Excel XP Charts
Excel XP Charts
Add-Ins ................................................................................................................................................... 35
Installing Add-Ins ..................................................................................................................................... 35
Making an Add-In Available..................................................................................................................... 35
Creating a Histogram Using the “Data Analysis” Add-In............................................................................ 36
MIX STACKED AND UNSTACKED DATA............................................................................................ 38
Example 1: Stack Costs as Area, Sales as Bars........................................................................................ 38
Example 2: Stack Costs as bar charts, Sales as a Line .............................................................................. 38
Example 3: Costs as Stacked Bars, Sales as an Area Graph..................................................................... 39
Example 4: All Series as Bars, Costs Stacked .......................................................................................... 39
Step 1: Create a simple column chart ....................................................................................................... 39
Step 2: Assign the stacking columns to a secondary axis ............................................................................ 39
Step 3: Stacking the Cost columns ........................................................................................................... 40
Step 4: Widen the Sales Columns ..................................................................................................... 40
Step 5: Match Primary and Secondary Y-Axis Scales....................................................................... 40
Step 6: Hide the Secondary Y - Axis Scale....................................................................................... 40
Multiple Category Stacks ............................................................................................................................. 41
Step 1: Setting Up the Data Series.................................................................................................... 41
Step 2: Adjust the X-Axis ................................................................................................................ 42
Step 3: Set “Gap Width” to 0........................................................................................................... 42
Multiple Category Stacks ............................................................................................................................. 43
Step 1: Setting Up the Data.............................................................................................................. 43
Step 2: Set the Data Ranges ............................................................................................................. 43
Set the “Northeast - Ads” Series .............................................................................................................. 44
Set the “Northeast - Promo” Series .......................................................................................................... 44
Set the “Northwest - Ads” Series ............................................................................................................. 44
Set the “Northwest - Promo” Series ......................................................................................................... 44
Create “Series 5” ..................................................................................................................................... 44
Step 3: Create the Secondary X-Axis.............................................................................................. 45
Step 4: Respecify “Stacking Columns”.............................................................................................. 45
Step 5: Set “Gap Width” to 0........................................................................................................... 45
Step 6: Specify the X-Axis Labels .................................................................................................... 45
Step 7: Display the X-Axis Correctly................................................................................................ 46
Step 8: Removing Series 5 from the Legend Box............................................................................... 46
Step 9: Removing the upper X-Axis.................................................................................................. 46
Step 10: Remove the Secondary Y Axis ............................................................................................. 46
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INTRODUCTION TO CHARTS
A chart is a graphic representation of worksheet data. In Excel, charts are created from data in cells. Excel uses
the cell data to create data points, which are represented by bars, lines, columns, slices, dots, and other shapes.
Some examples of the different types of Excel charts are shown below.
Any of the charts above can be created as either Embedded Charts or Chart Sheets:
Although Chart Sheets and Embedded Charts may appear quite different, functionally they are
nearly the same.
• Both are linked to the data they were created from. If the data in the cells change, so does the
chart.
• Both can be modified in the same ways.
• Both can be printed.
Title
1995 Sales
100
1995 Totals
50
Legend
0
Jan Feb Mar
Y Axis X Axis Labels
X-Axis: This is made by highlighting cells containing words (labels) but can be numbers as
well. The X-Axis might be quarters, years, months, or the names of products. It does
not have to be a time line although it usually is.
Y-Axis : Excel refers to the Y-axis as a series. A series is always made up of cells containing
numbers. The numbers highlighted tell Excel where to plot the data points that lines
will be drawn through or where bars will terminate.
Title: (Optional) The title is merely a heading at the top of the chart and can be changed at
any time.
Legend: (Optional) The legend indicates what the different series of bars represent.
General Guidelines
• To create a chart:
- Highlight the cells containing the X-Axis labels.
- Highlight the cells containing the Y-Axis values.
- Highlight the Legend (optional).
• Hold down the CONTROL key when highlighting noncontiguous cells.
• Do not hold down the Control key when highlighting the first range of cells to be highlighted.
• If more than one area is highlighted, the highlighted areas must be of the exact same shape.
