Bar Content Layout Settings

Your timeline's Bar Content Layout determines how an event's name and details are positioned relative to its bar.

To change it, click the Appearance button above your timeline, open the Events section, then pick a Bar Content Layout option.

A quick note on terminology:

• A bar is an event with both a start and end date
• An instant is an event with only a start date
• An event's details are its dates, duration, and % complete. The Content Visibility appearance settings control which of these appear on your timeline.

Bar Content Layout options

There are five options:

Automatic

With this layout, Preceden will:

1. Try placing the name in the bar with the details to the right of the name (example: Website Development)
2. If the details don't fit to the right of the name, try placing the name inside the bar with the details below the name (example: Final Changes)
3. Otherwise, place the name to the right of the bar with the details below the name (example: Employee Video Profile)

For an event with no details showing, the choice is simpler: the name goes inside the bar if it fits and to the right of the bar if it doesn't.

This is the default layout for new timelines.

Name and details inside

With this layout, Preceden will:

1. Try placing the name in the bar with the details to the right of the name (example: Website Development)
2. Otherwise, place the name in the bar with the details below the name. If the name or details don't fit inside the bar, they are shortened with an ellipsis (example: Employee Video Profile, Final Changes)

Name and details right

With this layout, Preceden always places the name to the right of the bar, with the details below the name.

Name inside, details right

With this layout, Preceden always places the name inside the bar, shortening it with an ellipsis if needed, and the details to the right of the bar.

Name inside, details below

With this layout, Preceden always places the name inside the bar, shortening it with an ellipsis if needed, and the details below the bar. The details are centered under the bar, or start at its left edge when they are wider than the bar.

Gantt chart timelines

With the Gantt chart layout, event names are listed on the left side of the timeline instead of on the bars, so this setting only controls where each event's details appear. New Gantt charts start with Name and details right, which places the details to the right of each bar.

How to choose

A few guidelines:

• If you want every event name and its details shown in full, never shortened with an ellipsis, use Automatic or Name and details right.
• If you want the layout to be consistent with instants (which always have the name to the right of the icon), use Name and details right.
• If you drag events up and down to reposition them and need bars sitting side by side, use Name and details inside: it lets two bars share a row whenever their dates don't overlap.
• If you want the most compact timeline, avoid Name inside, details below. It is the only layout that adds a line under each bar for the details, so every row of events takes up more height.