Create, Collect, and Analyze Surveys and Web Forms
Over 80 chart options are described in this chapter. From this complete list of options, your preferences are saved in a chart template file wsurvey.cht. Chart template files are saved in the project folder with the survey questions. When each chart is created, your preferences determine how the chart is displayed. The displayed chart can be completely modified by changing your preferred chart settings.
Copy to Clipboard
Clicking the icon copies the displayed chart to the Windows clipboard. Clicking the icon copies the displayed chart to the Windows clipboard. Many software programs like Microsoft PowerPoint, Word, and most of the other word processing and presentation applications accept pasted images from the clipboard for their content.
Save Chart
When the icon is clicked, a new dialog is displayed. The displayed chart can be saved as a BMP, JPG, GIF, PNG, or PDF file. A default file name based on the survey question number is suggested, but you can change the file name to whatever you want. The PNG format is the usually best choice for saving chart images with smaller file sizes. JPG is usually the worst choice for saving chart images.
The PNG format is the best choice for saving chart images with small file sizes, because charts are images with text, lines, and distinct changes between objects. The PNG format is the best choice for saving graphics with gradients. Most software and all recent web browsers support the PNG format.
The BMP format results in the largest file size, with no loss of image information.
As JPG image compression is increased (thereby reducing the file size), gradients, text, lines, and sharp images become increasingly blurred. Most photographs, which do not have distinct changes between objects, are saved as JPG images. Charts saved with the JPG format use the JPG Quality setting from the Background Chart Settings tab. JPG file size can be reduced by compressing the image, but also causes the image to become discolored and blurry.
The GIF format usually produces the smallest files, which results in lower quality. Gradients are saved poorly with the GIF format.
Print Chart
Clicking the icon sends the displayed chart to print on your default printer. (If you are printing black-white, you may want to change the Monochrome settings on the Background Chart Settings tab.)
Chart Size
The numbers indicate the pixel height and width of the displayed chart. You can change the chart size by resizing the full WISCO Survey screen, and by changing the width of the chart tab set. The size of the initial screen is determined by the default size of the main program screen. The highest quality charts are made when other software does not have to resize and resample original graphics.
If possible, avoid reducing or enlarging a saved chart. When an image size is changed by other software, the software has to guess at color changes, which blurs the image quality. Change the chart size within WISCO Survey(dragging the screen border, changing the width of the chart options tab pages) to create your finished image size.
Change Chart Type
Clicking the left and right arrows on the icon changes the displayed chart type. If the chart data is from a single series of data points, area, column, horizontal bar, line, pie, point charts, and data table are displayed. If the chart data is from a multiple series, 14 different chart types, and data table can be displayed in the cycle. Clicking the arrow buttons will not change a semantic differential chart to the other chart types. A pie chart can only display one numeric series at a time. If the chart data is from a multiple series, a pie chart is created for each data series.
Chart Options Tabs
The six tab pages (Background, Captions, Legend, Graph, Data, and Table) contain over 80 options or settings to modify the chart appearance. When the screen is first displayed, only two of the six tab pages are displayed. Clicking the left and right arrow keys located next to the tabs changes the displayed tabs. Clicking the tab changes the color of the tab, and displays the options available for the selected tab page. You can increase the number of visible tabs by dragging the right border of the tab pages.
Chart Number
The question types, and number of choices determine the total number of charts available. Data from multiple part questions can be used to create more than one chart per question. Some question types, for example text responses and memos, can not be charted. The number to the left indicates the question number. The number on the right indicates the total number of charts available for this set of survey responses. The left and right spinner arrows can be clicked to change the current chart (and related number) located in the middle of the spinner.
Save Default Chart Settings
This icon is visible when Design Menu - Default Chart Settings is selected. Clicking the icon saves the settings from all six Chart Options tabs. Data from Single Series, Multiple Series, and Cross-Tabulation charts require slight differences when they are displayed. Most chart features are identical. Some settings only apply to one chart type.
When charts are created with the Analysis Menu - Cross-Tabulation and Survey Charts selections, the saved default options are used. This file, WSurvey.cht is saved in the same folder with the current survey questions. If you did not save a custom chart template, the WISCO Survey default settings are used. You are also be able to modify the displayed charts before you copy, save, or print your final charts.
The Analysis Menu selections include the Chart Options tabs, so the default chart settings saved on with the Design Menu - Default Chart Settings screen can be modified for each chart. For example, you could decide your default chart would be a column chart. When your data is first charted, the default chart type (column) would be created. Then you could change the default chart type to a new chart type.