+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 2 of 2

Chart formatting

  1. #1
    Christianovitch
    Guest

    Chart formatting

    Several items here...

    - In Excel, when one plots a chart containing a LOT of data with anything
    other than a solid line, it is impossible to use any other format because the
    line formatting restarts with EACH DATA POINT. Let's say I have 5 plots I
    want on one graph. I have a black and white printer. I need to use symbols
    to differentiate which one is which. But, because each plot has 1000 data
    points, everything looks the same! It would be better if you could make the
    line format be scaled according to, say, a percentage of the plot window
    width.

    * Dashed lines: the width of the dash is specified as a percentage of the
    plot width--say 2%...that way you'd always see it, with 10 or 10,000 data
    points.

    * Symbols--allow symbols to be plotted as part of the line, rather than only
    as data points.

    - Also, the "Tools...Options...Chart Options" route required to change how
    blank cells are interpreted on the chart ("interpolate", "gaps", or "zero")
    should be part of the chart options or series options. The feature also
    doesn't work with multiple data series in one chart. I had two plots on one
    chart, and both possessed areas where data was missing. Individually, I was
    able to make them interpolate between gaps. When combined, neither would. I
    had to wade through 20,000 data points and delete the empty zones for it to
    work.

    - Add the ability to put the area under a curve in a scatterplot in as a
    shaded region.

    - Add the ability to do a "zoom plot"--this is where I make a chart, and
    wish to examine one area of it in a breakout window in much higher detail.
    This could be done through selecting a region to zoom in on, and then having
    Excel insert a mini-chart into the existing chart.

    - Add the ability to have items plotted that do not appear in the legend.

    Thanks,
    Christian

  2. #2
    Jon Peltier
    Guest

    Re: Chart formatting

    Christian -

    See my comments inline. These are valid gripes, but for most there are techniques or
    workarounds.

    > Several items here...
    >
    > - In Excel, when one plots a chart containing a LOT of data with anything
    > other than a solid line, it is impossible to use any other format because the
    > line formatting restarts with EACH DATA POINT. Let's say I have 5 plots I
    > want on one graph. I have a black and white printer. I need to use symbols
    > to differentiate which one is which. But, because each plot has 1000 data
    > points, everything looks the same! It would be better if you could make the
    > line format be scaled according to, say, a percentage of the plot window
    > width.
    >
    > * Dashed lines: the width of the dash is specified as a percentage of the
    > plot width--say 2%...that way you'd always see it, with 10 or 10,000 data
    > points.


    Someone has posted code that uses a polygon shape to connect the points, hides the
    points and connecting lines (no line, no marker), and allows somewhat better
    formatting of the series, in that the formatting is not interrupted by the
    intervening points. I can't find the post (the new Google news archive is a bear).
    I'll try to look again later. It isn't a perfect solution, because once the polygon
    is drawn, it does not update to reflect changing values or axis scales.

    > * Symbols--allow symbols to be plotted as part of the line, rather than only
    > as data points.


    Not sure what you mean. Do you want to plot only every N points?

    http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/P...?ID=209#jon024

    > - Also, the "Tools...Options...Chart Options" route required to change how
    > blank cells are interpreted on the chart ("interpolate", "gaps", or "zero")
    > should be part of the chart options or series options. The feature also
    > doesn't work with multiple data series in one chart. I had two plots on one
    > chart, and both possessed areas where data was missing. Individually, I was
    > able to make them interpolate between gaps. When combined, neither would. I
    > had to wade through 20,000 data points and delete the empty zones for it to
    > work.


    Do the cells contain formulas that return ""? Well, "" is not a blank, so those
    Tools-Options settings do not apply. Change the "" in the formulas to NA(), which
    returns the #N/A error. It looks nasty, but is treated by the chart as a gap to be
    interpolated over. Use conditional formatting to hide the errors:

    http://contextures.com/xlCondFormat03.html#Errors

    > - Add the ability to put the area under a curve in a scatterplot in as a
    > shaded region.


    http://peltiertech.com/Excel/Charts/XYAreaChart.html

    > - Add the ability to do a "zoom plot"--this is where I make a chart, and
    > wish to examine one area of it in a breakout window in much higher detail.
    > This could be done through selecting a region to zoom in on, and then having
    > Excel insert a mini-chart into the existing chart.


    Not a trivial task. I've done this kind of thing, but it goes well beyond the scope
    of a newsgroup post.

    > - Add the ability to have items plotted that do not appear in the legend.


    To remove an unwanted legend entry: select the legend, then select the text label
    you want to hide (not the symbol!), then press Delete.

    > Thanks,
    > Christian



+ Reply to Thread

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts

Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0 RC 1