Working with the Datasheet

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When you first create a chart, whether you're basing the information on data in your current Word document or entering it as you go, Graph displays a datasheet along with the newly created chart. The datasheet shows you the data, including categories, data series, and values, that's used to make your chart. (See Figure 14-6.)

Figure 14-6: The datasheet displays the data values and labels used to create your chart.

You can easily modify this data and change the way the chart is drawn by editing the values in the datasheet. The datasheet includes the following elements:

• Categories The items in the columns are the categories placed along the horizontal axis of the chart. Categories might include months, quarters, stages of a project, or some other unit by which value can be measured.

• Data Series The data series show the items that are being graphed, according to the categories selected.

• Values The data entered in the cells of the datasheet is compared to the value axis, which is the vertical axis in the created chart.

Datasheet Tips

Here are some quick tips for working with your chart's datasheet:

• To select everything in the datasheet quickly, click the Select All button (the gray rectangle in the upper-left corner of the datasheet).

• To hide a data series, double-click the row label of the series you want to hide.

• To add a data series, simply click in the next available row, type a label, and then enter your data. To insert or delete a row or column in the datasheet, right-click inside the datasheet, and then click Insert or Delete. Select the way you want to shift cells (down or to the right), select whether you want to insert or delete a row or column, and then click OK.

• To control the way the datasheet treats empty cells, choose Tools, Options, and then click the Chart tab in the Graph Options dialog box. Click the empty cell option you want, and then click OK.

• To copy datasheet values for use in a Word table, select the information you want, and then press Ctrl+C. This places a copy on the Clipboard, and you can paste the data as needed by pressing Ctrl+V.

Note 

If you close the datasheet, you can display it again while you edit the chart by clicking the View Datasheet button on the Standard toolbar.

Changing the Data Arrangement

By default, Graph displays the categories along the horizontal axis and the values along the vertical axis, but if you choose, you can flip that arrangement to display your data differently. Consider, for example, the chart shown in Figure 14-7. Although the default configuration for the chart compares the quarterly sales results of each region, the flipped version compares the regions with each other, spotlighting how well each did during the different quarters of the year.

Figure 14-7: Flipping the data arrangement in your chart enables you to see in a new way the data you've used to build your chart.

You can change the data arrangement of your chart in two ways:

• Choose Data, Series In Columns or Series In Rows (the default).

• Click the By Column button or the By Row button on the Standard toolbar while editing the chart to change the data arrangement. By Row is the default setting.

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