Excell 2007????

G

Gklass

Has anyone any insight on changes to the charting options in Excel 2007?

What I have found emphasizes integrating the excel charting with word
and powerpoint and fancy chart themes.

But there's nothing on any new chart types, like boxplots
or things like scatterplot data labels.

I know we can download the beta, but I'm afraid of what it might do to
my existing version of office..
 
J

Jon Peltier

No new chart types, no new chart features. Lots of new formatting. Hopefully
the usual workarounds will still work.

- Jon
 
G

Gklass

Kelly O'Day wrote:

Thanks Kelly. I was afraid this would happen.


As I read your message I had Few's "Show me the Numbers" open on my
desk. It's very good.
 
G

Gklass

Jon
I am disappointed but not surprised. I had hoped that the new version
would have included some simple additions like:
a) data labels functionality
b) boxplots
c) and option for thicker lines in line charts (this, I know, is
"fluff", but it would be nice for power point charts)
d) better display of log scales
e) breaks in the Y-axis



If they could have just addressed the issues that repeatedly come up on
this forum.
How often do people post messages here asking: How can I create really
shiny metallic bars in my bar charts?
 
D

Del Cotter

I am disappointed but not surprised. I had hoped that the new version
would have included some simple additions like:
a) data labels functionality
b) boxplots
c) and option for thicker lines in line charts (this, I know, is
"fluff", but it would be nice for power point charts)

I would like more choice of line thickness as well, to be able to select
*thinner* lines. I've been using the lines on the error bars more
lately, just to be able to get a really hair-thin line to mark my data
with.

I would have liked to see some kinds of fluff also, particularly a
larger palette of line chart symbols. Triangles that point left, right
or down instead of just up, a thinner horizontal line, a vertical line
to match the horizontal one, and so forth.

Proper integration of Autoshapes into the data series would go a long
way toward that, if they could be made formattable from inside the
Format Data Series dialogue just as the regular suite of symbols is, and
be stable when imported into PowerPoint, Word, and other applications,
instead of moving off the point.
 
D

Del Cotter

You can download 'Format Chart Lines' from
http://www.edferrero.com/charting.aspx to have greater control over line
thickness. Not built-in of course, and it does not work with Excel 2007 (at
least in beta)...

Thank you, but my particular charting need is for precise
high-resolution placement of data elements. By using drawing objects,
your macro suffers from the problem I have with every solution to
Excel's weaknesses that uses drawing objects: they don't line up
precisely with the chart itself, especially not when exported out to
another application.

For very thick lines and very simple graphs, it's great.
 
E

Ed Ferrero

Hi Del,

I have modified the sample 'Format Chart Lines' at
http://www.edferrero.com/charting.aspx so that it plots circles of diameter
equal to the line thickness at the ends of each line. This has the effect of
smoothing out the jagged corners where two lines meet. Still not perfect,
but it might suit your needs.

When exporting to another application (e.g. PowerPoint), I have more success
building a chart in Excel that is close to the size I need, then copying as
a picture to the target app.

Ed Ferrero
http://www.edferrero.com
 
D

Del Cotter

I have modified the sample 'Format Chart Lines' at
http://www.edferrero.com/charting.aspx so that it plots circles of diameter
equal to the line thickness at the ends of each line. This has the effect of
smoothing out the jagged corners where two lines meet. Still not perfect,
but it might suit your needs.

Thanks, I see when I thinned the lines down to zero and brought the
Excel markers back that they now pass closer to the centre of the marker
than they did before.
When exporting to another application (e.g. PowerPoint), I have more success
building a chart in Excel that is close to the size I need, then copying as
a picture to the target app.

Yes, I found it was better when I used a size that was either an exact
multiple of the final size, or the exact size. But it still freaked me
out when I found out that drawing objects weren't staying where I put
them. I had hoped to create little bit maps or Autoshapes of triangles,
arrows, and vertical and horizontal lines, to expand the repertoire of
point markers available in Excel, but I wasn't confident that the
results I got would not give the wrong values if I tried to use them to
show scatter data.

For really fine lines that go exactly where they're needed, I find I
can't beat the ubiqitous error bar. This is an example of my using them
to create an Edward Tufte style "dot dash plot":

http://www.branta.demon.co.uk/science/dels-dot-dash-demo.xls

This is something I was discussing a while back with Jon Peltier, and I
eventually implemented it using his and Tushar Mehta's tutorials on
dummy ranges for axes for inspiration.

(*This* is the sort of thing I would like to see in a new version of
Excel, not metallic surface effects)
 
J

Jon Peltier

Gary -

Guess which of these you get? (Hint: you've already called it "fluff").

And I think you really meant "really shiny metallic bars with gradient 3D
fills and blended shadows".

- Jon
-------
Jon Peltier, Microsoft Excel MVP
Peltier Technical Services
Tutorials and Custom Solutions
http://PeltierTech.com/
_______
 
T

Tony Greenfield

Previous versions of Excel had a Data Maps feature.
It provided a map of a country, region, continent or the world and linked
it to a data table so that the countries were filled with colours relating to
the data.
For example: rainfall.

Where is this in Office 2007 ???
 

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