Changing Shapes in Microsoft Graph

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 7, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Microsoft Graph is a simple graphing program provided with Word. It includes the ability to view your graph data in both spreadsheet and graph formats. The graphs you create can be inserted directly into your documents.

Once you have defined the type of chart you want to use to display your data, you may want to change the actual shapes used for a particular data series. You can change shapes for most three-dimensional chart types, but not for the two-dimensional ones. You can change shapes for a data series by following these steps:

Right-click on any element of the data series you want to change. Microsoft Graph displays a Context menu.
Choose Format Data Series from the Context menu. Microsoft Graph displays the Format Data Series dialog box.
Make sure the Shape tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Shape tab of the Format Data Series dialog box

Select a shape you want to use for the data series.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (707) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Removing a Macro from a Shortcut Key

Associate a macro with a shortcut key, and at some time you may want to break that association. (Perhaps so the shortcut ...

Discover More

Totaling Across Worksheets

Want to sum the values in the same cell on a range of worksheets? It's not as easy as summing a range on the same ...

Discover More

Documents Marked as Security Risk

If your Word documents contain macros, it is possible that Word (or Windows itself) may block the use of those documents ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Selecting a Custom Chart

Microsoft Graph allows you to easily create charts from numeric data, without the need to use Excel. Here's how to use ...

Discover More

Editing the Color Palette in Chart

Microsoft Chart uses a palette from which it pulls the colors it uses. Learn how to change the palette.

Discover More

Picking a Number Format For an Axis

Microsoft Graph is a handy way to add charts to your document if you don't have access to Excel. Here's how to adjust the ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 2 + 8?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.