Column charts
There are three column chart components available in Dashboard Publisher. All column chart components must be connected to a data source.
Column Chart
Section titled “Column Chart”Displays answer categories along the horizontal axis and values along the vertical axis.
Stacked Column Chart
Section titled “Stacked Column Chart”Shows comparisons between categories of data, with each column representing a whole, and the segments within the column representing different sub-categories of that whole.
100% Stacked Column Chart
Section titled “100% Stacked Column Chart”Used to show relative percentage of multiple data series, where the total of stacked columns always equals 100%.
Properties
Section titled “Properties”- Component Name — enter a label for the component (optional). The label will not be visible in the dashboard; it is useful for identifying components quickly while laying out your dashboard.
- Chart Format — set the Title (default “Chart Title”), Title Colour, Sub Title, Sub Title Colour and Font.
- Size — set the component’s Fill and Height.
- Chart Settings — includes:
- Downloadable Data — adds an export menu to the chart so viewers can download it as a JPEG, PNG or Excel file. It’s off by default.
- Data Sorting — None, Ascending or Descending.
- Smooth Data Gaps.
- Tooltips, with Tooltip Number Format and Tooltip Number of Decimals (default 1).
- Show Data Labels, with Data Labels Colour, Data Label Number Format and Data Label Number of Decimals (default 0).
- Colours — there are 10 default colours pre-set in Dashboard Publisher. You can change any or all of these by clicking the arrow next to each colour.
- Column or Bar — switch between a column or bar chart.
- Horizontal Axis — includes Opposite Side, Reversed Direction, and grid line colour and width. Stacked charts also have Reverse Stack Direction.
- Vertical Axis — set the Minimum Value, Maximum Value and Units, plus the same options as the horizontal axis.
- Legend — configure the legend settings.
- Border and Background — add borders and/or background colours to the component.
Data source settings
Section titled “Data source settings”When you connect a column chart to a data store, some aggregation types (such as Mean) ask you to select supporting variable(s) - Limit: 1. Pick the variable that splits the data into columns. Save stays disabled until you choose one. NPS and CSat data sources don’t need a supporting variable, and neither do Categorical data sources on a Column Chart.
After a data source is connected, you can still change these settings on the DATA SOURCE tab:
- Decimal Places
- Format with commas
- Suppress Nulls (Column Chart only)
Each data source also has its own filter bindings on the DATA SOURCE tab. See Dashboard filters for details.
Frequently asked questions
Section titled “Frequently asked questions”Can I add multiple data sources to a column chart?
Yes. All three column chart types (Column Chart, Stacked Column Chart, and 100% Stacked Column Chart) support unlimited data sources, allowing you to overlay or combine data from multiple sources in a single chart.
What aggregation types do column charts support?
The standard Column Chart supports Mean, NPS, CSat, Categorical, and Multi-Response. The Stacked Column Chart and 100% Stacked Column Chart support Mean, NPS, CSat, and Multi-Response.
Can I switch between a column chart and a bar chart?
Yes. Use the Column or Bar property to switch the orientation between vertical columns and horizontal bars without recreating the component.
Can column charts connect to data explorations?
Yes. All three column chart types support connecting to data explorations as well as data stores.
How can I change the color of data labels in a chart?
Use the Data Labels Colour property under Chart Settings to manually override the color of data labels displayed on a chart.
How can viewers download a chart or its data?
Turn on Downloadable Data under Chart Settings. The chart then shows an export menu where viewers can download it as a JPEG, PNG or Excel file.
Why does my chart show an error icon instead of data?
This happens when a field the chart uses has since been excluded from exports and AI. Excluded fields are withheld from Dashboard Publisher, so they no longer appear in the variable pickers, and charts that already use them show an error icon. Connect the chart to a different variable, or ask the data owner whether the field can be included again.