Re: I need more general XY point to point plotting than XY scatter

This is a good example of how an appropriate data layout makes impossible
things easy. You say you need the data in this particular layout for another
reason. Well, it's common that data may need different layouts within the
same workbook. One layout is suitable for on-screen viewing, another is
better for printed reports, a third is good for the data source for a pivot
table, and a fourth might be needed as source data for your chart. Maybe you
need five or six if there are alternative ways you want to display a table
or chart.

Back in the days of multiplan or visicalc, you couldn't afford to "waste"
extra rows and columns on alternative depictions of the same data, but now
we have gigabytes of disk space, and at least hundreds of megabytes of ram.
Go for it, add a work***, or set aside another range on the same
work***. Copy the data, use Paste Special - Links to paste a linked copy,
then drag these cells around into the proper orientation.

Now you can have your pretty table and pretty chart, and since their data
are linked, when the table changes, so will the chart.

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


"spazminator" <spazminator@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:14A806AC-4613-4C0C-9DA3-7FBDD5BE913D@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Exactly... can be done but not readily... reformat your data...
> I think MS with just a little thought could add a new chart type that
> would
> be a lot more conducive to "pen plotting". Like allowing a pen-up/pen-down
> column or something. Also it seems to me that the default of assuming the
> X
> column in an XY scatter plot is going to be the same for each new
> series --
> is just busted.
>
> I hate that charting in general is so geared for accounting and
> presentations and so limited for engineering or science uses.
> Why isn't there a 3D XYZ scatterplot chart type for instance?
> Why does one have to buy/load/install extensions for mathematical
> analysis?
>
> I will try your point-per-line idea though. It looks like the best
> solution
> so far. It's just that there are a lot of points and I need them in the
> current format for other reasons on the ***. Looks like I'll be adding a
> new work*** for the chart.
>
> Thanks for trying.
> --
> lostinamazeoftwistyturnypassagesallthesame
>
>
> "MrShorty" wrote:
>
>>
>> Others may have better ideas, but it seems to me your data aren't laid
>> out in a format conducive to what you want. I was able (using the
>> "source data" dialog I mentioned above) to get a plot that looks like
>> what you describe. I had to select each individual point separated by
>> commas within a given series. The final series definition looked like
>> =SERIES(Sheet1!R5C1,(Sheet1!R5C2,Sheet1!R5C4),(Sheet1!R5C3,Sheet1!R5C5),4).
>> That, of course, isn't conducive to readily adding points to a
>> series, or adding series to the chart. Can be done, but not readily.
>>
>> If you lay your data out differently, it would be easier. Try a lay
>> out where the X data are in a column and the corresponding Y data are
>> in the adjacent column. Something like:
>>
>> name A A B B C C D D (names doubled to emphasize column relationship)
>> axis X Y X Y X Y X Y
>> pt1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 3
>> pt2 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3
>>
>> Then it's easy to add data points (simply add rows) and data series
>> (simply add pairs of columns going across and paste special) to your
>> chart.
>>
>>
>> --
>> MrShorty
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> MrShorty's Profile:
>> http://www.excelforum.com/member.php?action=getinfo&userid=22181
>> View this thread:
>> http://www.excelforum.com/showthread.php?threadid=493208
>>
>>


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