You've already seen how to edit the metadata in previous chapters, and we'll cover dashboards and stories in detail in future chapters. So, we'll shift our attention to worksheet-level formatting.
Before we look at specifically how to adjust formatting, consider the following parts of a view related to formatting:
This view consists of the following parts, which can be formatted:
- Field labels for rows: Field labels can be formatted from the menu (Format | Field Labels...) or by right-clicking them in the view and selecting Format...) Additionally, you can hide field labels from the menu (Analysis | Table Layout and then uncheck the option for showing field labels) or by right-clicking them in the view and selecting the option to hide. You can use the Analysis | Table Layout option on the top menu to show them again, if needed.
- Field labels for columns: These have the same options as labels for rows, but they may be formatted or shown/hidden independently from the row-field labels.
- Row headers: These will follow the formatting of headers in general, unless you specify different formatting for headers for rows only. Notice that subtotals and grand have headers. The subtotal and grand-total headers marked a and b are the total row headers.
- Column headers: These will follow the formatting of headers in general, unless you specify different formatting for headers for the columns only. Notice that subtotals and grand totals have headers. The grand-total header marked in the preceding image is a column header.
- Pane: Many formatting options include the ability to format the pane differently than the headers.
- Grand totals (column) pane: This is the pane for grand totals that can be formatted at a sheet or column level.
- Grand totals (row) pane: This is the pane for grand totals that can be formatted at a sheet or row level.
Worksheet-level formatting is accomplished using the Format window, which will appear on the left side, in place of the data pane.
To view the format window, select Format from the menu and then Font, Alignment, Shading, Border, or Lines:
You can also right-click nearly any element in the view and select Format. This will open the format window specific to the context of the element you selected. Just be certain to verify that the title of the format window matches what you expect. When you make a change, you should see the view update immediately to reflect your formatting. If you don't, you are likely working in the wrong tab of the formatting window, or you may have formatted something at a lower level (for example, Rows), which overrides changes made at a higher level (for example, Sheet).
You should now see the format window on the left. It will look similar to this:
Notice these key aspects of the formatting window:
- The title of the window will give you the context for your formatting selections.
- The icons on the top match the selection options of the Format menu. This allows you to easily navigate through those options without returning to the menu each time.
- The three tabs: Sheet, Rows, and Columns, allow you to specify options at a sheet level and then override those options and defaults at a row and column level. For example, you could make the Row grand totals have different pane and header fonts than the Column grand totals (though this specific choice would likely be jarring, and is not recommended!)
- The Fields drop-down in the upper-right corner allows you to fine-tune formatting at the field level.
- Any changes that you make will be previewed and result in a bold label to indicate that the formatting option has been changed from the default (notice how the font for Header under Total has been customized earlier, resulting in the label text of Header being shown in bold).
The three options for clearing the format are as follows:
- Clear Single Option: In the format window, right-click the label or control of any single option you have changed and select Clear from the pop-up menu.
- Clear All Current Options: At the bottom of the format window, click the Clear button to clear all visible changes. This applies only to what you are currently seeing in the format window. For example: if you are viewing Shading on the Rows tab and click Clear, only the shading options on the Rows tab will be cleared.
- Clear Sheet: From the menu, select Worksheet | Clear | Formatting. You can also use the drop-down from the clear item on the toolbar. This clears all custom formatting on the current worksheet.
The other format options (such as alignment and shading) all work very similar to the font option. There are only a few subtleties to mention:
- Alignment includes options for horizontal and vertical alignment, text direction, and text wrapping.
- Shading includes an option for row and column banding. The banding allows for alternating patterns of shading that help to differentiate or group rows and columns. Light row banding is enabled by default for text tables, but it can be useful in other visualization types, such as horizontal bar charts as well. Row banding can be set to different levels that correspond to the number of discrete (blue) fields present on the rows or columns shelf.
- Borders refers to the borders drawn around cells, panes, and headers. It includes an option for row and column dividers. You can see in the view, the dividers between the departments. By default, the level of the borders is set based on the next-to-last field in the rows or columns.
- Lines refers to lines that are drawn on visualizations using an axis. This includes grid lines, reference lines, zero lines, and axis rulers. You can access a more complete set of options for reference lines and drop lines from the Format option of the menu.