Intro
Symbol charts are similar to Grouped Bar charts in that series items are represented side by side within their respective categories. However, instead of bars, Symbol charts use symbols to indicate series values. This may help viewers identify highs and lows within their data. However, Symbol charts also have a disadvantage in that it may be hard to tell exactly what value a particular symbol falls on. For this reason, these charts are best used for showing relative values rather than comparing specific numbers. Symbol charts are nearly identical to Symbol Overlay charts, the difference being that in a Symbol Overlay chart, symbols in a given series are overlaid on top of each other rather than shown side by side. Symbol charts include both vertical and horizontal subtypes. In a vertical Symbol chart, categories are represented along the horizontal axis (or x-axis) and values are measured on the vertical axis (or y-axis). A horizontal Symbol chart has the same overall concept, but the categories are represented along the vertical axis and the values are represented along the horizontal axis.Powering Symbol charts
A Symbol chart requires three data columns or rows from your DataSet—one for categories, one for the series in each category, and one for values. For information about value, category, and series data, see Understanding Chart Data. In the Analyzer, you choose the columns containing the data for your Symbol chart. For more information about choosing data columns, see Applying DataSet Columns to Your Chart. For more information about formatting charts in the Analyzer, see Visualization Card Building Part 2: The Analyzer. The following graphic shows you how the data from a typical column-based spreadsheet is converted into a vertical Symbol chart:
