You might already know that creating an Excel chart can be as easy as a single keystroke (select the data for the chart and then press F11). But, did you know that you can use those same charts in several programs, or even create diagrams, almost as easily?
If you spend too much valuable time recreating or reformatting charts to get them into your reports and presentations, or you drown in shapes when you try to create an organization chart, there is an easier way. This article will help you save time and improve your presentations by showing you just how far you can take a single Excel chart or a basic data worksheet.
Each page of this article includes a downloadable document with sample data so that you can try the task examples as you read.
What To Do When that Data Is Still Changing If you read this article and wondered what you can do when the data changes after you get that chart into Word or PowerPoint, or how to share that same data effectively with others on your team—read my earlier related column, Present the Same Table Data in Multiple Programs. The tips in that article that address both working with Excel table data and sharing data can also apply to your Excel charts.
Stephanie Krieger
Stephanie Krieger is a Microsoft Office System MVP as well as author of the books Advanced Microsoft Office Documents 2007 Edition Inside Out (February 2007) and Microsoft Office Document Designer. As a professional document consultant, she has helped many global companies develop enterprise solutions for Microsoft Office and taught numerous professionals to build great documents by understanding how the Office programs “think.” Stephanie writes regularly for several Microsoft Web pages and frequently delivers Microsoft webcasts. Visit her blog, arouet.net, for Microsoft Office tips as well as information about new and upcoming publications and webcasts.
