Formatting Axes and Gridlines

Most of the chart types have two axes: A value axis and a category axis. With most chart types, the values of a data series are plotted along the value axis and the categories along the category axis. Normally the value axis corresponds to the Y axis and the category axis to the X axis.

Three-dimensional chart types also have a third (Z) axis.

Gridlines (or orientation lines) are vertical and horizontal lines that divide up the drawing area. They improve the readability of the individual chart values.

Axes consist of the following elements:

• Lines: Axis labels
• Gridlines: Axis scale
• Title: Title of axis (normally left blank)
• Unit: Additional text field such as an explanation of the units in the chart (usually left blank)

You can also make scaling, boundary level, and data sequence specifications in the properties of axes.

The properties that you can define depend on the chart type you selected.

See also:

Assigning Colors

Formatting Lines

You can add an additional value axis to a chart with value and category axes.  You can place individual data series of the chart on the second value axis. This can be useful if the value ranges of two data series are very different. If this is the case, you can set a different scaling factor for the secondary axis in order to balance the chart.

If the list of elements contains the entry ValueAxis2, the selected chart type allows you to add a secondary axis.

1. Select the required value axis from the list of elements, for example, ValueAxis2.
2. Select the Visibility field in order to display the axis in the chart.
3. Choose the entry Secondary from the Position field.
4. Then continue with formatting the axis as required.

See also Plotting a Data Series to a Secondary Axis

The scaling factor of an axis influences the distribution of the data series within a value scale. You can choose between the following scaling types:

• Linear
• Logarithmic
• Root
• Square
  Note

  You can change the scaling factor for value axes, but not for category axes. It does not matter whether the X axis or the Y axis is the value axis.

  In the case of category axes in bar and column diagrams, you can select the property Variable Category Width in order to display the categories in different widths.

  1. Click on the required axis in the chart preview or select the corresponding entry in the list of elements.
  2. Enter the minimum and maximum value in the appropriate fields.
     Caution

     When entering value ranges, make sure that the values you enter tally with the values in your data sources. Values from data sources that are not in the range entered are not displayed in the chart later on.

     We recommend that you select the fields Automatic Minimum and Automatic Maximum.

  3. Choose the required entry in the Scaling Type property.

For value axes, you can define how many major and minor tick marks are displayed on the scale.

1. Click on the required axis in the chart preview or select the corresponding entry in the list of elements.
2. In the property Gridline → Major Tick → Major Tick Gap, enter an integer greater than zero, for example, 2. This specifies the interval at which major lines are displayed.

You can also change the appearance of the tick marks in this element. This is also the case for category axes (see also Formatting Lines ).

You can define on the category axes whether all category labels are to be displayed, or if not, which labels you want to exclude. This can save space, and is possible if the sequence of categories is obvious, for example, the names of months. You can also change the position of category labels.

1. Click on the category axis in the chart preview or select the corresponding entry in the list of elements.
2. In the property Category Axis → Axis → Category Gap, enter a value larger than zero to define how many categories should be skipped between each displayed category.
3. Select the property Category Axis → Centered if you want the category labels to be centered along the major tick marks.
4. Choose the option Secondary in the property Category Axis → Position to place the category labels on the opposite side of the chart. If the category axis is normally beneath the drawing area, it is now displayed above it. If it is normally to the left, it is now displayed to the right.

You can change the point where the axes cross in a chart. You can also define whether the point of intersection should always lie between categories or on a category.

1. Click on the category axis in the chart preview or select the corresponding entry in the list of elements.
2. Select the property Category Axis → Axis → Axis at Zero Line.

You can add a title to an axis. You can also enter the units to be displayed on the axes (for example, mill. US $).

If you do not need an axis title or unit, you can remove these elements.

1. In the list of elements, select the required axis and expand the display by clicking on the plus sign in front of the name of the axis.
2. Check the Visibility field to achieve the following:
   • in the Title property to display the title of the axis
   • In the Unit property to display a text field for the unit.
3. Enter the text for the property of the axis or for the unit in the property Title.
4. Then continue with formatting the elements as required.