Fix Chart Log For Free

If there's a value in the upper-left corner of the data set (A1 in this case), Excel fails to chart the data correctly. The fix is simple: remove the string in cell A1 and generate the chart again.

Linear charts become useful when you want to see the pure price changes with scaling calculations. Day traders often prefer linear charts. Logarithmic charts are useful when viewing long-term charts. Over the long-term, large price changes are made, which a linear chart can distort.

To lock the position of a chart, right-click on the item and select the ?Format Chart Area? option found at the bottom of the pop-up menu. If you do not see the option to format the chart area, you might have clicked on the wrong part of the chart. Ensure the resize handles are around the border of the chart.

To hide all drawings on the chart, you can use the Hide All Drawing Tools button, located on the left toolbar.

There are two main reasons to use logarithmic scales in charts and graphs. The first is to respond to skewness towards large values; i.e., cases in which one or a few points are much larger than the bulk of the data. The second is to show percent change or multiplicative factors.

A logarithmic price scale uses the percentage of change to plot data points, so, the scale prices are not positioned equidistantly. A linear price scale uses an equal value between price scales providing an equal distance between values.

Logarithmic price scales are particularly more accurate than linear scales when it comes to long-term price changes. Since the price distribution on a linear scale is equal, a move from $10 to $15, representing a 50% price increase, is the same as a price change from $20 to $25.