100
0
Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4
A B C D E F G
1 Tommy’s Cars
2 1997 Sales
3
4 Manufacturer Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Total
5 Ford 25 30 50 120 225
6 GM 30 45 80 85 240
7 Chrysler 20 40 70 75 205
8 Nissan 40 50 30 50 170
9 Toyota 45 30 5 60 140
10 Honda 50 40 50 65 205
11 Total 210 235 285 455 1185
12
To create the bar chart shown, two separate areas must be highlighted.
The X-axis labels (the quarters) are in cells B4:E4 and the totals for each Quarter are in cells
B11:E11. The chart could be created by simply highlighting just these two ranges but it would not
have a legend indicating what the bars represent. Therefore, cell A11 also needs to be included in
the range of highlighted cells. This would cause the Y-axis range to become: A10:E10. However,
because the X-axis range must be the same shape as the Y-axis range, the X-axis range must be
changed to become: A4:E4.
A B C D E F G
1 Tommy’s Cars
2 1995 Sales
3
4 Manufacturer Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Total
5 Ford 25 30 50 120 225
6 GM 30 45 80 85 240
7 Chrysler 20 40 70 75 205
8 Nissan 40 50 30 50 170
9 Toyota 45 30 5 60 140
10 Honda 50 40 50 65 205
11 Total 210 235 285 455 1185
12
Step 1 of 4 is displayed.
6. Click on:
Step 2 of 4 is displayed.
This tab shows what cells are being used for the values, x-axis, and labels. If your data is
positioned in Excel in a manner that it is designed to interpret, you will not have to take any
action on this tab.
The next few pages cover the different Chart Options available.
7. Click on:
8. Select “As new sheet”.
9. Click on FINISH.
Chart Location
MODIFYING A CHART
Generally, the trick to modifying a chart is to select the item in the chart you wish to modify by single
clicking it, then double click the object to bring up the appropriate menu. The most common
methods of modifying a chart are:
Moving An Object
1. Select the object by clicking on it.
2. Place the mouse either on the line surrounding the object or the background of the object.
The mouse will appear as a pointer.
3. Click and Drag the mouse.
Resizing An Object
1. Select the object by clicking on it.
2. Place the mouse on one of the black square handles at the corner of the object. The mouse
will appear as a double headed arrow.
3. Click and Drag the mouse.
Background Color
As with most chart attributes, double clicking an object will usually display up the desired options.
To change the background color, simply double click it.
Bar Chart With More Than One Series of Bars – Contiguous Cells
A B C D E F G
1 Tommy’s Cars
2 1997 Sales
3
4 Manufacturer Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Total
5 Ford 25 30 50 120 225
6 GM 30 45 80 85 240
7 Chrysler 20 40 70 75 205
8 Nissan 40 50 30 50 170
9 Toyota 45 30 5 60 140
10 Honda 50 40 50 65 205
11 Total 210 235 285 455 1185
12
1. Click on the “Sheet 1” tab at the bottom of the screen to return to your data.
2. Highlight from A4:E7 as shown above.
Bar Chart With More Than One Series of Bars - Noncontiguous cells
The chart shown below compares GM, Nissan and Honda’s performance over the 4 Quarters.
Because the data for each series is stored in noncontiguous rows, the Control Key must be held
down when highlighting all but the first series.
A B C D E F G
1 Tommy’s Cars
2 1997 Sales
3
4 Manufacturer Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Total
5 Ford 25 30 50 120 225
6 GM 30 45 80 85 240
7 Chrysler 20 40 70 75 205
8 Nissan 40 50 30 50 170
9 Toyota 45 30 5 60 140
10 Honda 50 40 50 65 205
11 Total 210 235 285 455 1185
12
GM
1. Highlight cells A4:E4.
100 2. Hold down Control and highlight A6:E6
Nissan
80 3. Hold down Control and highlight A8:E8
Honda
60 4. Hold down Control and highlight A10:E10
40 5. From the menu, click INSERT - CHART
20 6. Click on Column and then NEXT
- 7. At step 2 of 4, click on NEXT
QTR1 QTR2 QTR 3 QTR4
8. At step 3 of 4, click on NEXT
9. At step 4, set to “As new sheet” and click FINISH.
• The Quarters are highlighted because they are what is to appear along the X-axis.
• The numbers for GM, Nissan, and Honda are highlighted because they tell Excel how high to
make the bars.
• The manufactures are highlighted because they are to become the legend.
• The word “Manufacturer” is highlighted because that is to become the title, and when separate
areas are highlighted, they must be of the same shape.
