Changing the Properties of a Statistical Graph

Change the Properties of a Statistical Graph

The properties of a statistical graph determine features that affect the overall appearance of the graph. These properties include (but are not limited to) the following items:

the graph's style and colors
the orientation and appearance of the graph's axes
whether and where the graph displays a legend
whether and where a graph displays titles

Note: Any changes that you make to a graph's properties remain in effect only while the current project is open. If you close and then reopen the project, the properties revert to their default values.

To change a statistical graph’s properties:

Right-click on the graph you want to change.
From the pop-up menu, choose Graph Properties. The Properties dialog box opens.
Change the settings for the graph.

The Properties dialog box contains several tabs that organize the properties you can change. In general, there are two types of properties:
- The Graph, Axis, Legend, and Titles tabs contain properties that all or most statistical graphs have in common. For a description of these properties, see General Properties.
- The dialog box also contains a tab that has graph-specific properties. The name and contents of this tab vary depending on the type of graph you are modifying. For a description of these properties, see Graph-Specific Properties.

General Properties

Graph Tab

The Graph tab in the Properties dialog box contains the following properties:

Style

Select a predefined graph style name from the list box. The style that you select overrides the style that has been selected for the project. For details about the project style, see Apply a Style to a Project.

You can also select Edit Style and then customize the currently selected style. For instructions, see Customize the Style Applied to a Graph.

Colors

Select a color scheme from the Scheme list box to change the colors of the graph.

You can also select

to open the Background dialog box, where you can choose the background color, gradient, and texture. For information about this dialog box, see Changing Background Color, Gradient, and Texture.

View

Select whether you want to view the graph in two-dimensional, three-dimensional, or three-dimensional perspective format. If you select 3D Perspective, then you can use the Perspective slider to increase or decrease the depth of the graph. This format is not available for pie charts.

Grid lines

Select Grid lines to display grid lines for the graph. If you display grid lines, then you can make the following changes:

Direction

Select Horizontal, Vertical, or Both from the Direction list box.

Placement

Change the placement of the grid lines from background to foreground by selecting the appropriate button.

The grid lines feature is not available for pie charts.

Chart tips

Select or clear the Chart tips check box to display or hide chart tips. Chart tips contain data details and appear when you move the cursor over particular areas on a graph. For example, moving the cursor over the bars in a bar chart displays the data values associated with the bars.

Chart border

Select Chart border if you want a border around the graph. This option is not available for pie charts.

Annotations

This option is not used and is therefore dimmed.

Advanced settings

Click the Advanced button to open the Advanced Settings dialog box, which contains the following items:

Mouse Preferences

Use the radio buttons to select either graph-style rotation around the X and Y axes or map-style, three-dimensional arcball rotation around all three axes (X, Y, and Z). To use arcball rotation, imagine a virtual sphere surrounding the object, select a point on the sphere, and rotate that point to a new location. If you select a position outside the sphere, then the object is rotated around the Z axis only. Arcball rotation is most useful (and the default setting) for maps.

PowerPoint Sessions

Use the check boxes to determine the behavior when you copy and paste a graph into PowerPoint. The check boxes enable you to display interactive graphs and to remove the graph background.

Scrollbars

Select or clear the Scrollbars check box to control whether scroll bars appear for a graph. Though scroll bars are enabled, the threshold for displaying scroll bars varies with the type of graph. You can control the threshold for displaying scroll bars by changing the values in the Horizontal and Vertical list boxes. (If you select the zoom tool and zoom in on any of the graphs, the scroll bars appear.)

Graph Rendering

Use the slider to control graph quality. The rendering quality slider affects texture mapping, line anti-aliasing, and scene anti-aliasing.

Lighting

Use the sliders to control the level of direct and ambient light. Ambient light is light coming from all directions that casts no shadows. Direct light is light emitting from a point light source that provides light direction and shadow effects.

Axis Tab

The Axis tab in the Properties dialog box enables you to control the display and formatting of axes. These properties are not available for pie charts. The Axis tab contains the following items:

Axis

From the list box, select the axis whose properties you want to change.

Select Reverse Axis to move the data origin to the opposite side of the selected axis.

Line

Select or clear the Line check box to control whether the specified axis line is displayed or hidden.

Use the Width list box to set the line width from one point to six points. The default width depends on the graph type.

To change the color of the line, click

to open the Color dialog box, which contains colors to choose from and the option to define your own color. See Using the Color Dialog Box.

