Using Embedded Chart in Excel 2007

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April 26, 2009

by Carol Alexander

In order to create a chart in Microsoft Excel, you must highlight the data that you want to plot. Your selection should also include any relevant headings. Excel allows you to create charts on chart sheets independent of the worksheet containing the data or to embed the chart on the worksheet alongside the data.

To create a chart which is embedded in the worksheet itself, having selected the range of data that you wish to plot, click on the Insert tab of the Excel ribbon and, in the chart section, you will find a series of drop-down menus offering each of the main chart types. Each drop-down reveals a gallery of customised chart types.

Additionally, we can click on the launch button in the bottom right of the Charts group to display the Insert Chart dialog box. Here, we are given access to the full range of chart types that Excel is capable of producing. You will also notice that there is a button which says Set as Default Chart. If you use a particular type more than any other, you can choose that type and click this button so that the next time you create a standalone chart, by right-clicking on a worksheet tab and choosing Insert, the new default chart will be used as the chart type.

When you choose an option from one of the drop-down menus in the Charts group of the Insert tab, Excel creates the embedded chart. The chart is located on the draw layer of Excel which is distinct from the worksheet layer. When you click on a worksheet cell, you are working on the worksheet layer and the chart becomes inactive. When you click on the chart, it is highlighted and you will then be working on the draw layer.

You will notice that when (and only when) the chart is highlighted, Excel displays three contextual tabs called Design, Layout and Format. They contain a series of options specifically related to charts.

In the Design contextual tab, we have the Location Group which contains The Move Chart button. Clicking on this button gives us the option to move the chart to a separate sheet. If you choose the option, Excel creates a new chart sheet and places the chart on it. We can also do the reverse. If you click the Move Chart button once more and click on “Object In…”, we can now choose the worksheet that we want to transfer the chart to. When we click OK, Excel embeds the chart in that worksheet and deletes the empty chart sheet.

About the Author:

The writer of this article is a developer and trainer with Macresource Computer Training, an independent computer training company offering Microsoft Excel 2007 Classes in Birmingham, Cambridge and throughout the UK.

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