Data Label Frequency

[Pete]

Hello,
I have a data series with many data points (100s or 1000s) in a scatter
plot. I would like to plot data points with data labels, but if I plot all
data labels it just looks like a big thick smear of a line. Is there a way
to select data label frequency plotted so that I the plot skips some of the
data?
Thanks, Pete.

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[Andy Pope]

Hi,

Create another series, which will used to display a subset of the data
labels.
Create the series using a formula something like, assuming data point is in
I3. Copy down column.

=IF(MOD(ROW(),5)=0,I3,NA())

This will display every 5 points label.
Format the original series to have no data labels.
Format the second series to have no line or marker, data labels.

Cheers
Andy

 

[Pete]

Hello Andy,

I was afraid this was the only way. Unfortunately, I have lots of data so
although this is workable, it will be tedious. Most other
scientific/engineering data packages have a "frequency" or "skip" option so
that you are able to format the plot rather than add more data to an already
crowded sheet.

Microsoft, please add a "Frequency" option to formatting.

Thanks for the help Andy,
Pete.

 

[Jon Peltier]

FWIW, Excel is not a scientific/engineering package, nor is it a statistics
package. It's at heart an accounting package, and over the years they've
stuck some math and science into it. Some of us are trying to help people
use it for a broader range of topics. I'm a former research scientist and an
amateur visualization guy, and I've learned that Excel isn't too bad for
those things, if you ignore defaults and try different approaches.

- Jon