Tick marks

Select the Major ticks and Minor ticks check boxes to display major and minor tick marks.

To control the number of tick marks that are displayed for either axis, select the Specify number check box and enter the number of tick marks that you want.

Note: You cannot change the number of major tick marks for bar charts that show the category axis.

Text

Control axis labels and values using the following items:

Labels

Select or clear the Labels check box to control whether axis labels are displayed. For graphs that use a group variable, you can also display or hide the Group values.

Label Options

Change the label text or font by selecting the Label Options button. In the Label Options dialog box, you can specify the text of axis labels by selecting Custom label and then entering the desired label text into the text box.

To change the font, select the Font button, and then use the Font dialog box to specify a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Values

Use the Values check box to control whether axis values are displayed. For graphs that use a group variable, you can also display or hide the Group values.

Value Options

Change the layout or the font of axis values by selecting the Value Options button. In the Value Options dialog box, select one of the following layouts from the Arrange values list box:

Automatically specifies an optimized fit, as determined by the graph.
Horizontally specifies that the text layout is horizontal.
Vertically specifies that the text layout is vertical.
Angle 45 specifies that the values are rotated at a 45 degree angle.
By offsetting (stagger) specifies that the text is staggered to fit.
By abridging (thin) specifies that the values are thinned out to fit (a subset of values is displayed).

To change the font of the axis values, click Font in the Value Options dialog box. Then use the Font dialog box to select a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Legend Tab

You can change the legend position, background, border, or text in the Legend tab of the Properties dialog box. The Legend tab contains the following items:

Legend

Select or clear the Legend check box to control whether the legend is displayed for your graph.

Position

Set the legend's position relative to the graph by selecting one of the position choices. For example, choose NW to position the legend in the top left corner of the graph or S to position the legend in bottom center of the graph.

Background

The legend's background is the area within its border. Select or clear the Background check box to control the legend background's display. Click

to open a Legend dialog box that enables you to change the background's color, gradient, and texture. For details, see Changing Background Color, Gradient, and Texture.

Border

Select a border style from the Style list box. Choose None to remove the border. After you choose a style, you can select the border color. If the style that you choose uses a shadow, then you can also choose a color for the shadow. Click

to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains colors to choose from and the option to define your own color for the border and shadow. For details, see Using the Color Dialog Box.

Layout Options

When you select the Layout Options button, the Layout Options dialog box opens. This dialog box contains the following items:

Title

Enter the title that you want for the legend. To hide the legend title temporarily, clear the Title check box.

In the Position list box, select a directional position or select Automatic to specify that the position be automatically assigned.

To change the font that is used for the legend's title text, click the Font button. Then use the Font dialog box to choose a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Labels

To set the label's position relative to the graph, select one of the position choices from the Position list box. Select Automatic to specify that the position be automatically assigned.

The data in the legend can be placed in rows or columns. From the Layout list box, select rows or columns, or select Automatic to specify that the layout be automatically assigned. If you specified rows or columns as the layout of the legend, then you can use the Numbers list box to specify the number of rows or columns in the legend.

To change the font that is used for the label text, click the Font button. Then use the Font dialog box to choose a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Titles Tab

The Titles tab in the Properties dialog box enables you to control the display of titles and footnotes. The Titles tab contains the following items:

Titles

You can specify the text, position, and font for up to four titles. Select which title you want to edit from the list box, and enter the text for that title in the text box.

Select the location for the title from the Position list box. You can locate the title in the center, left, or right portion of the display.

Click the Font button to open the Font dialog box. The Font dialog box enables you to specify the font type and font characteristics such as size and color for your title.

If you want to temporarily hide a title that you have defined, then clear the Show title check box. You can select the check box again when you are ready to display the title.

Footnotes

You can specify the text, position, and font for up to two footnotes. Select which footnote you want to edit from the list box, and enter the text for that footnote in the text box.

Select the location for the footnote from the Position list box. You can locate the footnote in the center, left, or right portion of the display.

Click the Font button to open the Font dialog box. The Font dialog box enables you to specify the font type and font characteristics such as size and color for your footnote.

If you want to temporarily hide a footnote that you have defined, then clear the Show footnote check box. You can select the check box again when you are ready to display the footnote.

Apply Edits

Select the Apply Edits button to apply any changes that you make to a title or footnote.

