Inserting a Cartesian Graph

A Cartesian graph is a graph on a two-dimensional plane with a horizontal (x)  and a vertical (y) axis. Points are represented by an ordered pair (x, y), where x is the horizontal distance from a point to the origin and y is the vertical distance from a point to the origin. Below is an example of the graph for y = x +1.

   Graph of a linear equation. The image shows a coordinate plane with a labeled x and y axis. The y-axis goes from -10 to 10 and the x-axis goes from -10 to 10. There is a line graphed that intersects the x-axis at (-1, 0) and the y-axis at (0, 1).

To insert a Cartesian graph:

  1. Position the cursor at the location where you want to insert the Cartesian graph.

  2. On the Insert menu, click Graph and then click Insert Cartesian Graph. The Cartesian Graph dialog box opens.

  3. Enter the Width of the graph in inches.

    Note: The maximum width is 8 inches. The value can include decimals.

  4. Enter the Height of the graph in inches.

    Note: The maximum height is 8 inches. The value can include decimals.

  5. Enter the Title for the X-Axis and Y-Axis.

    Note: You can format the text using HTML text.

  6. By default, the axis titles are top-aligned (y-axis), right-aligned (x-axis), and italicized. You can use the Center Title and Italicize Title check boxes change these defaults.

  7. Enter the starting and ending points for the x- and y-axes in the corresponding Begin and End fields.

  8. Select a Color for the x-axis and y-axis.

  9. Select a color from the Grid Line Color list to display grid lines.

  10. For each axis, enter a value in the Interval to set the scale between major tick marks. If you do not specify an Interval, the  system will select an interval.  

    Note: The maximum number of major tick marks is 50 along the entire length of the axis. For example, suppose the range of the x-axis is -50 to 50 (a span of 100 units). If you set the Interval to 2 (i.e., ticks at 2, 4, 6, etc.), the axis will have 25 major ticks in both the positive and negative part of the axis, for a total of 50 major ticks (100/2). If you set the Interval to 1 (i.e., ticks at 1, 2, 3, etc.), you will not see any additional major ticks because that interval would produce 100 ticks (100/1).

  11. Enter the number of tick marks to display between the major tick marks in the Minor Tick Count.

    Note: The maximum number of minor ticks is 100 along the entire length of the axis. For example, if you have an axis that runs from 0 to 20, you could enter up to 5 in the Minor Tick Count field (20 x 5).

  12. By default, each axis shows the axis lines, end arrows, tick marks, and tick-mark labels. You can choose to show or hide these using the Show Line, Show Arrows, Show Major Tick Marks, and Show Labels check boxes.  

  13. Click Add to add a layer to the graph. You can any of the following as a layer:

    Circle
    Ellipse
    f(x)
    f(y)
    Hyperbola
    Intersection
    Normal Curve
    Parabola
    Parametric
    Point
    Polynomial
    Segment
    Shape
    Text

  14. Use the Up and Down buttons to control the arrangement of the layers.

  15. To make a copy of an existing layer, select the layer and then click Duplicate.

  16. Click OK to insert the graph.