ActiveChart

When people think of corporate business meetings, the first image that comes to mind is some type of chart (and probably a guy in a suit pointing towards it). But the chart is the key visual element here; for the uninitiated, it will appear as a very complex graphical composition that took a lot of time to make. But the truth is that, with today’s software, the hardest part of the process is probably getting all the data right.

There are many graphical tools which you can use to make charts, and ActiveChart is one of them.

First, ActiveChart will let you select what type of chart you want to create. There are seven possible templates, from the very simple bar chart to a more complex point chart. To generate visualizations, you simply add an item, name it, add its value, choose a color that's different than the default gray (if you want to) and then move to the next item.

There are other graphical elements you can customize; for example, a line chart can be made to look pointy or curvy, while a bar chart can also be displayed horizontally. And, naturally, you can play with the colors as much as you want.

But you have to remember that we’re talking about a free app here, so don’t get too excited about other possibilities.

One of ActiveChart’s biggest drawbacks is that, even though its official website clearly states that the charts can be saved as images, it seems that the developers forgot to implement this function. Right now you can only save your charts as HTML files. This may certainly be useful for web designers, but it also means that the tool probably won’t be used a lot in business meetings.

Besides, the chart variables can’t really be customized beyond a few graphical tweaks. ActiveChart looks great and is easy to use, but at this point, it’s only a fun tool compared to other paid or even free chart generating software that you can find online.