Word 2000 in a Nutshell

Name

Insert → Picture → Chart

Synopsis

There are few things as visually boring as long lists of numbers. To keep documents interesting and convert numeric information to an easily understood graphic, use Insert → Picture → Chart. This command invokes a separate program named Microsoft Graph 2000. It’s the same software that generates charts in PowerPoint and Excel. Figure 7-35 shows the resulting charting toolbar, Datasheet window, and sample chart.

Figure 7-35. Display your numeric data in the form of an eye-catching chart.

When Word’s charting tools appear onscreen, they consist of a charting toolbar, a Datasheet window for entering your numeric data, and a sample chart based on the sample data in the Datasheet. A column chart is the default chart type. Choose Chart → Chart Type to depict data as a different type of chart. Pie charts are good for comparing data, line charts show trends, and bar and column charts can do both, showing trends over time and comparing values.

Paste existing numeric data from an Excel worksheet into the Datasheet window or type the data in manually after removing the sample data. After pasting or entering your new data, the chart will reform, based on the new numbers. Each number in the datasheet becomes a plotted data point on the chart and each logical group of data points becomes a data series. Column headings become category axis labels; row headings ...