Customize the Style Applied to a Graph

You can customize the style that is used for a graph by entering changes in the Edit Style dialog box. To open this dialog box:

Select the graph whose style you want to change.
Right-click and choose Graph Properties. The Properties dialog box opens.
Select the style you want to customize from the Style list box.
Click Edit Style.

You can change the following components of your graph using the Style Editor dialog box:

Style Name

Select a different style from the list box, if appropriate. The style that you select overrides the style that has been selected for the project. (For details about the project style, see Apply a Style to a Project.)

Colors

Select a scheme from the Scheme list box to change the graph color scheme.

Click

to open a dialog box where you can change the background color, gradient, and texture. For information about using this dialog box, see Changing Background Color, Gradient, and Texture.

Chart tab

Use the selection buttons

to open separate dialog boxes to change the legend, floor, and wall fill color, gradient, and texture. For help using these dialog boxes, see Changing Background Color, Gradient, and Texture. For the chart's walls and data element fill, you can use the Transparency slider to increase (move to the right) or decrease (move to the left) the level of transparency.

Click a data element fill color from the color palette and then select Edit to open the Data Element dialog box. This dialog box enables you to change the color, gradient, and texture for the data element fill values. Clicking the Edit All button enables you to select and apply either or both of the following:

texture file and a fit (for the selected texture file) to the entire chart. Select the Texture check box to specify a texture image file and file fitting. Use the File list box to select a predefined image. To select an image from your file system, click the file selection button , and then choose the image from the Open window. Use the Fit list box to specify a fitting setting for your texture file.
color ramp. You can select a predefined color ramp or define your own color ramp by selecting starting and ending colors. The predefined color ramps available in the Scheme list box are lighter to darker colors that are used to indicate lower and high data values respectively. For example, if White to Orange is the selected scheme, then the lowest data values are white. The middle data values are light to darker orange. The highest data values are the darkest shade of orange. Select the Color ramp check box to specify a color ramp. Use the Scheme list box to select a predefined color ramp scheme. Click on the Start and End selection buttons to open the Color dialog box, where you can select start and end colors for the color ramp. For help using the Color dialog box, see Using the Color Dialog Box.

Note: For the lowest data values, you cannot specify a color for three-dimensional surfaces that are transparent or textured.

Lines tab

Click the Color selection buttons

for Outlines, Grid, and Axis and borders to open the Color dialog boxes for each. The Color dialog boxes enable you to select the color for the specified line type. Click the Width list box to select line widths for the different types of lines. For both the Grid and Axis and borders, you can also select a defined line style from the Style list box.

Text tab

Click the Color selection buttons

for Title, Labels, and Values to open a Color dialog box for each. The Color dialog boxes enable you to select the color for specified text type. Click on the Font buttons to specify a font for titles, labels, and text data values. Use the Shadow and Border check boxes to select or clear text shadows and borders.

Effects tab

Use the Style list boxes to select a defined style for the Shadows, Text borders, and Selection. Click the Color selection buttons

to open the Color dialog boxes for each effect. The Color dialog boxes enable you to select the color for the specified effect. For shadows, use the arrows to the right of Offset to assign a shadow offset value. For text borders, you can select a border width from the Width list box.

Using the Color Dialog Box

Several tabs in the Properties dialog box provide a button that opens the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains colors to choose from and the option to define your own color.

To select a predefined color, select a color in the Basic colors section and then click OK.

Clicking the Define Custom Colors button extends the Color window and adds a color palette, a vertical slider thumb, a preview box, and several text boxes. To define a color, you can use the methods listed below singly or in combination:

Position the target on a color you would like to define. Use the vertical slider thumb to increase (move up) or decrease (move down) the red, green, blue, and lumination values. As the slider thumb is moved, the values in the Red, Green, Blue, and Lum text boxes increase or decrease to reflect the slider thumb's position. When the slider thumb is moved or values are entered into any of the text boxes, the color that you are defining is displayed in the Color Solid preview box. Once the color has been displayed in the preview box, click the Add to Custom Colors button. The color is then available for selection on the left side of the Color dialog box in the Custom colors section.
Use the Hue, Saturation, Lum, Red, Green, and Blue text boxes to define your color. As you enter values into these text boxes, the target and slider thumb move to positions reflecting the color being defined. When the color you want to define is displayed in the Color Solid preview box, click the Add to Custom Colors button. The color is then available for selection on the left side of the Color dialog box in the Custom colors section.

You can select a color that you have defined by clicking on the color in the Custom colors section of the Color dialog box.

