5 easy steps in creating a chart:
These five steps should be performed in this order.
Enter the numbers into a workbook or open to a workbook
that you have already created..
Select the data to be charted.
Choose Chart from the Insert menu.
Choose either Chart Type from the Format
menu or click on the ChartWizard button.
Designate titles, scaling color,
patterns, and legend.
Since the chart is
linked to the workbook data, any changes made to the workbook are
automatically reflected in the chart.
Creating a Bar Chart
Bar charts are used to compare data series.
Data series are a group of related data points.
A data point is a piece of information that consists of a category and value.
For example, if you were collecting data on how you spend your money in a given
month, then the amount you spend on food would be a data point. In this case
the category is "food" and the value is the dollar amount you spend
on food per month.
The categories are plotted along the
horizontal or X-axis.
The values are plotted along the vertical or
Y-axis.
Data series originate from single worksheet of rows or columns. Each data series in
a chart is distinguished by a unique color or pattern.
Lets create a chart
.
Open a new workbook in Microsoft Excel.
Remember the first 5 steps in creating a chart
Save your workbook and name it " Monthly expenses".
Enter the following into your expenses workbook:
You will be using the ChartWizard to create your bar chart.
Using The ChartWizard
The ChartWizard is a series of dialog boxes that guides you through the steps
required to create a new chart or modify settings for an existing chart.
When creating a chart with the ChartWizard, you can specify the worksheet range,
select a chart type and format, and specify how you want your data to be
plotted. You can also add a legend, a chart title, and a title to each axis.
There are two commands and two buttons that start the ChartWizard. The command
you choose or the button you click will create either an embedded chart
or a chart sheet.
An embedded chart is a chart object that has been placed on a worksheet and that
is saved on that worksheet when the workbook is saved. When it is selected you
can move and size it. When it is activated, you can select items
and add data, and format, move, and size items in the chart.
A chart sheet is a sheet in a workbook containing a chart. When a chart sheet is
created, it is automatically inserted into the workbook to the left of the
worksheet it is based on. When a chart sheet is activated, you can select items
and add data, and format, move and size items in the chart.
In this tutorial you will be creating chart sheets only.
Select the data you just entered.
Choose Chart from the Insert menu.
Observe that the ChartWizard's first dialog box appears:
You are now able to choose the chart style that
will best represent your information.
Select the chart type: Bar and click on the Next button.
The following dialog should appear:
Read the dialog box, make sure the range is correct and then click the Next
button.
The following dialog should appear:
Select the Titles tab and then enter "Monthly Expenses" as
the chart title.
Select the Next button
Select one of the following options and then click the Finish button.
Your expenses workbook should look as follows:
Save your changes.
Once you complete the ChartWizard, Excel displays the new chart sheet, the Chart
toolbar and the chart menu bar. Note that if the chart toolbar is not displayed, simply
choose Toolbars from the View menu and check of the chart box. The
chart menu bar is similar to the worksheet menu bar, except the Insert
and Format menus have some different commands.
