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Excel Graphics, Shapes WordArt and Text Boxes

Excel has extensive tools for drawing graphic objects. Graphic objects can be functional: You can assign a macro to a graphic object and run the macro by clicking the object.

You can draw and insert objects in worksheets and in embedded charts and chart sheets.

Shapes
You can add interesting shapes to a document. A shape can contain words; it is the only art object in which the words can come from a cell on the worksheet. You can add glow, bevel, and 3-D effects to shapes. In previous versions of Excel, shapes were known as AutoShapes. Microsoft has added some new shapes as well as several formatting properties.

WordArt You use WordArt to present ordinary text it in a stylized manner. You can use it to bend, rotate, and twist the characters in text. In Excel 2007, you can add glow, bevel, and material effects. WordArt has been completely redesigned from previous versions of Excel.

Text boxes
You use a text box to allow text to flow in a defined area. This feature is excellent if you need to include paragraphs of body copy in a worksheet. A new feature in Excel 2007 is the ability to have text flow through multiple columns in a single text box.

Clip Art
Clip art graphics are usually cartoonish, themed pictures (like a stack of dollar bills or a drawing of a globe). While you probably don't need this stuff in most worksheets, Excel's clip art features are still quite impressive. Instead of limiting you to a small selection of preinstalled image files, Excel lets you search an online collection of thousands of images using subject keywords.