Changing Background Color, Gradient, and Texture

Several tabs in the Properties dialog box provide a button that opens a dialog box containing three tabs: Solid Color, Gradient, and Texture. Open this dialog box to change the background appearance for a graph. You can change the following items:

Solid Color tab

Select a solid color from the Color palette. Click the More button to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains additional colors to select from and the option to define your own color. For details, see Using the Color Dialog Box.

Gradient tab

A gradient blends from one color to another on your graph. The Preview box shows you how the blend looks.

Use the Type list box to set the type of gradient. The gradient types available are dependent on the graph generated.

To set the direction for the color blend, choose Left to right, Right to left, Top to bottom, or Bottom to top from the Directions list box.

To select the starting and ending colors, use the Start color and End color buttons to open the Color dialog box for each. For details, see Using the Color Dialog Box.

Texture tab

Select a background image. The Preview box shows you the image that is currently selected in the File list box. To select an image from your file system, click

, and then choose the image from the Open dialog box.

Use the Fit list box to select Tile or a relative alignment for your image such as Center or Right.

The Color fill buttons enable you to specify that the image and the color fill are blended or that the image replaces the color fill. Select Blend to blend the color selected in the Solid Color tab with the image. Select the Replace radio button to specify that the image replaces the color selected in the Solid Color tab.

Graph-Specific Properties

Bar Tab

The Bar tab in the Properties dialog box contains the following items for customizing bar charts:

Color by

Specify how colors are used in the graph. Select one of the following items from the Color by list box:

Chart assigns the same color to all axis variables in the chart.
Category assigns a different color to each category axis variable.
Subgroup assigns the same color to each subgroup (for example, each segment within a bar).

Except for Chart, the colors are determined by the role assigned to each variable. For example, if you select Category, then the bar colors are determined by the variable that is selected as the category variable.

Bar shape

Specify the shape of the bars. Select Block, Cylinder, Hexagon, Prism, or Star from the Bar shape list box.

Width

Set the width of the bars. To increase the width of the bars, drag the slider thumb to the right or click to the right of the thumb. To decrease the width of the bars, drag the slider thumb to the left or click to the left of the thumb.

Outline

Select or clear the Outline check box to control whether bars are outlined. Use the Thickness list box to change the thickness of the bar outline. Click the Color selection button to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains additional colors to select from and the option to define your own color for the bar outline. See Using the Color Dialog Box.

Data labels

Select the Show labels check box to display data labels. Data labels indicate the value of the variable represented by each bar.

To change the font of the data labels, click Font and then use the Font dialog box to select a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Show subgroups as

Select one of the buttons to specify whether the subgroups are shown as bars stacked horizontally or as bars grouped vertically. These buttons are available only when the graph contains subgroups.

"Other" category

Select the "Other" category button to specify display parameters for categories that are four percent or less of the total bar chart. The "Other" Category dialog box opens. You can make the following changes in this dialog box:

Select or clear the Show smaller values as "Other" check box to control whether to show smaller values with the label of "Other."

Specify how you want the application to determine which values to include in "Other."

Values can be determined based on a maximum number of categories that you select from the Number list box.
Values can be determined based on the value's percentage of the total. You select the maximum percentage from the Value list box.

Box Tab

The Box tab in the Properties dialog box contains the following items for customizing box plots:

Cap style

Change the style of the box caps. You can select None, Whiskers, Brackets, or Bars from the Cap Style list box.

Plot

Use the check boxes to add or remove the following options:

Outliers

Toggle the display of outliers on and off.

Line graph

Toggle the display of a line joining the boxes.

Filled boxes

Toggle between solid-fill boxes and outline-only boxes.

Data labels

Select the Show labels check box to display data labels. Data labels indicate the value of variables represented by sections of the boxes displayed in the plot.

To change the font of the data labels, click Font and then use the Font dialog box to select a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Histogram Tab

The Histogram tab in the Properties dialog box contains the following items:

Categorization

Use the Categorization section to set the following properties:

Number of bins

Select the number of bins that you want to use to divide the category data.

Min value

Specify the minimum data value to be included in the histogram binning. Values smaller than this are ignored.

Max value

Specify the maximum data value to be included in the histogram binning. Values larger than this are ignored.

Outline

Select or clear the Outline check box to control whether bins are outlined. If outlines are displayed, then you can change the thickness of the outline by selecting a different value from the Thickness list box.

To change the color, click

to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains colors to choose from and the option to define your own color for the outline. See Using the Color Dialog Box.

