xy scatter w/ arrows at axis ends instead of tick marks

[normajean]

I'm creating a cartesian coordinate system (maths) and want the ends of each axis to have an arrow (easy enough) but here's the tricky part - I also don't want there to be any tick mark at the very end of each axis.

Each axis must display integers (whole numbers from say -3 to 3) and there has to be a faint grid in the background. Basically like what's shown in the image below.

Also, is there any way to get just the zero label to sit a little to the left so it isn't behind the y axis?

 

[thisoldman]

It can be done; I don't know how much might be automated. I had to add two new series to provide faked gridlines and faked axis labels. I played with the chart size to get squares as the background grid: I didn't quite get it. I don't have time this morning to be a perfectionist.

The true x and y axes are formatted to have arrows, no tick marks and no labels. and the horizontal and vertical axis limits are fixed values. The true gridlines were deleted.

The pseudo-axes, X-series and Y-series have data labels and error bars. The error bars are colored gray to provide gridlines. The series data labels provide fill in for the missing true axis labels. Zero labels were deleted.

I waited to the last to format X-series and Y-series to have no markers and no lines—leaving just the error bars and data labels.

 

[thisoldman]

The spreadsheet I created is available at:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/30i67saa4ktvi97/cartesian_grid.xlsx?dl=0

 

[normajean]

Wow thanks for the superhuman effort there

Unfortunately I'm unable to get tick marks on the vertical axis, something I noticed you didn't have either. Also would be nice if the tick marks weren't "cross" but "inside" if you know what I mean.

 

[RoryA]

I made a few tweaks to thisoldman's version to get the tick labels and offset the 0 label: https://1drv.ms/x/s!AsDYl-5bgVQWgP8fmqJ85aCEpXKxwg

 

[normajean]

I made a few tweaks to thisoldman's version to get the tick labels and offset the 0 label: https://1drv.ms/x/s!AsDYl-5bgVQWgP8fmqJ85aCEpXKxwg

Thank you so much!!! My xy plot is looking awesome now.

Can we fine tune it a bit? i.e. is it possible to:

- remove the -2 on the horizontal axis?
- remove the -4 on the vertical axis?

And also:

- replace the last value on the horizontal axis (i.e. 5) with x?
- replace the last value on the vertical axis (i.e. 3) with y? The y would have to be moved down slightly so it doesn't cross the highest horizontal grid line.

If I could get this then it would essentially be perfect.

 

[normajean]

UPDATE!!!!: I just realised the x and y has to be in a different font to that of the numbers. Not sure if this is possible using custom number format coding. Maybe I will have to resort to text boxes (or data labels?) - in which case I would just need the first and last numbers of each axis to be removed (while still keeping the zero on the horizontal axis slightly to the left so it isn't behind the vertical axis).

 

[RoryA]

Do you mean remove the labels for -2 and -4 or change the axies' scales?

 

[normajean]

Do you mean remove the labels for -2 and -4 or change the axies' scales?

Remove the labels. Sorry wasn't clear

 

[thisoldman]

Something like this? I'm assuming you want this for print or electronic publication.

I tried with Excel for about an hour before I went to vector graphics software. I copied the Excel graph as a picture and pasted it into Inkscape. The result of my Inkscape efforts, as a png file, is at https://www.dropbox.com/s/ayvjl6sdma38q90/cartesian_grid.png?dl=0. The png is a large image. I reduced the size and converted it to jpeg with Irfanview, for viewing in the forum.

I easily forget which fonts are native to Windows and MSOffice. I used Cambria italic for the axes' labels.