K2 Tech Update | Tech Tip
A Sneek Peek At Excel 2010’s Sparklines
Sparklines are a new form of chart available in Excel 2010. Simply put, sparklines are thumbnail charts – miniature versions of their full-grown brethren, sans axes, titles, and other formats. For instance, in Figure 1, the thumbnail line charts highlighted in Column F are sparklines. In this context, the sparklines make it very easy for readers of this data to see the trends for each of the five categories of information presented.
Figure 1 - Excel 2010 Sparklines
To create sparklines in Excel 2010, select the data on which the sparklines are to be based, as shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2 - Selecting Data For Excel 2010 Sparklines
Next, from the Sparklines group on the Insert tab of the Ribbon, choose the type of sparkline to insert – Line, Column, or Win/Loss, as shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3 - Inserting Sparklines In Excel 2010
Finally, in the Create Sparklines dialog box, select the cells where the sparklines are to reside, as shown in Figure 4. Upon doing so, clicking OK in the Create Sparklines dialog box places the sparklines in the selected location, as shown previously in Figure 1.
Figure 4 - Create Sparklines Dialog Box
Sparklines are very popular tools for those who create Excel-based digital dashboards and, as you can see, they are very easy to create in Excel 2010. Upon upgrading to Excel 2010, be sure to check out this great new feature.
For a video presentation of this tip, visit www.tinyurl.com/k2tips37.
For a video presentation of this tip, visit www.tinyurl.com/k2tips37.