The topics in this section describe the features available in the Chart dashboard item, and provide information on how to create and customize charts in the dashboard.
Providing Data
The image below shows a sample Chart dashboard item that is bound to data.
To bind the Chart dashboard item to data, click a placeholder contained in one of the available data sections and select the required data source field in the Binding section of the invoked data item menu.
The table below lists and describes the Chart’s data sections.
Section |
Processed as |
Description |
---|---|---|
Values
|
Measure
|
Contains data items against which the Y-coordinates of data points are calculated. The data item menu allows you to select the series type and specify different options. Some types of series accept several measures. |
Arguments |
Dimension
|
Contains data items that provide values displayed along the X-axis of the chart. |
Series |
Dimension |
Contains data items whose values are used to create chart series. |
Series
The Chart dashboard item supports different types of series - from simple bar and line charts to candlestick and bubble graphs.
Name |
Description |
---|---|
Bar Series
|
Bar series visualize data using rectangular bars with lengths proportional to the values that they represent.
|
Point and Line Series |
Point series visualize data as a set of individual numeric data points. Line series are used to connect numeric data points through different types of line segments.
|
Area Series |
Area series connect numeric data points using different types of line segments and fills the space between the line and X-axis/other series.
|
Range Series |
Range series are used to show variations in a specified time range like temperature, price, etc.
|
Weighted Series |
Weighted series allow you to visualize data in three dimensions.
|
Financial Series |
Financial series are used to illustrate stock prices.
|
Panes
Panes are visual areas within a diagram that display chart series. The Chart dashboard item can contain any number of panes.
Each pane has its own Y-axis and displays a specific set of series. All panes in a chart share the same X-axis.
Add Panes
To add a pane, click the Add Pane button in the Chart’s Binding menu.
Once a new pane is added, the dashboard creates another Values section. Use this section to provide data items that supply values to be displayed in the new pane.
Delete Panes
To remove a pane, click the Remove Pane button displayed in the added Values section.
Interactivity
To enable interaction between the Chart and other dashboard items, you can use the interactivity features, as Master Filtering and Drill-Down.
Master Filtering
You can use the Chart dashboard item as a filter for other dashboard items.
The Chart supports filtering by argument, series, or points.
- Filtering by arguments allows you to make other dashboard items display only data related to selected argument values by clicking series points.
- When filtering by series is enabled, an end-user can click a series point to make other dashboard items display only data related to the selected series.
- Filtering by points makes other dashboard items display only data related to the selected point.
To configure filtering type, open the Chart’s Interactivity menu and select Arguments, Series or Points as a target dimension.
To reset filtering, use the Clear Master Filter button (the icon) in the Chart’s caption.
Drill-Down
The drill-down capability allows end-users to change the detail level of data displayed in the Chart dashboard item. To learn more about drill-down concepts common to all dashboard items, see the Drill-Down topic.
The Chart supports drill-down on argument or series values.
- To drill down on arguments, click a series point to view a detail chart for the corresponding argument value. Drill-down on arguments requires that the Arguments section contains several data items, from the least detailed to the most detailed item.
- When drill-down on series is enabled, an end-user can click a series point to view a detail chart for the corresponding series. Drill-down on series requires that the Series section contains several data items, from the least detailed to the most detailed item.
To specify drill-down type, go to the Chart’s Interactivity menu and set Arguments or Series as a target dimension.
Legend
A legend is an element of a chart that identifies chart series and series points. To customize legend options, go to the Chart’s Options menu and open the Legend section.
The following settings are available:
Name |
Description |
---|---|
Visible |
Specifies whether to show a legend. |
Inside Diagram |
Allows you to locate a legend inside or outside the Chart. |
Position |
Allows you to set a legend’s position and orientation. |
Axes
The Chart dashboard item displays two axes by default: the X-axis and the Y-axis. The X-axis is the axis of arguments and the Y-axis is the numerical axis of values.
Axis X
To access X-axis settings, go to the Chart’s Options menu and open the Axis X section.
You can configure the following settings:
Option |
Description |
---|---|
Reverse |
Specifies whether to reverse the X axis. If the X axis is reversed, its values are ordered from right to left. |
Visible |
Specifies whether the axis is visible. |
Title |
Specifies the X-axis title. Use the Title Text field to set the title. |
Enable Zooming |
Specifies whether to enable zooming for the X axis. |
Limit Visible Points
|
Specifies whether to limit the number of visible points. The Visible Points Count field allows you to specify the maximum number of visible points. |
Continuous and Discrete X-Axes
If the dimension in the Arguments section contains numeric data, the Chart can create either a continuous X-axis or a discrete X-axis.
If a continuous axis is used, the distance between argument values is proportional to their values. On a discrete axis, all argument values are an equal distance from each other.
To specify the X-axis type in the dashboard, go to the data item Data Shaping menu for the argument dimension and select the axis type.
Axis Y
To access Y-axis settings, go to the Chart’s Options menu and open the Axis Y section for a corresponding pane.
Option |
Description |
---|---|
Always Show Zero Level |
Indicates whether an axis zero value is displayed. |
Reverse |
Specifies whether to reverse the Y-axis. If the Y-axis is reversed, its values are ordered from top to bottom. |
Grid Lines |
Specifies whether to show the grid lines used to improve the readability of a chart’s visual data. |
Visible |
Specifies whether the axis is visible. |
Title |
Specifies the Y-axis title. Use the Title Text field to set the title. |
Logarithmic Scale |
Specifies whether to use a log scale to display Y-axis. Use the Logarithmic Scale Base field to set a log scale base. |
Secondary Axis
The secondary Y-axis is useful when it is necessary to visually combine several charts into one. Secondary axes provide the ability to plot series with different ranges on the same chart.
To plot the required series using the secondary axis, go to the data item Options menu for the value measure and turn the Plot on Secondary Axis option on.