2. Enter or import data

Prism's formatted data tables

From your choices on the Welcome dialog, Prism will create a data table that is formatted specifically for your data. In the previous step, you told Prism to make a data table for an XY graph with triplicate data values. Prism, therefore, has created a data table with one column for X values and data columns that are each divided into three subcolumns for your triplicates.

Try it yourself

By selecting the sample data in Step 1, your data table should look like the one below (with subcolumns for triplicate data). Note that it's OK to have some empty cells. Prism knows how to handle missing data points. You can always click on the "Table format" button in the upper left corner to change the type of table or number of subcolumns.

Note also, that the sample data has a floating note attached that explains how this specific data set is organized and what you'll need to analyze it. You can minimize the note by clicking on the upper-right corner. (Floating notes are a new feature in Prism 5. You can add your own notes to any Prism sheet.)

You can also enter or Import data

In the future, you probably won't want to start with sample data. You can either enter your data directly into the Prism data table, import it from an Excel or text file, or copy and paste from an Excel spreadsheet. To import data, click on the "Import" button on the Prism toolbar and browse to the file you'd like to import. As part of the import or copy and paste process, you can filter data, transpose columns to rows, or specify which rows and columns to import and which to skip. If you are using Prism for Windows, you also can choose whether to import data values only, or to embed or link to the original data source.

Next step

Once you've entered your data in the data table, Prism will automatically create your graph.