XL2000: Column Charts May Not Show All Data Labels (214290)

SYMPTOMS

In Microsoft Excel 2000, if you create a column chart with column titles along the x-axis, Excel may print only every other title if the title is too long to fit under the column or columns. Column labels may or may not be wrapped on the screen, and may or may not be wrapped when you view them in Print Preview or when you print them.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, use any of the following methods:

Resize the chart on the chart sheet. When you resize the chart to certain sizes, Excel wraps some text labels. Sometimes the text wraps so that all labels are displayed. When you view the chart in Print Preview, its results are independent of the screen results.

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On the chart, format the x-axis data labels in a smaller point size, making the labels small enough to fit under the data columns. This workaround is useful in cases where one or two labels are only slightly too long for the available space.

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Place blank columns on either side of the data in the worksheet, and include those columns in the chart data as the first and third data series. This action results in thinner data columns and excess items in chart legends, but the data labels now wraps under the data columns. To adjust columns that are too thin, select the column series, click Column on the Format menu, and then point to Width. Adjust the Width option to the width that you want.

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Insert line-break characters by pressing ALT+ENTER to force the data labels on the worksheet to be wrapped. These line-break characters are carried through to the chart.

MORE INFORMATION

When you print a chart or view it in Print Preview, there is no way to force automatic line wrapping (even if you have formatted the lines in the worksheet with the Wrap Text option). Not selecting the text-wrap feature can be a problem when each data group has a unique name and no obvious pattern.