A B C D E F G
1 Tommy’s Cars
2 1997 Sales
3
4 Manufacturer Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Total
5 Ford 25 30 50 120 225
6 GM 30 45 80 85 240
7 Chrysler 20 40 70 75 205
8 Nissan 40 50 30 50 170
9 Toyota 45 30 5 60 140
10 Honda 50 40 50 65 205
11 Total 210 235 285 455 1185
12
• The names of the manufactures are highlighted because they are to be places along the X-axis
• The totals are highlighted because they tell Excel how high to make the bars.
• The word “Total” is highlighted because that is to become the legend.
• The word “Manufacturer” is highlighted because that is to become the title and noncontiguous
highlighted areas must be of the same shape.
PIE CHARTS
In a pie chart, two cell ranges must be highlighted:
• The range of cells containing the pie slice labels (usually words)
• The range of cells containing the values that tell Excel how large to make each pie slice.
A B C D E F G
1 Tommy’s Cars
2 1997 Sales
3
4 Manufacturer Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Total
5 Ford 25 30 50 120 225
6 GM 30 45 80 85 240
7 Chrysler 20 40 70 75 205
8 Nissan 40 50 30 50 170
9 Toyota 45 30 5 60 140
10 Honda 50 40 50 65 205
11 Total 210 235 285 455 1185
12
Change to a 3D Pie
1. Click the Chart.
2. From the menu, click: CHART – CHART TYPE
3. Set Chart Type to “Pie”.
4. Set Chart Sub Type to the image of the 3D pie (top row middle).
5. Click “OK”.
Foreign Personnel
Programs 12%
27%
Military Equipment
38% 17%
Social Programs
14%
The trick to setting up linked pies is to not list the slice you are creating a sub pie for, but instead, list the slices
that make up the sub pie slice. Further, list the items on the sub pie at the bottom of the list of slices.
There are several methods of telling Excel which slices belong to the Main Pie and which slices belong to the Sub
Pie. The “Split series by” determines which method to use.
• Position: Specify how many
of the bottom rows on the
data sheet belong on the sub
pie.
• Value: All slices below a
certain value will be placed
on the sub pie.
• Percent Value: All slices
below a certain percent will
be places on sub pie.
• Custom: Allows you to drag
pie slices between the two
pies.
90000
80000
70000
Salary
60000
50000
40000
30000
20000
20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75
Age
Y - Axis
1. Point to any one of the salaries and double click.
3. Click on the “Scale” tab.
4. Set the “Minimum” to 20000.
5. Set the “Major Units” to 10000
6. Click on OK.
X - Axis
1. Point to any one of the ages and double click.
2. Click on the “Scale” tab.
4. Set the “Minimum” to 20.
5. Set the “Major Units” to 5
6. Click on OK.
When two or more columns of data are charted, Excel assumes the data on the left is the X axis
and the data on the right is the Y axis; however, they can be altered.
1. Click on the “Age vs. Salary” sheet tab to return to that sheet.
2. Highlight the range: A2: B20
3. Click in the “Chart Wizard” icon.
4. Select “XY (Scatter)” as the Chart Type and “Scatter” as the subtype:
7. Click on NEXT to go to Step 2.
8. Click on the “Series” tab and change the ranges as shown:
9. Click on NEXT.
8. Click on the ”Titles” tab and make the following changes:
9. Click on the “Gridlines” tab and select “Major Gridlines” for the X Value Axis.
10. Click on the “Legend” tab and remove the check for “Show Legend”.
11. Click on NEXT.
12. Select “As New Sheet” and click FINISH.
Age/Salary Comparison
80
60
Age 40
20
0
0 20000 40000 60000 80000 100000
Salary
80
60
40
20
0
1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
The Data Range tab is displayed and the options are all blank. We will need to manually set the ranges using the
“Series” tab.
Each line in the graph is known as a “series” and is made up of a group of numbers. In this graph, we will need
two series – one for the P/E ratio and one for stock price.
11. Click the small button to the right of “Category (X) axis labels”. This will become the years along the
bottom of the graph.
19. Set the location to “As object in Stock” and then click “FINISH”.
110
90 High
Price
Low
70 Close
50
1/10/97 1/11/97 1/12/97 1/13/97 1/14/97
Date
High - Low - Close charts are used for showing the progress of a stock over time. The chart gives the high and
low of the stock for the day and its closing price. The vertical bar indicates the high and low for the day. The tic
mark indicates its closing price for the day.
