Using Axis Options in a Chart


Depending on the chart type (for example, bar chart), you can format the axes to customize the display of the information. This includes items such as labels, titles, and font formatting. For example, you can choose to hide the labels in your chart or format the font to add clarity to your chart. You can easily customize the X and Y axis with options that suit your needs. Other options, such as dual-axis, bi-polar axis, and split axis behavior, and a continuous time axis, are available by right-clicking a field once it has been added to your chart or using the menu next to the Vertical bucket.

You can rotate the labels in your axes as well as stagger them. This allows you to shift the display of information, which is particularly useful when your chart is very dense. You can modify the lines for individual axes, enhancing the frame of the axis on the chart. You can also show ticks, which allows you to view milestones in your data. You can also change the position of an axis, enabling you to dictate where your axis information will display (for example, right). The options for formatting an axis are shown in the following image.

In bar, line, and area charts, you can control x axis scrolling behavior from the Scroll menu. By default, the Scroll option is set to On and the scrollbar is enabled. When a large number of values are displayed on the x axis, a scrollbar generates so that they all have enough space to fit comfortably in the visible area of the chart. To disable the scrollbar, set the Scroll option to Off. When the scrollbar is not enabled, points and labels are compressed to fill the area occupied by the chart. As an alternative to the basic scrollbar, set the Scroll option to MiniChart. Instead of using a basic, default scrollbar setting, the minichart option provides a simplified image of the chart, with a transparent scrollbar, as shown in the following image.


Bar chart with minichart scrollbar

You can point to the edge of the minichart scrollbar and use the double-headed arrow cursor to change the visible area of the chart by expanding or contracting the scrollbar. To set the default minichart scrollbar size, use the Count property that appears on the Format tab when you select the MiniChart option. The count represents the number of values initially visible on the x axis. For example, the default Count value of 10 means that a maximum of 10 values display in the chart at all times, regardless of the physical width of the chart area.

In bar, line, and area charts, you can also choose whether the y axis, or vertical axis, should be shared between all measures, or split so that each measure is separated and generates separate bars, lines, or areas. By default, the axis is blended, so all measures share the same y axis. To split the y axis, on the Settings tab, click the menu next to the Vertical bucket (or Horizontal bucket if the axes have been swapped), and click Split axis, as shown in the following image.


split axis in menu

This option is especially useful if there are large disparities between the values of different measure fields. For example, the revenue values in a data source may be many times greater than the quantity sold values. To merge the axes back together, click the same menu, and then click Blended axis.

Alternatively, if you want to split the measure fields in a bar, line, or area chart into groups on separate axes, you can use the bi-polar axis option. The bi-polar axis option creates a second set of axes to which you can add some of your measure fields, instead of splitting each measure onto a separate axis. To enable this option, click the menu next to the Vertical bucket and then click Bi-Polar axis. To switch the y-axis that a measure field uses in bi-polar axis mode, click the axis icon  next to the field in the measure bucket, or right-click a measure field and click Top Axis (Y1) or Bottom Axis (Y2).

When creating a bi-polar axis chart, it may be useful to change the chart type of the risers for one of the measures on an axis to differentiate it. Right-click the measure field in the Vertical bucket (or the Horizontal bucket if the axes have been swapped), point to Shape, and choose whether the chart type for that measure should be bar, line, or area. The following image shows a bi-polar axis chart in which the Cost of Goods field is represented by a line chart.


Bi-polar axis chart with Cost of Goods as a line

Another way to show multiple measure fields on separate axes is to use dual axes. Instead of splitting the chart into horizontal sections, one or more measure field is plotted against the y1 axis on the left, and the other uses the y2 axis on the right. To specify which axis a measure field should use, when the Blended axis option is selected, click the axis icon y axis icon next to the field in the measure bucket, or right-click the field and click Left Axis (Y1) or Right Axis (Y2). Each of these axes can be styled separately from the Axis options on the Format tab. When using dual axes, take note of which axis is used for each measure, as the values displayed in the chart may visually appear to be closer than they are in reality.

The same options are available for horizontal bar, area, and line charts, but affect the x axis, or horizontal axis, instead.

Procedure: How to Format Axes

You can format the axes of your chart to customize the display of information, including labels (rotated and staggered), titles, and axis-specific fonts.

  1. Create a chart using WebFOCUS Designer, or open an existing WebFOCUS Designer chart.

    Axes are used in bar, line, area, scatter, bubble, and circle plot charts.

  2. On the Format tab, click General to open the quick access menu, and then click Axis.

    The options for editing your axes display.

    You can select the Y-axis or edit the X-axis. The axis selection determines where changes are applied.

  3. On the X-axis, perform the following formatting tasks:
    1. In the Labels section, change the font format of the labels to bold.
    2. Expand the Title section and change the size of the font for the axis title to 16. Change this to bold as well.
  4. Select the Y-axis option and perform the following formatting tasks:
    1. Change the font format of the label to italic.
    2. Change the size of the font for the Title to 16. Change this to bold as well.

    When you preview the chart, you can see that styling on the axes has been modified, giving you a custom look and feel for your chart, as shown in the following image.

  5. You can rotate the labels on the X-axis. In the Labels group, use the Rotation option to rotate the labels by 45 degrees, as shown in the following image.

  6. You can also modify the line size of the axes. In the Lines group, use the Axis lines option to change the line size for both axes to 5. Making the axes lines bigger creates a more definitive frame, as shown in the following image.

    With the axes of your chart formatted, you can continue making modifications or apply similar formatting to the axes in other chart types.