Small Multiples with Common Scale

[rockfalls3]

I am working on a display of small multiples (Tufte-style collection
of many small graphics,
derived from data in a worksheet). Each of the graphics (charts) uses
a logarithmic scale.

I would like to create a worksheet that displays a collection of small
line graphics, with a
logarithmic scale dependent on the max and min values of the data set
(two rows of data
per chart, 4 values per row), and the background color of each line
graph chart set to one of
three possible colors, depending on those max and min values. For
instance, for data that
ranges from 0 up to 1000, a light blue background; for data ranging
from 1001 to 100,000,
a light yellow background, and anything larger than 100,001 getting a
light tan background.
Line thickness, dot size, and colors of lines and dots would be
consistent from chart to chart.

I've created this sort of display "manually", but the data will be
updated several times before
the final version is due, so I'd like to automate as much as possible.

Now here's an additional issue: when generating the charts manually,
the size of the charts
and the distance between lines of the logarithmic "Y" scale are not
consistent from chart to
chart.

So....

Two questions:
1) How do I generate a series of small multiples like this?
2) If I need to do some manual work to get this going, is there some
way to at least generate
charts with consistent sizes and consistent distances between
lines of the logarithmic "Y"
scales?

Many thanks for help.

 

[Jon Peltier]

It's a lot of work, a lot of formulas, but well worth it.

I do a fair number of these displays. Here's my latest (scroll down):
http://peltiertech.com/WordPress/2008/07/21/re-abortion-ratios-1980-2003/

Here are a couple examples I've explained:
http://peltiertech.com/Excel/ChartsHowTo/PanelUnevenScales.html
http://peltiertech.com/Excel/ChartsHowTo/PanelChart1.html

- Jon

 

[Kelly O'Day]

rockfalls3

Here's a link to my page on small multiple charts in Excel. I call them
panel charts.

http://processtrends.com/toc_panel_charts.htm

I have example workbooks for horizontal and vertical charts. I also have an
automated monthly cycle chart workbook that uses VBA to prepare the cycle
chart for you. You may want to study it to see how to organize your data and
use VBA.

http://processtrends.com/pg_charts_monthly_cycle_chart.htm

If you are really serious about small multiple - panel charts, I suggest you
look at the my video on creating full trellis charts, small multiples in
both horizontal and vertical direction.

http://processtrends.com/TOC_R.htm

If you scroll down to the video link, you will see a demo of my full trellis
charting with Excel VBA and an introduction to the R.

Trellis charts are very simple in R, it takes just one statement to specify
a complex, two dimension trellis chart.

Kelly

http://processtrends.com