key may not be a dedicated key and is often assigned as a key combination.
- It may be assigned to Fn + another key (such as Delete or 0).
- If you still can’t find it, open the Windows On-Screen Keyboard and click the Insert key shown on screen.
You can launch the On-Screen Keyboard from Windows settings ([Start] → “Settings” → “Accessibility” → “On-Screen Keyboard”).