3. Creating Charts That Show Trends

In This Chapter

Choosing a Chart Type

Understanding Date-Based Axis Versus Category-Based Axis in Trend Charts

Communicate Effectively with Charts

Adding an Automatic Trendline to a Chart

Showing a Trend of Monthly Sales and Year-to-Date Sales

Understanding the Shortcomings of Stacked Column Charts

Shortcomings of Showing Many Trends on a Single Chart

Next Steps

Choosing a Chart Type

You have two excellent choices when creating charts that show the progress of some value over time. Because Western cultures are used to seeing time progress from left to right, you are likely to choose a chart where the axis moves from left to right—whether it is a column chart, line chart, or area chart.

Note

The new Sparklines ...

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