Microsoft Excel spreadsheet is a multifunctional application that allows you to automate the processing of digital information (engineering calculations, problem solving, accounting documentation). Sometimes, to better understand “what the numbers say,” you need to visualize them. The most suitable method for this is charts and graphs. How best to make them and what they are - this article will tell.
Varieties of charts in Microsoft Excel 2007
Depending on what type of digital information you want to display, different types of graphs are used:
- classic (with kinks);
- histogram (vertical bars);
- barred (horizontal columns);
- pie (charts);
- point (similar to the classic);
- exchange;
- surface;
- circular;
- petal;
- bubbly.
In Excel, they are grouped into 10 groups. In each of the latter there are from 2 to 16 versions. They have a whole block in the "Insert" tab called "Charts". Inserting a preset template from this subsection is a mandatory step in any way to make a chart in Excel.
Making a chart
Creating a graph can be conditionally divided into 2 stages: preparation of digital information and construction. The first one is not particularly complicated - it requires you to sequentially enter the required values \u200b\u200binto the cells and select them. If they differ from each other by the same number (1, 2, 3, 4…) or these are the days of the week, then you can speed up this process using the "Autocomplete" function.
The second step of how to make a graph in Excel according to data consists of 2 steps:
- After highlighting, in the "Charts" block ("Insert" tab), select the type of the new chart. You can do it in 2 ways: select one of the necessary ones directly in the block or click on the button in the lower right corner of the subsection to open a window with all the options.
- Select one of the options and press it.
The new graph will appear next to or on top of its data. To move it to another part of the sheet, you need to move the cursor over the border (it should change shape to a cross with 4 arrows pointing in different directions) and, holding the left mouse button, move it.
Adding a previously created chart
Sometimes when creatingdiagram, it becomes necessary to change it due to erroneously selected or new data. To fix an incomplete or erroneous schedule, you need to:
- Right click on its graphic part (columns or lines).
- In the context menu, select the "Select data" sub-item.
- In the new dialog box, click on the "Add" button.
- Enter the name for the new range of numbers in the "Series name" line (will be displayed in the chart legend).
- Press the button on the right side of the second line and highlight the required values.
- After the selection is complete, click on the button on the right side of the window again and click on "OK" in the main window.
This is the way to make the chart padded.
Step chart
There is no standard template for how to make a graph of this type in Microsoft Excel. But you can use one of the standard ones, building it according to specially prepared data.
The preparation is as follows: you need to create 2 lists of values. In the first one, all values must be repeated twice, except for the first and last. In the second - all values. This is required to create the "steps".
After preparing 2 columns with numbers, you need to select them and use the standard chart template called "Scatter with straight segments".
How to make a work schedule inExcel
Microsoft Excel is a large spreadsheet, and therefore one of the ways to use it is to generate a shift schedule for later printing. There are 2 ways to make a work schedule: manual and automatic. The first method is quite simple, since it does not use the insertion of charts. It consists of the following:
- Fill the cells in the column with the names of employees.
- Select a row of cells above the first last name of the first employee and fill them with the days of the month or days of the week using autocomplete.
- Change the width of columns containing cells with day numbers: select the required columns, right-click on their alphabetic names and select "Column width" in the context menu, enter the desired value.
- Select cells at the intersection of the last name and the days of the month or week corresponding to the work schedule.
- Combine them and change their color using the "Fill" tool located in the "Home" tab, "Font" block. Alternative calling combination: "Image" />Я>З.
- Fill the first cells of the graph using the previous step. To quickly fill in the rest, you can use "Autofill".
Under the graph, add a color code.
Automatic creation of duty schedule
The main advantage of the automatic method of how to make a graph over the manual one is that when one of the values changes, it is rebuilt by the program.
To create a duty schedule, you need to completefollowing algorithm:
- Select columns with the following information: last name, start date and number of days.
- Insert Stacked Bar chart template.
- To change the time range in the chart, you need to enter the first and last date in any 2 free cells, and then change their format to "General".
- Click on the line with dates inside the graph and select "Data Series Format" from the drop-down menu.
- In the new window, put a mark next to "minimum value" and "maximum value" in the text fields, enter the values from the third step.
- Check the box next to "Price of the main divisions" and enter any number in the text field. It denotes the number of days between the marks on the chart.
- Select the left block with last names and in the context menu called by the RMB, select the "Axis Format" sub-item.
- In the new dialog box, you need to check the boxes next to the lines “Reverse order of categories” and “in the maximum category”. This will sort the last names alphabetically and leave the date string below the graph.
- Select the part of the graph indicating the days before the start of duty (highlighted in blue in the screenshot).
- Call the drop-down menu and select the "Data series format" sub-item.
- Sequentially go to the "Fill" and "Border color" sub-items and put a mark next to "No fill" and "No lines", respectively.
- To change the type of chart, selectits colored parts and call their properties with the right mouse button ("Data Series Format") or the hotkey "Ctrl +1".
Unfortunately, this method can be used to a limited extent to create a work schedule in an enterprise. But with its help, you can draw up a work plan or a vacation schedule.
Microsoft Excel is a powerful tool for working with numbers. It also allows you to make graphs, as one of the ways to visualize them.
