up vote 0 down vote favorite
share [g+] share [fb]

I have a line overlaid on some bars in a pivot chart in excel, but I want the line to be stepped instead of curved. How can I accomplish this?

link|improve this question
When you right click and "change series chart type" what have you selected? Could you provide an example of what you have vs what you want? – Raystafarian Feb 2 at 17:37
So as chart type I selected line. This gets me pretty close to what I want. I have sloped lines between data points, but what I would like is to have a verticle lines between the data points and then have short horizontal likes at the data points. – loveforvdubs Feb 2 at 19:12
feedback

1 Answer

up vote 0 down vote

Error bars can be quite useful, even if you do not know what they are fully for; in most cases, they can be used to show variations in data; but when used creatively, they can turn any line into a stepped line.

Here's a writeup of it: Step Charts in Microsoft Excel

Essentially, your adding error bars to a range of data, and then just hiding all but the error bars; turns out quite nicely, if you follow the instructions.

There is another method; however, that involves adding extra data to your chart; or, adding extra calculations to the chart, to 'simulate' data.

link|improve this answer
I tried the error bar method and did not have much success. Could you elaborate on the extra calculations method? – loveforvdubs Feb 3 at 13:25
feedback

Your Answer

 
or
required, but never shown
discard

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.