[Qgis-user] problems deleting column of shapefile attribute table

[Tara Athan]

When I open the attribute table of the loaded shapefile, the delete 
column is disabled (whether the edit mode is toggled or not). If I edit 
the dbf file as a spreadsheet (using OpenOffice) and try to load the 
layer, it doesn't recognize the dbf file.

Any suggestions?

Tara