12/23/2014
Basic tasks in Visio
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Basic tasks in Visio
Visio gets you started making flow charts, floor plans, timelines, network diagrams, and many other kinds of drawings.
Each type has templates to get you going quickly, each with its own set of pre-made shapes. Just drag the shapes
onto the drawing page and connect them together to make professional-looking diagrams.
When you finish your drawing, you can save it in many different formats so you can use it to illustrate reports, or as a
reference file in PDF format, or as an updatable web page.
For more background about how Visio works, see A beginner's guide to Visio and Getting started with Visio.
Create a new diagram
1. Start Visio.
Right away, youll see templates you can use to start your diagram.
1. Double-click a template to start using it and start adding shapes to it.
Add a shape
Along the side of the drawing page is a panel, or window, named Shapes. The Shapes window contains one or more
Stencils, or sets of shapes, commonly used in the type of drawing youre creating.
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Basic tasks in Visio
1. In the Shapes window, click and hold the shape that you want.
2. Drag the shape onto the diagram page.
For more about how to use shapes and stencils, see Use the Shapes window to organize and find shapes.
Connect shapes
In some diagrams, like flowcharts, the shapes need to be connected so its easy to follow the path from shape to
shape. The quickest way to connect shapes is with the AutoConnect tool.
1. Hold the pointer over one of the shapes that you want to connect.
2. When the AutoConnect arrows
appears between the two shapes.
appear, drag one of them to the center of the other shape. A connector
Also, as you add shapes, use the AutoConnect arrows to instantly connect them.
1. Drag the new shape onto your drawing and hold it on top of the shape you want to connect it to, until the
AutoConnect arrows appear.
2. Drop the new shape on the AutoConnect arrow on the side where you want the shapes to connect. The new
shape appears on the drawing, connected to the other one.
For more about AutoConnect, see Connect shapes by using AutoConnect or the Connector tool.
Add text to shapes or to the page
1. Select a shape.
2. Type your text. When you start typing, Visio switches the selected shape to text editing mode.
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To add another line of text, press Enter.
3. Click an empty area of the page, or press Esc when youre finished.
Add text to the page
1. Click Home and then click the Text tool
2. Click an empty area of the page. A text box appears.
3. Type your text.
4. Click Home and then click Pointer Tool to stop using the Text tool.
The text box now has the characteristics of other shapes. You can select it and type to change the text, you can drag
it to another part of the page, and you can format the text by using the Font and Paragraph groups on the Home
tab.
For more details about text, see Add, edit, move, or rotate text on shapes and Add text to a page.
Polish your diagram design
Give your diagram a professional look by adding a background, a decorative title and border, colors, and effects.
Give your drawing a background
1. Click Design and then click Backgrounds.
2. Click a background. Your diagram gets a new background page (named VBackground-1 by default), which
you can see in the page tabs along the bottom of the diagramming area.
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Apply a border or title
1. Click Design > Borders & Titles and click the title style that you want.
2. Click a title style.
The title and border appear on the background page.
3. At the bottom of the diagramming area, click the VBackground-1 tab.
4. Click the title text. The entire border is selected, but when you start typing it changes the title text.
5. Type your title.
6. To edit other text in the border, first select the entire border, and then click the text you want to change and
start typing.
Apply a unified color scheme and other formatting effects
Once you have the basic elements in place, you can change the overall look and colors quickly by selecting a theme.
1. On the Design tab, hold your pointer over the various themes. The page takes the colors of the theme youre
pointing to, so you get a preview.
To see other available themes, click More
2. Click the theme you want to apply to the diagram.
Save a diagram
If the diagram has been saved before, just click Save in the Quick Access Toolbar.
If you want to save the diagram in a different place or with a different name, use Save As:
1. Click File and then click Save As.
2. Under Save As, click where you want to save the diagram for example, on your computer, online or on
OneDrive. Then click the folder that you want to save it in, or click Browse to find the folder that you want.
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3. If you want, in the Save As dialog box, give the diagram a different name in the File name box.
4. Click Save.
Save as an image file, PDF, or other format
1. Click File and then click Save As.
2. Under Save As, click where you want to save the diagram.
3. In the Save As dialog box, open the Save as type drop-down list.
4. Click the format you want. Some example formats include:
5. Standard image file
including JPG, PNG, and BMP formats.
6. Web page in HTM format. Image files and other resource files are saved in a subfolder of the location where
you save the HTM file.
7. PDF or XPS file
8. AutoCAD drawing
in DWG or DXF format.
Print your diagram
1. Click the File tab.
2. In the side bar, click Print.
3. Select the printer and other settings, and then click Print.
Beyond the basics
Go the beyond the basics with your diagrams by editing shapes, adding data to shapes, importing data from a data
source, and creating custom stencils.
Applies To: Visio 2013, Visio Professional 2013
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