Intro to Charts: A Basic Column Chart

Over the next four days I will show you how to turn this data…

…into this chart:

We’ll start by creating a basic column chart.

1. Select the table data.



2. Click on the Insert tab on the Ribbon. Select Column in the Charts group



3. Select a subchart type. In this case, select the very first chart option.



4. A simple column chart will appear.

Copy & Paste

To copy data from one place to another you can use the Copy & Paste commands.

For example, let’s say you’ve entered data in cell A1 which you also want to appear in cell D1

Select cell A1 and either click the Copy symbol on the Home tab in the Clipboard group, or use the shortcut key Ctrl + C.

Next select cell D1 and either click the Paste symbol on the Home tab in the Clipboard group, or use the shortcut key Ctrl + V.

Your data will now have successfully copied from cell A1 to cell D1.

Cut & Paste

To move data from one place to another you can use the Cut & Paste commands.

For example, let’s say you’ve already entered data in cell A1 when you realise that you actually want it to appear in cell D1.

Select cell A1 and either click the Cut symbol on the Home tab in the Clipboard group, or use the shortcut key Ctrl + X.

Next select cell D1 and either click the Paste symbol on the Home tab in the Clipboard group, or use the shortcut key Ctrl + V.

Your data will now have successfully moved from cell A1 to cell D1.

Strikethrough

To format text as strikethrough, select the cell(s) or data you want to format.

Open the Format Cells dialog box. Select the Strikethrough tick box in the Font tab.

Click OK, or press Enter, and your data will change to the strikethrough format.

You can also use the shortcut key Ctrl + 5 to format text as strikethrough.

Ticks and Crosses

I used to have a colleague who liked me to create reports which visually showed her, using ticks and crosses, which of her clients sold which products.

The report looked something like this:

To create the ticks and crosses I first selected the cells in which they were to appear, and changed the font to Webdings. You can change the font using the dropdown box in the Font group on the Home tab on the Ribbon.

The first time I entered a tick and a cross I used the Insert Symbol method I covered here two days ago. However those particular symbols correspond to letters. I was able to find out what those letters were by clicking on the cell I entered the symbol in and looking in the formula bar. As you can see below the tick corresponds to the letter a, and the cross corresponds to the letter r.

So, to complete the report all I had to do was type an a where there should be tick, and an r where there should be a cross.

More Symbols

Yesterday I showed you how to insert a symbol into Excel. Today I will show you how to gain access to a larger variety of symbols. The fonts Webdings, Wingdings, Wingdings 1, and Wingdings 2 all consist of symbols and shapes rather than alphanumerical characters.

To access these symbols simply change the font at the top of the Symbol dialog box.

Insert Symbol

From time to time you may want to enter a symbol onto your worksheet which does not exist on your keyboard. For example, let’s say that you want to insert the greater-than-or-equal symbol into the sentence ‘Is a ≥ 12?’.

Start typing your sentence.

When you reach the point when you need to insert the symbol, select the Insert tab on the Ribbon. Click Symbol, which appears in the Text group.

The Symbol dialog box will appear. Scroll until you find the symbol you want. Click it and press Insert. Double-clicking the desired symbol will also work.

The symbol has now been inserted into your worksheet. Close the dialog box and complete your sentence.

Print Preview

If you like, you are able to preview your worksheet before you print it.

To do this, click the Microsoft Office button and select Print. Click Print Preview.

You can also access Print Preview from the Print dialog box by clicking Preview.

The shortcut key for Print Preview is Ctrl+F2.

Introduction to Printing

Let’s say you have created a small Excel table, and would like to print a copy for your files.

To do this, click on the Office button and select Print.

Click Print. This brings up the Print dialog box. The shortcut key Ctrl+P will also do this.

Make sure that the correct printer is selected, and click OK to start printing.

Spell Check

You are able to check your spelling in Excel, just like you can when using a word processing program.

To start a spell check, select the Review tab on the Ribbon. The Spelling button is located in the Proofing group.

You can also start a spell check by pressing the F7 button on your keyboard.