Import Excel charts/graphs into Affinity Pub 2?

[kat]

Is there a way to Import Excel charts/graphs into Affinity Pub 2, exactly as chart appear in Excel? All I found was that you had to import a CSV.

[firstdefence]

You should be able to place the xlsx or xls file into publisher. File > Place...

[kat]

I've got data and 3 charts on 1 Excel sheet. What to do please?

[firstdefence]

Doesn't look like the chart will import, I've just tried and only the table is brought in, only other way is to take a screenshot and paste it Drag it into the document into the publisher document.

[bbrother]

15 minutes ago, firstdefence said:

only other way is to take a screenshot and paste it into the publisher document

That's not quite the case. There is also another solution @firstdefence

If you have Excel 2007 or later place the chart on separate sheet and save that sheet as PDF using Save As command.

Keep in mind tht If a chart is selected, Excel will produce a PDF with only this chart on the page. The chart will be rather large. If you have nothing (or rather, just a single cell on the spreadsheet) selected, Excel will produce a PDF of the entire spreadsheet, and the size of the chart will be preserved.

Once you have the PDF file, you can open it and edit it in Affinity Designer. You can select the chart and export it to any raster file from that PDF in Affinity Designer or simply copy and paste it as a vector into Affinity Publisher.

[GaryLearnTech]

Single-click your chart in Excel, so the chart alone is selected.

Copy

Return to Publisher.

Paste

The same approach works well for tables too (though you can't single-click a table to select it all in a single action).

(You will probably want to resize the the pasted object in Publisher, so perhaps paste onto a blank page initially, select the result and scale to size, then move or cut/paste onto the intended final page - assuming there's already other content present.)

chart.afpub Book1.xlsx

[kat]

9 minutes ago, GaryLearnTech said:

Single-click your chart in Excel, so the chart alone is selected.

Copy

Return to Publisher.

Paste

The same approach works well for tables too (though you can't single-click a table to select it all in a single action).

(You will probably want to resize the the pasted object in Publisher, so perhaps paste onto a blank page initially, select the result and scale to size, then move or cut/paste onto the intended final page - assuming there's already other content present.)

chart.afpub 46.79 kB · 0 downloads Book1.xlsx 16.65 kB · 0 downloads

Lovely!

1 more Q. Why can't I select little columns to more the closer to tall columns.

[firstdefence]

8 hours ago, kat said:

1 more Q. Why can't I select little columns to more the closer to tall columns.

Well, I'm learning stuff from this post aren't I, thank you @GaryLearnTech & @bbrother

With regards to this question, it looks like you have the node tool selected (A), and the reason the small columns aren't moving will likely be because none of the actual nodes are selected. If you keep with the node tool (A) try selecting all of the nodes and then dragging or nudging the columns into a closer proximity with the taller columns.

Alternatively select the move tool (V) and then drag or nudge the small columns.

When I copy/paste a chart into Affinity Publisher v2 my columns come in as rectangles, maybe that because I have a newer version?

[kat]

I'm watching a great Excel for Mac class series. Think I'll stick to Excel on the chart instead of mucking things up in APub or Ad. Thanks for all the help.

 

[GaryLearnTech]

11 hours ago, firstdefence said:

When I copy/paste a chart into Affinity Publisher v2 my columns come in as rectangles, maybe that because I have a newer version?

Curious…  Is it definitely the columns from your chart that are rectangles, @firstdefence?  The columns in my demo (corresponding to the data series "Value 1") were a single curve, just like in @kat's screenshot.  I'm using the current/latest version of Excel 365.

Once pasted into Publisher, there were just three rectangles:

• the outer frame (the topmost layer with a grey stroke and no fill), 
• the blue rectangle in the "legend" - left of centre at the bottom - adjacent to the the text "Value 1".
• the background (the bottom layer, same size as the outer frame, no stroke, white fill).

There would be more legend rectangles if there had been more data series charted as columns (or, presumably, as bars).

Everything else is either Curve or Art Text layers.

[firstdefence]

Yes they came in as Rectangles...

[GaryLearnTech]

Curious - ladies and gentlemen, we have a new mystery! 😀  

Probably something subtly different in how the chart was created in Excel, affecting the data that Microsoft packs into the Copy.  The good news(?) is that when I tried that same Excel template, I get rectangles just like you did, so there is consistency there.

[kat]

Org Chart in Excel for Mac>SmartArt>Org chart>text panel>copy cells' text>paste into text panel.
This allows me to put all text in all shapes simultaneously.

I could duplicate shapes in AD, but then would have to put text in each shape (or on top or behind) one by one.
Anyway to speed this up in AD?

[kat]

Does importing/copying Mac Numbers charts work better then Excel charts?

[Oufti]

On 6/4/2024 at 7:42 PM, kat said:

Does importing/copying Mac Numbers charts work better then Excel charts?

I can't compare to Excel, which I don't use nor own, but this way is simple and seems foolproof:

1. In Numbers, select the chart 
2. Right-click > Copy as PDF (=Copier au format PDF)
3. In Apple Preview, File > Create from the clipboard
4. Save as in PDF
5. In Affinity, Place the newly created PDF file

(If I try to skip steps 3–4 and paste the PDF copy directly from Numbers to Affinity, title and legend font sizes are oversized and some elements misplaced.)

[Old Bruce]

@Oufti, I have been using Numbers for years and never noticed that Copy as PDF in the right click menu. Thanks for teaching me something.

[Oufti]

Numbers uses many of Apple's UI tricks. Contextual menus are one of them and they really differ according to the context, so there are many commands that remain ignored until you just suppose it must exist and you find it under your mouse because it is adapted right to this moment, with that object…

I looked first if I could export only the selection. No. — Exporting is always for the whole document. 
Thus I came back to my selected chart and right-click to see if there was some export option: I found this Copy as PDF, which I used long time ago, forgot and found back when I needed it now… 

[kat]

2 hours ago, Oufti said:

I can't compare to Excel, which I don't use nor own, but this way is simple and seems foolproof:

1. In Numbers, select the chart 
2. Right-click > Copy as PDF (=Copier au format PDF)
3. In Apple Preview, File > Create from the clipboard
4. Save as in PDF
5. In Affinity, Place the newly created PDF file

(If I try to skip steps 3–4 and paste the PDF copy directly from Numbers to Affinity, title and legend font sizes are oversized and some elements misplaced.)

Clarification please, I need to OPEN Apple Preview>file>Create from clipboard>Save As>pdf? 
I've never used Numbers, but sounds like a good idea to learn it. Thanks @Oufti

[Oufti]

5 hours ago, kat said:

Clarification please, I need to OPEN Apple Preview>file>Create from clipboard>Save As>pdf? 

Yes. When I say "In this or that program", it implies you launch the program (open it if you prefer) and bring it to the front, so you can use its menus and commands.