A GUIDE TO THE LATEST FEATURES OF MEKKO GRAPHICS · MEKKO GRAPHICS FEATURE OVERVIEW 1 WHAT’S NEW If you are a seasoned user of Mekko Graphics, you will find many advances and enhancements

A GUIDE TO THE LATEST FEATURES OF MEKKO GRAPHICS

MEKKO GRAPHICS FEATURE OVERVIEW 1

WHAT’S NEW If you are a seasoned user of Mekko Graphics, you will find many advances and enhancements in our latest version.

We’ve completely redesigned our user interface and rebuilt Mekko Graphics from the ground up to better meet the needs of our users. The result is that Mekko

Graphics is more fully embedded in PowerPoint with even more all-in-one integration with standard PowerPoint functionality.

Our new user interface was built with speed and efficiency in mind. Context-sensitive functions are available on the right click, with floater menus built

specifically to the way you work. A new Chart Editing toolbar has been added to PowerPoint that allows you to make all your edits directly in PowerPoint without launching a separate Mekko Graphics application. Below is a list of all the new

features of our latest version. This document will provide information on the features new to this version.

Direct manipulation of chart objects in PowerPoint New chart editing toolbar and context-sensitive right click chart menus

Multi- and Half-page quick launch chart layout options Faster chart editing

Greater flexibility with chart margins Support for reverse data row order File path for Export to Excel

Ability to email Mekko support and visit Mekko website directly from Mekko Graphics

Improved Installation and Activation process

CREATING A CHART: A BRIEF OVERVIEW Mekko Graphics uses the Quick Launch method for inserting charts on a slide.

From Microsoft PowerPoint™, go to the Mekko Graphics menu, and choose from the seven drop down menus for your desired chart type. (For more information on

the chart types and subtypes, hovering your mouse over the chart type will display a brief description of the chart).

Note – if you wish to insert multiple or half page charts on a slide, you can utilize the Insert Multiple Charts option.


Your chart(s) will automatically appear in PowerPoint with prepopulated data, which you can easily replace with your own data. The "dummy data" that populates the chart allows you to quickly see how the chart utilizes the data. To enter your data,

double click anywhere in the chart area or right click the chart and choose Edit Chart Data.

Enter data for your chart in our Data View. Once you have entered your data, close the Data View screen.


Formatting your chart is likely where you will spend the majority of your time. You have several chart, series, segment, bar, axis, and label formatting options,

accessible through toolbars and menus right in PowerPoint. Activate your chart for editing simply by clicking on it. Once you activate it, the

Edit Chart tab will automatically display in PowerPoint (in MS Office 2007 you must click on the Edit Chart tab under Picture Tools).

Right clicking anywhere in the chart area will display the right click chart formatting menu.


Right click on a segment or label in your chart, and a context-sensitive menu will

appear, allowing you to format the selected series, segment or label.

Right clicking on the axis will display a context-sensitive menu, allowing you to

format your axis.


Format your series, segments, labels, and axes until you are satisfied with the look

of your chart. Then simply click off the chart to save all your changes. For more detailed training on creating charts, visit our website for the latest webinar information or contact us at [email protected]

EDIT CHART TAB: IN DETAIL The Edit Chart tab brings all your favorite Mekko Graphics functions right into

PowerPoint. Below is a list and description of all the functions available in our Edit Chart tab.

Function Description

The Type button allows you to convert your chart

to any of other Mekko Graphics charts.

The Color icon allows you to choose your chart color style: Multicolor, black and white, No Shading or one of our color shade options

Apply PM Settings applies the settings you have defined in the Preference Manager to the selected

chart.

The Chart Data button opens your data view,

allowing you to edit or add data to your chart.

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Link to Excel allows you to import data from

Microsoft Excel™ into Mekko Graphics. This feature is used in the event where you have a fixed chart that points to a changing data source

(for instance, a weekly sales report) which allows you to simply replace the data source and refresh

your chart, rather than repeatedly copy and paste new data each time the chart needs an update. Once a link has been made, Mekko Graphics will

remember the Excel range that was used so that future updates can be made.

The Margins button allows you to customize the look of your chart by adjusting the boundaries of various chart components. The top button allows

you to view your margins and drag and drop to adjust. The bottom button will reset your margins

to their default positions.

The Chart button opens a dialog box that includes

formatting options that affect the entire chart (not specific series, segments, or bars).

