Today I briefly needed a 3D chart for an article. I had the data, but I wanted to create a clear graphic for it. The choice is of course obvious for an Apple user: Apple Numbers. The spreadsheet from Apple is not only equipped with beautiful format templates, but can also create stylish diagrams that are even possible in 3D optics. I'm going to show you how you can do this yourself quickly and easily. But here first our data list:
Now, to conjure up a chart from this simple table, all you have to do is highlight the dates of the responses and the values next to them all and then in the toolbar at the top of Numbers on “Chart”. When you click on this button, a submenu opens in which you can select the appropriate diagram from many different types. It's worth playing around with here a bit! I chose the horizontal bar chart from the 3D charts.
Chapter in this post:
Fine tuning: colors, titles, subtitles and other bits and pieces
Of course, you're not done after just one click. I still had the following wishes: A title, a source and a display of the percentages in the graphic. This can all be set from the Chart Options palette or simply with a text box. The choice of colors is also intuitive: you click on the graphic and can then select ready-made color combinations from the palette or knit something together yourself.
Here again the finished result:
Pro tip: a book about Numbers and Co.
I think my little guide is nice to start with, but you can do a lot more with Numbers and certainly create nicer charts for statistics. If you are looking for instructions for Apple Numbers, you can get one Get user manual as PDF from Apple, but this is far from current as it's still for Numbers '09. A much better recommendation is the book “Pages, Keynote and Numbers: Use the iWork apps in the office and on the go"
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Jens has been running the blog since 2012. He acts as Sir Apfelot for his readers and helps them with technical problems. In his spare time he rides electric unicycles, takes photos (preferably with the iPhone, of course), climbs around in the Hessian mountains or hikes with the family. His articles deal with Apple products, news from the world of drones or solutions to current bugs.
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