Microsoft Visio is popular diagramming software used by millions of people worldwide. Although it is so popular many people are not aware of just how versatile it can be, and how many uses it can be put to. In this brief overview I will try to explain what the main features of the interface are and how to familiarise yourself with Visio 2007 which introduced some new and very clever features when it was launched.
To get started with Visio, select a template for the type of diagram or drawing you want from the Getting started page and click "Create". When the drawing opens, the first screen you see is the default for the type of drawing you are creating. Across the top of the screen is the title bar underneath which are the menu bar and two toolbars.
These should be familiar to anyone who is used to using other Microsoft Office products. To the left of the screen a vertical task pane is shown - this is called the Shapes window and contains Stencils that hold all the shapes necessary in order to create a drawing type you have chosen.
Menu Bar
Visio's main menu bar features the familiar File, Edit, View and Insert items, but also has Tools, Data, Shape, Window and Help items some of which may not be familiar to new users. The Standard toolbar immediately beneath the menu contains some buttons that may also be new to some people. They are situated to the right of the Undo and Redo buttons and are shown below:
Main Drawing area
The main body of the Visio window contains the drawing page itself which is probably overlaid with a grid pattern, and is surrounded by a grey pasteboard area. Vertical and horizontal scrollbars appear to the right and underneath this window.
Page Tabs and Page Navigation
To the left of the horizontal scrollbar is a page tab which by default only shows Page-1, and to the left of this are buttons to navigate through additional pages if these are present.
Status Bar
Just above the Windows task pane, at the very bottom of the Visio window is a Status bar which is probably blank but which will contain the page number and the number of pages on the right.
Rulers
To the left of the main drawing window and across the top are two rulers. The units of measurement used to calibrate these rulers can be changed by going to file page setup and clicking on the page properties tab. The third window in this dialogue box allows the units to be changed any of the defaults, and the settings are reflected in the rulers units of measurement.
The rulers can be turned off and on again from the View menu, as can many other graphical properties including the other Toolbars, the Size & Position window, the Shape Data window and the Pan & Zoom window.
About the author
David Millard is a
Microsoft Certified Trainer based in the UK. He holds a degree in
Education and is a college tutor in the south of England. He is also a
web developer and publisher, and the proprietor of Visio Tutorial http://www.visio-tutorial.com
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