The Axes button opens a dialog box allowing you

to change the appearance of your axes in Mekko Graphics by hiding axis labels, titles, tick marks,

or the entire axis itself.

The Bars button opens a dialog box that includes formatting options that affect the bars in your chart. These include hiding bars, sorting bars,

designating bars as data columns or CAGRs, and more.

The Values button opens a dialog box that allows

you to set your Number format for all the different types of values in your chart, such as series

values, bar totals, axis labels, etc.



The Show Labels button allows you to customize which labels are displayed on your chart, and how they are displayed.

The Legend button provides the ability to display a legend, and provides flexibility in the placement

and look of your legend.

The Label Manager button launches the Mekko Graphics Label Manager, which lists the status of

every label in your chart giving you maximum control over the placement of each label.

The Label Placement button allows you to

perform selection and restorative actions on user-modified labels. Fit test functions allow you to re-

evaluate and re-draw the chart each time a change is made to the chart, making modifications to the label size based on the number of labels in

the chart.



These buttons appear on select chart types in

Mekko Graphics where they are applicable.

The Full Editor button launches the full Mekko Graphics chart editor (replicating the Mekko Graphics 5 legacy chart editor), providing you

with a Mekko Graphics 5 user experience.

The Close Chart Editor button exits you from

chart editing mode but keeps the chart selected as an object, allowing you to perform PowerPoint actions on the chart (i.e. copying or moving the

chart object).

CHART RIGHT-CLICK AND FLOATING TOOLBAR: IN DETAIL

You can right-click anywhere on the chart area to make quick global edits to the entire chart, like color scheme, margins, bar totals, sorts, legends, and more.


RIGHT CLICK IN THE CHART AREA TO MAKE GLOBAL CHANGES TO YOUR CHART

Below is a description of the right-click floating menu.


You can also access the below right-click menu functions, allowing you to cut or copy your chart and paste it in other documents, access your chart data, open the

Label Manager, and quickly perform various actions to the labels on your chart. You can also change the chart type to view the way different chart types display your

data.


SEGMENT/LABEL RIGHT-CLICK AND FLOATING TOOLBAR: IN DETAIL You can right-click on any segment or label in your chart, and a context-sensitive

menu will appear, allowing you to format the selected series, segment or label.

RIGHT CLICK A SEGMENT OR LABEL TO FORMAT SELECTED SERIES, SEGMENT OR LABEL

Below is a description of the right-click floating menu buttons.


AXIS RIGHT-CLICK AND FLOATING TOOLBAR: IN DETAIL You can right-click on any axis in your chart, and a context-sensitive menu will

appear, allowing you to format the selected axis or axis label.

Below is a description of the right-click floating menu buttons.

OTHER NEW FEATURES

Chart Margin Flexibility

Now you have much greater control over the margins in your chart, and you can now set those default margins using the Preference Manager. Need extra room for multiple data rows, or a narrower left margin? Or a horizontal legend? Create the look that best fits your needs. Launch the Preference Manager from the Mekko

Graphics tab in PowerPoint.


Navigate to the Settings tab and choose Show All.

From here, you may adjust the margins to the desired positions.


Reverse Data Row Order We’ve added the ability to reverse the display order of data rows for those charts

containing multiple data rows on the chart. To do this, click the Series button in the Edit Chart toolbar and navigate to the Hide/Show Data Row tab.


File Path for Export to Excel

You can now designate the file path when you export charts to an Excel spreadsheet. To do this, click the Export Charts to Excel button in the Mekko

Graphics toolbar.

From here, designate the location where you wish to export the data.

Email and Web Support from Mekko Graphics

Have a question or need information? Just visit our website for the latest on product information, blog posts, or training, or join the conversation in our Mekko Graphics

Community Forum. For questions or problems, click Email Support to send your question or issue to our highly knowledgeable Mekko Customer Support experts or click Visit Website to get the latest information on the product.


Improved Installation and Activation Process

We’ve improved our installation and activation process to make it even easier to get up and running quickly. If you have Mekko Graphics 5 installed on your machine,

there is no longer any need to uninstall prior to installing the new version. Activation is faster and easier too.

Documents

A GUIDE TO THE LATEST FEATURES OF MEKKO GRAPHICS · MEKKO GRAPHICS FEATURE OVERVIEW 1 WHAT’S NEW If you are a seasoned user of Mekko Graphics, you will find many advances and enhancements