XL: Chart Windows Appear Different in Version 5.0

ID: Q104299

The information in this article applies to:

SUMMARY

When you create a chart as a new sheet in Microsoft Excel 5.0, the chart will appear in a view similar to print preview. (To create a new chart, select the desired data on your sheet, choose the Chart command from the Insert menu, and then choose As New Sheet.) This view shows how the layout of your chart and all of its elements will look when you print it. In this view, you can size, move, and format the plot area (the region bounded by the axes) and chart items such as graphic objects, titles, text boxes, and the legend.

This article discusses how options in Page Setup affect what you can move and size in this view and how to change the view so that the chart fills the window.


MORE INFORMATION

How Options in Page Setup Affect What

You Can Move and Size in the Chart Window

The way the chart window appears on your screen and when you print it depends on how you set various options in the Page Setup dialog box (these options include paper size, orientation, and margin size). For example, if the page orientation is set to Landscape, the window appears wider than it is tall.

How this chart window appears on screen and when printed depends on the settings you select in the Page Setup dialog box for items such as paper size, orientation, and margin size. For example, if the page orientation is set to Landscape, the window appears wider than it is tall. The option you select under Printed Chart Size on the Chart tab in the Page Setup dialog box affects how you can move and size the chart area, plot area and the chart elements. When you select the full page option, you can size and move the plot area but not the chart area. When you select the Scale to Fit Page or Custom options, you can size both the plot area and the chart area. With either of these options selected, chart elements such as titles, text boxes and arrows, will move relative to the chart area.

The following table lists the Printed Chart Size options that are located on the Chart tab, how they affect the way the chart is displayed and printed, and how they affect what you can move and size. 


   With this
   option         The chart does this     Moving and sizing
   ------------------------------------------------------------------
   Use Full       Fills the page within   The chart area cannot
   Page           the margin settings.   be sized. Chart items
                                          must be individually
                                          sized or moved.

   Scale To       Scales to fit the       The chart area can be
   Fit Page       page within the         sized either vertically
                  margin settings in      or horizontally but not
                  terms of width          both. Chart items move
                  or height               relative to the chart
                  (depending on the       area.
                  orientation of your
                  chart).

   Custom         Adjusts to any size     The chart area can be
                  or placement within     moved and sized
                  the margin settings.   vertically and
                                          horizontally. Chart
                                          items move relative to
                                          the chart area.




How to Change the View So That the Chart Fills the Window

The chart window is zoomed in to display your entire chart area. To view the chart in its full size on your screen, do either of the following:

To display the chart as it would appear in Microsoft Excel 4.0 (that is, with its size determined by the size of the window), choose Sized With Window from the View menu. This will only affect the active chart. To make this change for every new chart that you create:

  1. From the Tools menu, choose Options.


  2. Select the Chart tab and select the Size With Window option.


Note that when you open a Microsoft Excel 4.0 chart in version 5.0, this option will be selected by default. To display the chart in page layout, clear this option.


REFERENCES

"User's Guide," version 5.0, Chapter 15, "Creating a Chart"
"User's Guide," version 5.0, Chapter 18, "Formatting a Chart"

Microsoft Excel Help, "Overview of Creating a Chart"
Microsoft Excel Help, "Overview of Changing Colors, Patterns, Borders, Text, and Numbers"

Additional query words: 7.00 


Keywords          : 
Version           : WINDOWS: 5.0,5.0c,7.0; MACINTOSH: 5.0,5.0a
Platform          : MACINTOSH WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbinfo

Last Reviewed: April 6, 1999