Excel: Charting Data Flashcards

In Excel, 'Sparklines' differ from regular charts in which key way?

Answer: Sparklines are miniature charts inside a single cell, not separate chart objects

Sparklines are tiny, cell-embedded charts that provide an at-a-glance data trend without taking up chart object space.

What is the purpose of the 'Hidden and Empty Cells' option in the Select Data Source dialog?

Answer: To control how the chart handles missing or hidden data points

This setting determines whether the chart gaps, connects with a line, or plots zero for cells that are blank or in hidden rows/columns.

Which chart sub-type should you choose to plot financial stock data that shows Open, High, Low, and Close prices?

Answer: Open-High-Low-Close Stock chart

The Open-High-Low-Close (OHLC) Stock chart type is specifically designed for four-series financial price data.

When would you use an Error Bar on a chart?

Answer: To visualize the variability or uncertainty around each data point

Error bars display the margin of error, standard deviation, or confidence interval around plotted values, communicating data uncertainty.

If you want to reverse the order of categories on the horizontal axis so that the last category appears first, you would:

Answer: Check 'Categories in reverse order' in the Format Axis pane

The 'Categories in reverse order' checkbox in the Format Axis pane flips the display order without altering the source data.

Which of the following is NOT an available trendline type in Excel charts?

Answer: Harmonic trendline

Excel offers Linear, Exponential, Logarithmic, Polynomial, Power, and Moving Average trendlines, but not a Harmonic trendline.

To display data labels as percentages on a Pie chart, which option must be checked in the Format Data Labels pane?

Answer: Percentage

Checking 'Percentage' in the Label Contains section calculates and displays each slice's proportional share of the total.