Overview

• The Gnumeric Manual, version 1.12
• Graphics: Images, Widgets, and Drawings

Gnumeric provides several types of graphical elements which can be added to a worksheet. The creation, manipulation and deletion of these elements all occur in similar ways. When these elements are part of a worksheet, they all "float" above the cell grid, possibly hiding data in the cells underneath.

Gnumeric currently displays four different types of graphical elements: data graphs, images, widgets, and drawings. Data graphs allow users to present worksheet data visually in charts containing several kinds of plots including pie plots, bar and column plots, and scatterplots. Images in many standard computer formats can be added to a worksheet. Graphical user interface widgets can also be added to a worksheet and connected to the values contained in worksheet cells. Drawings allow users to add simple graphical elements on top of a worksheet including lines, arrows and simple polygons.

Figure 9-1  The four types of graphical elements.

The four types of graphical elements which can be added to a worksheet: a data graph with a column plot, an image showing a map of France, a scrollbar which can be used to alter the value in cell "I6", and a red arrow drawing element.

The various graphical elements which can be added to a Gnumeric worksheet all behave in similar ways. The graphical elements all "float" above the cells in the cell grid and may obscure the contents of the cells behind, without affecting the contents of these hidden cells. All graphical elements are added in essentially the same way by selecting the element to add and then using the mouse, either with a simple click to place the element with a default size or with a click and drag to select the area of the worksheet to be covered by the element. These objects are moved or re-sized by clicking on the object with the primary mouse button and using the object body, border and "handles" (the small circles which appear at the corners and in the middle of each side) to manipulate the object. All of these objects will present a context menu through which to change the properties of the object, to save the object as an image, to change the stacking order (which graphical elements are in front of others), or to delete the object. Each of these operations will be summarized below and then explained in greater detail in the sections which follow.