Contents
| DAL4 A1.2 |
Additional information
All of the figures, including the totals and to quickly create a chart on a new sheet we will use the shortcut key of F11. Now that the sheet is created, we will quickly add a chart title. At the moment, the data is displayed with a legend of the car makes. If we click the switch row column command, you'll notice that we have the data displayed by districts and with the total showing in a light blue column. However, we noticed that the columns are far too large to make the chart visually appealing. So to change this, we will select the total column, right click and select change series chart type. In doing so we can then use the table at the bottom of the chart to select the total series. Change it from being a clustered column to say a lined chart, and then plot that line on a secondary access by selecting the secondary axis checkbox next to it before clicking OK. The two axis are now displayed with the car sales on the left hand side and the total sales displayed on the right hand side.
So that everyone will be aware of this, we're going to select the plus button at the top right hand corner of the chart, select access titles, and then rename each of the titles accordingly. Finally, we will make the line itself look more visually appealing by selecting it, right clicking and using the format data series to open the format data series task panel. Here, we have a series of options. By clicking the paint pot command, for example, we're going to change the way that the line is displayed. So, to make this line more noticeable I will click on solid line and change the color to black. I'll now make the data points visible by clicking the marker button at the top, expanding the marker options area, selecting built in, and I'll keep using the square marker, but I'll just change the size of this marker to 10 points to make it a little more visible. I'll then expand fill, create a solid fill and use red.
You'll notice that there are many more options available to change the look, feel, coloration and various other features of the marker lines or any other element of your chart. By clicking the effects button, you're able to add further features. And here I will add a shadow to the bottom right hand corner. Finally, I'll add data labels to each of the points that I have added. To do so, I'll click the plus button, click on data labels, and you will notice that we are now getting the total labels against the line that we have selected. However, these totals and also the values against each of the axis are rather small. To change the size of text to make it more legible, simply select the element and use the standard font formatting tools to change the size. So if I select any one of the vertical axis labels, I'm going back to the home tab and I'm going to use the standard font formatting and sizing buttons to make it more visually appealing. I'll now do the same on the right hand side, increasing the size until I'm happy with it.
Finally, I'll click on the data labels themselves and do the same. However, certain labels as you can see, seem to be slightly hidden or clashing with the columns that they're sitting next to. Each label in this series can be moved individually to make the data display a little easier to see. To do this, you will notice that when we click any one of the labels, all of the labels get grab handles. We select an individual label and we can click and grab that label into its position. Once you've done it for one, you can do it for the other labels as well.
A world-leading tech and digital skills organization, we help many of the world’s leading companies to build their tech and digital capabilities via our range of world-class training courses, reskilling bootcamps, work-based learning programs, and apprenticeships. We also create bespoke solutions, blending elements to meet specific client needs.