Data labels

Select the Show labels check box to display data labels. Data labels indicate the value of variables represented by the bins displayed in the plot.

To change the font of the data labels, click Font and then use the Font dialog box to select a font type and font characteristics such as size and color.

Pie Tab

The Pie tab in the Properties dialog box contains the following items for customizing pie charts:

Segment labels

Use the Segment Labels section to set the placement of the following segment labels:

Name

Specify the label option for the names of your pie segments (the category variable values).

Data

Specify the label option for the data values for the pie segments (the response variable values).

Percent

Specify the label option for the text that indicates the percentage of the full pie that is represented by each slice.

You can choose one of the following for each of the labels:

None turns off the display of labels.
Inside displays each label inside the pie slice that it represents.
Outside displays each label next to the pie slice that it represents.
Arrow displays the labels outside the pie and connects each label to its pie slice with a line.
Best attempts to display each label inside the slice it represents. If the label does not fit, then it is displayed outside the slice.

To change the font for the labels, click Font and then use the Font dialog box to select a font type and font characteristics such as size and color. All labels are displayed in the same font.

Outline

Select or clear the Outline check box to control whether pie slices are outlined. If outlines are displayed, then you can change the thickness of the outline by selecting a different value from the Thickness list box. Use the Color selection button to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box enables you to select a color to be used for your pie outline.

To change the color of the outlines, click

to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains colors to choose from and the option to define your own color. See Using the Color Dialog Box.

Donut style

Select the Donut style check box to change a pie chart to a donut chart.

"Other" category

Select the "Other" category button to specify display parameters for categories that are four percent or less of the total pie chart. The "Other" Category dialog box opens. You can make the following changes in this dialog box:

Select or clear the Show smaller values as "Other" check box to control whether to show smaller values with the label of "Other."

Specify how you want the application to determine which values to include in "Other."

Values can be determined based on a maximum number of categories that you select from the Number list box.
Values can be determined based on the value's percentage of the total. You select the maximum percentage from the Value list box.

Plot Tab

The Plot tab in the Properties dialog box contains the following items for customizing scatter plots:

Line

You can display lines between markers in a scatter plot. Select the Line check box to enable the display of lines.

Interpolation

Use the Interpolation list box to change the interpolation method for the graph. Depending on the interpolation type that you select, the Detail button might be enabled. Click the Detail button to specify more details for the lines. The following list summarizes the interpolation methods and describes any details that apply to the interpolation:

Join connects data points with straight lines.
Step plots data with a step function.

For details, you can select the step placement and indicate whether to show join lines.
Spline uses a spline routine to produce a smooth line or surface connecting the data points. Spline produces the smoothest line.

For details, you can enable the sort and parametric options.
Smooth fits a smooth line to the data using a spline routine. This option smooths noisy data. The points on the plot do not necessarily fall on the line.

For details, you can specify a percentage for the plot smoothness. You can also enable the sort and parametric options.
Lagrange specifies a Lagrange interpolation to smooth the plot line.

For details, you can specify the degree of interpolation. You can also enable the sort and parametric options.
Map specifies a polygon that has been defined and connected by the data points.
Regression specifies that the plot is a regression analysis.

For details, you can specify a regression type, confidence type, and a confidence level. You can also enable an intercept.

Style

Choose one of the available line styles from the Style list box.

Thickness

Choose a line width from the Thickness list box.

Color

To change the color of the lines, click

to open the Color dialog box. The Color dialog box contains additional colors to select from and the option to define your own color. See Using the Color Dialog Box.

Markers

You can customize the markers in a scatter plot. Select or clear the Markers check box to enable or hide markers. If markers are enabled, then you can make the following changes:

Shape

Change the shape of the markers by selecting a new shape from the Shape list box.

Color

To change the color of the markers, click

to open the Color dialog box. See Using the Color Dialog Box.

Size

Move the slider's thumb to the right or click on the slider right of the thumb to increase the marker size. Move the slider's thumb to the left or click on the slider left of the thumb to decrease the marker's size.

Note: You cannot change the marker shape and color if the chart is subgrouped.

Data labels

Select or clear the Show labels check box to enable or hide labels. Data labels indicate the value of variables represented by objects on the graph.

Click the Font button to specify font information for your data labels.

Show needles

Select Show needles to add vertical lines that connect each data point to the horizontal axis or plane. You can select Show needles only if the lines are not displayed.