There is a specific kind of frustration that only spreadsheets can deliver, and CompetitiveLet7110 has found it. Building a custom periodic table is a clever project, but when moving one cell causes another to expand vertically, the tool stops being helpful and starts being hostile. This isn't a user error. It is a fundamental limitation of a grid system that was never designed for visual layout work.
The problem here is mechanical. Traditional spreadsheets treat every cell as a container tied to a fixed row and column. When you shift content, the program recalculates the entire grid, often applying formatting or size rules from the source cell to the destination. If one of those cells has a merged neighbor, a wrapped text flag, or a hidden row height override, the movement triggers a cascade of unintended resizing. Undo fails because the spreadsheet treats each resize as a separate action, and by the time you notice the damage, the history stack has already moved on. This is not a bug report. This is a design confession.
What CompetitiveLet7110 needs is a tool that understands content, not just coordinates. An AI-native spreadsheet does not treat a periodic table as thirty boxes in a rigid grid. It sees a logical structure: elements, groups, periods, and relationships. When you move an element, the table adjusts around the intent, not the cell address. Rows do not expand randomly because the system separates data layout from visual styling. You can drag a square without the spreadsheet guessing at your formatting intentions. That is the difference between fighting a tool and using one.
The lesson here is practical. If you are building anything that requires spatial control, a dashboard, a schedule, a custom table, stop asking why your spreadsheet fights you. The answer is baked into its architecture. Explore tools that treat your project as a design problem, not a grid problem. Your periodic table deserves better than a workaround.