Your data should be arranged similar to the data sheet shown here.
Tick Marks
If you did not get the close tick marks, or you wish to change the style/color of the tick marks, complete the
following steps:
1. Point to where a tick mark should be and double click the mouse.
BUBBLE CHARTS
Bubble Charts are similar to XY Scatter Charts in that
you must use numbers for your X and Y axis. Where Age / Salary Comparison
they differ is that you can use a third set of numbers to
control the size of the data point. 80000
60000
Income
In this example, the average salaries of people in their 40000
20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, and 80 and above 20000
are plotted on the Y-axis and the age categories are 0
on the X-axis. The size of the bubble is determined by 0 20 40 60 80 100
the percent of the US population falling into each age Age Group
category.
When printing a chart sheet, the chart will automatically fill the entire page.
1. Click on the tab of one of your chart sheets.
2. Click on the “Print Preview” icon:
The chart should be filling the page and centered.
3. To print the chart, click on the icon PRINT and then click OK
Use Full Page: The chart fills the page. The X & Y axis may no longer be proportional to each other.
Scale to Fit Page: The chart fills the page as much as possible without making the X & Y axis disproportional.
Custom: If the users has resized the chart on the chart sheet, this option will allow it to print as it appears on the
chart sheet.
Draft Quality: No effect when printing from a chart sheet.
Print in Black & White: Charts are filled with patterns rather than shades of gray.
HISTOGRAM ADD-IN
A histogram is a chart which graphically shows how frequently data occurs. For example, you wish to know how
many people in your company are between the ages of 21 and 25, 26 and 30, 31 and 35, etc. The Chart Wizard
does not include a histogram; however, Excel does come with an Add-In which does include histograms.
Histogram
8
Frequency
6 Frequency
4
2
0
20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 More
Age Groups
Add-Ins
Add-Ins are programs which either come with Excel but are not normally loaded, or are sub-programs that you
can purchase . The purpose of an Add-In is to add more features to a program.
Installing Add-Ins
When you installed Excel onto your computer, you may not have told it to install the Add-Ins if you were
concerned about free drive space. If this is the case, you will need your origional Office 97 CD to install the
Add-Ins to your hard drive. See your manual for instructions on this procedure.
Bin Range tells Excel how the data should be Input Range contains the data
grouped. In this case, Excel will count how many which is being analyzed.
people are <=20, >20 and <=25, >25 and <=30, >30 A1:A20
and <=35, etc. This Bin Range should be E1:E13.
Output Options:
Tells Excel where to
place the chart. Set
for D15.
Chart Output:
Check “Chart
Output” to get a
histogram.
25
In this example, Total Sales are shown as unstacked bars in the
20
background while the two major costs (advertising and promotion) 15
are stacked up in front of Sales. 10
5
This is example is not as easy as the previous examples. This is 0
because if you try to change the Sales series to bars, Excel with try Qtr. 1 Qtr. 2 Qtr. 3 Qtr. 4
and “help” you by assuming they should share the same primary axis. Sales Promo Cost Advertising Cost
Qtr. 1 - NE
Qtr. 2 - NE
Qtr. 3 - NE
Qtr. 4 - NE
Qtr. 1 - NW
Qtr. 2 - NW
Qtr. 3 - NW
Qtr. 4 - NW
Step 1: Setting Up the Data Series
This is the most important step because if the data is not
spaced correctly, the chart will not look correct. Note that
there are shaded areas above and below each quarter set.
These are x-axis categories that contain no data. Their
purpose is to provide spacing to the left and right of each
quarter set.
3. Click on “NEXT”.
4. Click on the “SERIES” tab.
Create “Series 5”
a. Click on the “ADD” button.
b. Click the Range Finder button for “VALUES”.
c. Select the range: B18:E18 then press ENTER.
5. Click on “FINISH”
f. Repeat steps b-e for the three other named series: “Northeast - Promo”, “Northwest - Ads”, and
“Northwest - Promo”.
Organizational Charts
Organizational charts are often used used to show a command sturcture or other type of hiearchial relationship.
They can be accessed from the drawing toolbar or under the “Insert” menu.