I recently agreed to calculate the number of workdays between two dates in Visio, without realising how difficult it is. Excel users are lucky because it has the NETWORKDAYS() function, but Visio users are not so fortunate. However, Visio does have the EVALCELL function which can be extremely useful in cases like this. I got the inspiration from one of the answers in StackOverflow for a SQL user who also needed a solution.
Shape Design
Swapping Images in a Visio Shape
I often include images in Visio diagrams, and sometimes they are part of a group shape. There are times when I need to swap the image for another, and I want the correct width to height ratio for the new image to be applied, otherwise the image will be distorted. I recently realised that the Shape.ChangePicture() function in Visio actually returns this ratio which can then be applied to the shape cells so that the image is not distorted. Therefore I wrote some C# code (in LinqPad) to utilize this method to provide the option to change the image in a selected shape or sub-shape.
So, I wrote this function in C# to swap the image of the shape, and to apply the formulas to maintain its correct aspect ratio, even if the shape is subsequently resized.
What is the difference between a line and a [dynamic] connector in Visio?
When I have reviewed some of the criticisms of connecting shapes in Visio on the web, it has been clear that some users have a misunderstanding about lines and connectors. It is not surprising really because the Microsoft Visio help documentation does not currently make the distinction clear. A connector shape is used to connect two shapes together, whereas a line is normally just a straight line. As usual with Visio though, this is not the whole story because a line can be used to connect two shapes together, and it can be turned into a dynamic connector. I will try to explain myself in this article.
The normal way to connect two shapes together is to use the Connector tool (CTRL+3) on the Home / Tools ribbon, and a line is drawn with the Line (CTRL+6) drop-down menu in the same ribbon group.
Creating Visio Validation Rules for Graph Database template
Having developed Node and Edge/ Dynamic connector masters shapes for creating Node and Edge table entries for a SQL Server 2017, I decided that I should write some validation rules. The validation feature has been in Visio since the 2010 edition, but is underused, even though I wrote a book about them … see Microsoft Visio 2013 Business Process Diagramming and Validation . I think that only six rules are necessary to validate that a page with Node and Edge shapes is well constructed before attempting to update the tables in SQL Server, or any other GraphDatabase.
Using JSON text in Visio shapes
I often create Visio masters with a fixed number of Shape Data rows, and sometimes I get requests to modify them because of changes in business needs. Well, my previous posts about Graph Databases got me thinking if it would be possible to embed JSON text in Visio shapes in some sort of meaningful way. Then the user could enter just attribute-value pairs at will, without the need for me to modify their master shape. Alternatively, the data could be inserted into the shape from a database, such as SQL server. So, in this article I discuss the suitability of JSON text in Visio shapes.
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Aliasing Data Columns for Visio Organization Chart Wizard
One of the most frequently used components of Visio is the Organization Chart Wizard (OrgChWiz), but it is also one of the most frustrating because of its apparent inflexibility. I was recently asked how to use different table column names with the wizard because the originating ODBC source could not be touched. Well, I have previously used Access to modify and enhance tables in this situation, but the OrgChWiz is quite old, and does not like using the newer Access queries as a data source unfortunately. If the basic table column names do not match the default column names in the organization chart shapes, then there may be superfluous Shape Data rows created on each shape and the ability to change the shape style is compromised, and the Shape Data rows get quite confused!
The Organization Chart template opens with the Belts – Organization Chart Shapes stencil open by default, although the Master shapes used can be replaced with those on one of the other nine using the Org Chart / Shapes gallery: