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01 Getting To Know Microsoft Visio

Microsoft Visio 2010 is a graphical and drawing application that helps visualize and communicate complex information. It transforms hard-to-understand text and tables into easy-to-understand diagrams. Visio provides modern shapes and templates for a variety of diagramming needs, such as IT management, process modeling, and project management. The document provides instructions on how to start Visio, create a new drawing from a template, and understand the key areas of the Visio screen including the Ribbon, drawing page, and shapes window.

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Zdravko GRZETIC
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
28 views20 pages

01 Getting To Know Microsoft Visio

Microsoft Visio 2010 is a graphical and drawing application that helps visualize and communicate complex information. It transforms hard-to-understand text and tables into easy-to-understand diagrams. Visio provides modern shapes and templates for a variety of diagramming needs, such as IT management, process modeling, and project management. The document provides instructions on how to start Visio, create a new drawing from a template, and understand the key areas of the Visio screen including the Ribbon, drawing page, and shapes window.

Uploaded by

Zdravko GRZETIC
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

CHAPTER 1 GETTING TO KNOW MICROSOFT VISIO


INFOCUS

WPL_V501

Microsoft Visio 2010 is a graphical and drawing application that


helps you to visualise and communicate complex information. With
Visio, you can transform complicated text and tables that are hard
to understand into Visio diagrams that communicate information at
a glance.
Visio provides modern shapes and templates for a diverse range of
diagramming needs, such as IT management, process modelling,
building and architecture, user interface design, human resource
management, project management, and more.

In this session you will:

 learn how to start Microsoft Visio 2010


 learn how to create a blank drawing from a template
 gain an understanding of the Visio screen
 gain an understanding of how Microsoft Visio 2010
works
 learn how to use the Ribbon
 learn how to use the keytip badges on the ribbon
 learn how to minimise the ribbon
 gain an understanding of Backstage View in Microsoft
Visio
 learn how to access the Backstage View
 learn how to use shortcut menus
 gain an understanding of how dialog boxes work
 learn how to launch a dialog box
 gain an understanding of the Quick Access Toolbar
 learn how to add commands to the Quick Access
Toolbar
 gain an understanding of the status bar
 learn how to customise the status bar
 learn how to save a new drawing
 learn how to exit correctly and safely from Microsoft
Visio 2010.

© Watsonia Publishing Page 1 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

STARTING VISIO
To create a new drawing or to edit an existing the Windows Start menu, from a shortcut or even
one, the first thing you need to do is to start directly from a drawing itself by clicking on a
Microsoft Visio 2010. There are several ways of drawing icon. We’ll use the Start menu in this
doing this. For instance, you can start Visio from exercise.

Try This Yourself:


Before you begin, ensure that
your computer is switched on
and that the Windows desktop
is displayed on your screen…

 Click on the Windows Start


button at the bottom left-hand
corner of the screen to display
the menu
It’s a round button with the
Windows logo...

 Click on All Programs


2

 Click on Microsoft Office

 Click on Microsoft Visio 2010 1

After a moment the Backstage


view will open in Visio ready
for you to either create a new
diagram or open an existing
diagram

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To start Microsoft Visio: You can also start Visio by:
1. Click on the Windows Start button  Double-clicking on a Visio shortcut
2. Click on All Programs  Double-clicking on a drawing file icon in a file
3. Click on Microsoft Office listing
4. Click on Microsoft Visio 2010  Choosing a drawing from the Recent list on
the Start menu.

© Watsonia Publishing Page 2 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

CREATING A NEW DRAWING FROM A TEMPLATE


All new drawings in Microsoft Visio are based on Flowcharts, Maps and Floor Plans etc) and each
a template. Microsoft Visio includes a wide range template is accompanied by one or more stencils.
of templates that you can choose from. The A stencil is a collection of shapes designed
templates are grouped according to type (e.g. specifically for different types of drawings.

Try This Yourself:


Before starting this exercise
ensure Visio has started…

 The New window in the


Backstage will be open by
default. This contains the
templates that you use to
start a drawing in the
central pane and a preview
of the selected template in
the right pane…

 Click on Flowchart under


Template Categories
A number of flowchart 1 A brief description of what
templates will display you can use the selected
under Choose a template is included in the
Template... right pane

 Ensure that Basic


Flowchart is selected
under Choose a Template
and that Metric Units is
selected under the preview
pane
A summary of what you’d
use a flowchart for and
what is included is shown
in the preview pane...

 Click on [Create]
A blank drawing will be
created and the Basic
Flowchart Shapes stencil
will appear on the left side
of the screen

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To create a blank drawing from a template:  To open a new, blank drawing not based on
1. Click on the File tab and click on [New] any template, click on Blank drawing under
Other Ways to Get Started in the
2. Click on a Template Category
Backstage (New tab), then click on
3. Click on a drawing type [Create].
4. Click on [Create]

© Watsonia Publishing Page 3 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

THE VISIO SCREEN


The Microsoft Visio 2010 screen may appear screen, the drawing page occupying the majority of
cluttered and overwhelming at first glance. There the screen and the stencil area situated to the left
are, however, three key areas within the screen. of the drawing page. These areas are examined
These include the Ribbon at the top of the more closely below.

 The Ribbon is the tabbed band that appears across the top of the window. It is the control centre of Visio 2010.
Instead of menus, you use the tabs on the Ribbon to access the commands that have been categorised into
groups. The commands include galleries of options that you can select from, such as the Themes gallery
shown here.

 The File tab is used to access the Backstage view which contains file management functions, such as saving,
opening, closing, printing, sharing, and so on. Visio Options are also available so that you can set your working
preferences and options for Visio 2010.

 The Shapes window displays the stencils that are currently open for the drawing. Stencils are palettes of
shapes that you can use to create a drawing. The stencils that appear in the Shapes window depend on the
template on which the drawing is based. For example, the drawing in the sample above was based on the Basic
Flowchart template and by default, two stencils open for this template: Basic Flowchart Shapes (which is
open in the Shapes window above) and Cross-Functional Flowchart Shapes – the Quick Shapes stencil is
always open in the Shapes window. The title bars for the open stencils are shown at the top of the Shapes
window. Click on a title bar to see the shapes in the stencil.
Clicking on More Shapes near the top of the Shapes window displays an extensive stencil menu from which
you can open and create stencils, search for specific shapes and more.

 A drawing can comprise more than one page and the page tabs let you swap between pages. You can add a
new page by clicking on the Insert Page tab, located immediately to the right of the page tabs.

 The Drawing Page area is used to construct your drawing. You can zoom in and out of the page area and set
the page dimensions to match the paper size you require.

 The Scroll bar indicates your current position in the page. It lets you move to other positions in the page by
clicking or dragging. The arrows can also be used to move up and down the page.

 The Status Bar appears across the bottom of the window. It displays quite a few options in its default state
including page number, language, height, width, angle, macro recorder, switch windows, and zoom commands
such
© Watsonia as the zoom slider and access to the Pan &Page
Publishing Zoom4 window. Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio
Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

HOW MICROSOFT VISIO 2010 WORKS


For a new user the Visio 2010 screen may seem page. The data can be manipulated using
tricky – particularly the commands area at the top commands on the Ribbon. The page is part of a
of the screen. The screen comprises three key larger entity known as a file, and everything you do
areas. The drawing you create is placed on a to the file is controlled in Backstage view.

The Drawing Page


You can create a new drawing based
on a template. When you select a
template, a new blank drawing page
will open. The stencils, containing the
appropriate shapes for the template,
will also open. By dragging the shapes
onto the page, you can create a
drawing, such as the sample pivot
diagram shown to the right.

The Ribbon
When you need to do something to the page or to a shape on the page, such as insert an image or
format the selected shape, you’ll find all of the relevant commands on the Ribbon. The Ribbon has
the commands organised thematically using a series of tabs across the top.

Backstage View
When you want to do
something with your
drawing such as save it so
that you can access it
again later, preview it, print
it, send it to your boss, or
whatever, you will need to
access the Microsoft
Office Backstage view of
Microsoft Visio. Backstage
view is accessed using the
File tab on the Ribbon.
Rather than offering you
commands on a Ribbon,
Backstage occupies the
entire screen and has a
series of options down the
left side. In our sample to
the right, the Save & Send
option is active, and that is
why you can see a series
of save and send options
on the right side of the
Backstage view.

© Watsonia Publishing Page 5 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

USING THE RIBBON


The Ribbon is the command centre for Visio. It the command groups. Commands are activated by
provides a series of commands organised into clicking on a button, tool or gallery option.
groups that are placed on relevant tabs. Tabs Everything you could possibly want to do in Visio
are activated by clicking on their name to display will be found somewhere on the Ribbon.

Try This Yourself:


Before starting this exercise ensure
you have a blank drawing open…

 Examine the groups on the 2


Home tab
These contain the most
commonly used commands,
including copy and paste,
font and paragraph
formatting, tools and
editing...

 Click on the Insert tab


The commands on this tab
are used to create pages
and insert items such as
illustrations, diagram parts
and text objects...

 Click on Container in the


Diagram Parts group to
3

display the Container


gallery 5

This includes 12 containers


that you can use to place
around selected shapes in
the diagram...

 Click on each of the tabs


and examine the commands
Some of these open dialog
boxes...

 On the View tab, click on


Zoom in the Zoom group to
open the Zoom dialog box

 Click on [Cancel] then click


on the Home tab

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To use the Ribbon:  Additional tabs known as Contextual tabs
1. Click on a tab to display the commands appear in specific circumstances. For
example, if you insert a picture, the Picture
2. Click on a tool to activate a command,
Tools: Format tab will appear. This provides
display a gallery or display a dialog box
quick access to all of the tools you may need
to modify and work with the picture.

© Watsonia Publishing Page 6 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

USING RIBBON KEYTIPS


The Ribbon is normally accessed with a mouse. will appear next to commands on the ribbon.
However, you can also use the keyboard to Pressing a key on the keyboard will activate the
access Ribbon commands. When you press , corresponding command on the Ribbon just as if
the letters known as key tips or access keys, you’d clicked the command with the mouse.

Try This Yourself:


Before starting this exercise
ensure you have a blank
drawing open…


1
Press to display the
KeyTips

 Press to activate the


Insert tab and display
the keytips for the Insert
commands

 Press to display the


Callout options 2

You can use the arrow


keys and to move
through the options...

 Press twice to
return to the previous
level of access keys

 Press several times


to cycle through the
commands on the Insert
tab

 Press to return to
normal mode

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To use KeyTips to access commands:  You can still use the shortcut keys for menu
1. Press to display the KeyTips commands that were available in previous
versions of Office. For example, +
2. Press the letter key of the command or tab
applies bold to selected text.
that you want to select
3. Press to return to normal mode

© Watsonia Publishing Page 7 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

MINIMISING THE RIBBON


The Ribbon at the top of the screen, valuable as Ribbon as a once-off operation, or have it remain
it is, does tend to occupy a reasonable amount of constantly minimised and display full commands
space. You can minimise the Ribbon so that only only briefly while a tab has been clicked.
the tabs remain visible. You can minimise the

1
Try This Yourself:
Before starting this exercise
ensure you have a blank
drawing open…
2
 Click on the Insert tab
to display the Insert
commands

 Double-click on the
Insert tab to minimise
the ribbon
While the tabs stay
visible, the rest of the 3
commands are
hidden...

 Click on the Review


tab to redisplay the
ribbon, this time with
the Review
commands

 Click back in the


drawing
4

The ribbon will hide


again – it only
becomes visible when
you need it. You can
redisplay it
permanently though...

 Double-click on the
Design tab to
5
redisplay the Ribbon
permanently

 Click on the Home tab

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To hide/display the Ribbon:  You can also minimise the Ribbon by
1. Double-click on the active tab to hide the clicking on Minimise the Ribbon and
Ribbon then maximise it again by clicking on
2. Click on a tab to see the Ribbon temporarily Expand the Ribbon . These buttons are
located at the right end of the Ribbon.
3. Double-click on a tab to redisplay the
Ribbon permanently

© Watsonia Publishing Page 8 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

UNDERSTANDING THE BACKSTAGE VIEW


The Ribbon lets you work on the content in a access to frequently used features for managing
drawing – you can add more content, format it, your drawing. You can save it to use it later, print it
copy it, and much more. The Backstage view, on paper, send it via email, and more using the
which is accessed using the File tab, provides options found in Backstage view.

The Backstage View


The File tab on the Ribbon is not
a normal tab – as you can tell by
the fact that it is coloured. Clicking
on the File tab launches a mini-
program within Microsoft Visio
known as Backstage View.
Backstage, as it’s known for
short, occupies the entire screen
although the tabs from the
Ribbon still remain visible across
the top.
At the left of the Backstage is a
navigation pane which is made up
of Quick commands, smallish
buttons which will perform an
operation immediately, and
largish tabs, which display more
options and information to the
right of the screen.
The whole underlying purpose of
the Backstage is to let you save
your drawing, share it with others
and let you set options for
Microsoft Visio.

Quick Commands Backstage Tabs


The Quick commands provide immediate The Backstage tabs provide more options for
access to an operation. working with a drawing.
Saves the current drawing Provides status information about
the current drawing and lets you
Allows you to save the current remove personal information and
drawing under a different name or reduce the file size
location Provides a list of recently saved
Opens a previously saved drawing drawings
Lets you create a new drawing
Closes the current drawing and provides access to a large
gallery of templates
Provides access to options that
Lets you print the current drawing
allow you to control how Visio
and preview it
looks and works
Lets you share your drawing with
Allows you to close and exit
other people
Microsoft Visio
Provides access to Microsoft’s
help network and also provides
licensing information about your
software

© Watsonia Publishing Page 9 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

ACCESSING THE BACKSTAGE VIEW


The Backstage View provides options for the Ribbon, but it can also appear when specific
working on drawings and key information about commands and options in the Ribbon have been
the status of Microsoft Visio 2010. It is usually selected.
accessed by clicking on the File tab to the left of

Try This Yourself:


Before starting this exercise
ensure you have a blank
drawing open…

 Click on the File tab on


the Ribbon to display the
Backstage view, then
click on the Info tab if it is
not already selected

 Spend a few moments


studying the properties,
dates and related people
information at the right

 Click on the Print tab (at


the left) to see commands
3
for printing and
previewing the drawing

 Click on the Help tab (on


the left) to see the help
options and also product
licensing and information

 Click on the Home tab of


the Ribbon to close
Backstage view and
return to the drawing

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To access the Backstage view:  You can also close the Backstage view by
1. Click on the File tab on the Ribbon pressing .
2. Click on the desired tab or quick command  If you have no drawings open in Visio as you
at the left access the Backstage View, the New tab
will be selected by default allowing you to
quickly create a new drawing.

© Watsonia Publishing Page 10 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

USING SHORTCUT MENUS


In addition to the Ribbon, Visio also features where you click. Shortcut menus provide an
shortcut menus that appear when you right-click alternative, usually a quick one, to trudging through
in an area on the screen or on an object. The the Ribbon to find a specific operation or
content of the menu will vary depending upon command.

1
Try This Yourself:
Before starting this exercise ensure
you have a blank drawing open…

 Drag any shape from the


Basic Flowchart Shapes
stencil (at the left of the
screen) onto the drawing page,
then move the mouse pointer
over the shape and click with
the right mouse button to
display a shortcut or
contextual menu
Because you have clicked on a
shape in the drawing the menu
includes commands that relate
3
to working with shapes...

 Click anywhere on the page


with the left mouse button to
close the shortcut menu

 Right-click on the title bar of


the Shapes window to display
a shortcut menu
Notice how it differs from the
previous menu. Visio has
made an educated guess
about what you want to do
4
based upon what you have
clicked...

 Right-click on one of the tabs


on the ribbon
A different menu will display…

 Click anywhere on the page


with the left mouse button to
close the shortcut menu

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To display a shortcut menu:  Once a shortcut menu appears, the options
1. Point to the object or area of the screen on in it are selected by clicking on them with the
which you want to perform an operation left mouse button or by pressing the
underlined letter in the menu option.
2. Right-click to display the shortcut menu

© Watsonia Publishing Page 11 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

UNDERSTANDING DIALOG BOXES


Dialog boxes contain a series of controls that are corner of a group, or when you click on a command
used to adjust settings for a particular aspect of a that displays a dialog box. Dialog boxes are often
drawing. They appear either when you click on a used for adjusting some of the more advanced
dialog box launcher at the bottom right aspects of a drawing.

Typical Dialog Box Controls


Dialog boxes have various tools to help you perform tasks. These tools are known as controls and
some typical ones are shown below.

Tabs are used


to provide
more settings
Preview boxes
on the one
provide a preview
dialog box
of what the
selected settings
will look like

Check boxes
turn settings
either on or off.
When on they
display a tick
and therefore
these controls
are also known
as tick boxes
Drop arrows provide a list of Command buttons provide a
options for the text box when means of saving the changed
the arrow is clicked. The list settings [OK], or closing the
“drops down” from the arrow dialog box without accepting any
changes made [Cancel]

© Watsonia Publishing Page 12 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

LAUNCHING DIALOG BOXES


Dialog boxes can be launched either as a result dots (an ellipse) … after a menu option indicates
of clicking on a dialog box launcher or a that the menu option, when selected, will open a
command button, or by selecting a command dialog box. Dialog boxes are generally used for
from a menu. In a menu, the presence of three advanced features or detailed settings.

Try This Yourself:


Before trying this exercise ensure
you have a blank drawing open…

 Point to the dialog box


launcher in the Font group
on the Home tab to display a
tooltip that explains what will
happen

 Click on the dialog box


launcher to open the Font 1
dialog box
This dialog box has a selection
of controls to make formatting
text easier…

 Click on the Paragraph tab


This displays additional
controls that you can use to
adjust the font spacing…

 Click on [Cancel] to close the


dialog box

 Click on the Data tab, then


click on Link Data to Shapes
in the External Data group to
open the Data Selector dialog
box

 Click on [Cancel]

 Click on Data Graphics in the


Display Data group and select 2
Create New Data Graphic to
open the New Data Graphic
dialog box

 Click on [Cancel]

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To launch a dialog box:  You can launch two dialog boxes from the
1. Click on a dialog box launcher , relevant status bar. You can begin recording a macro
command button or menu option in the Record Macro dialog box by clicking
on No macros are currently recording
. You can display the Zoom dialog box by
clicking on Zoom Level .

© Watsonia Publishing Page 13 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

UNDERSTANDING THE QUICK ACCESS TOOLBAR


The Quick Access Toolbar, also known as the most frequently, such as Save, and includes by
QAT, is a small toolbar that appears at the top default the Undo and Redo buttons. You can add
left corner of the Visio window. It is designed to buttons to the Quick Access Toolbar to make
provide access to the command tools you use finding your favourite commands easier.

The Quick Access Toolbar


The Quick Access Toolbar is positioned at the top left corner of the Microsoft Visio 2010 screen. In
its default state, it includes the Save tool, the Undo tool and the Redo tool.

Customising the Quick Access Toolbar


Appearing immediately to the right of the Quick Access Toolbar, the Customise Quick Access
Toolbar tool displays a list of commonly used commands that you can add to the toolbar. You can
select the items that you want to add. The ticks that appear to the left of the menu options show you
that an option is already displayed.

© Watsonia Publishing Page 14 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

ADDING COMMANDS TO THE QAT


The Quick Access Toolbar is a handy location clicking on it and choosing the Add to Quick
to place commands from the Ribbon that you Access Toolbar option from the shortcut menu
use most frequently. Adding commands from the that appears.
Ribbon involves locating the command, right-

1
Try This Yourself:
Before starting this exercise ensure
you have a blank drawing open…

 Point to the first button on the


Quick Access Toolbar to see
2
the name of the tool and its
shortcut
In this case, it is Save…

 Right-click on Copy which


appears in the Clipboard
group on the Home tab to
display a shortcut menu

 Select Add to Quick Access


Toolbar to add the Copy tool
to the QAT 3

 Click on the Customise Quick


Access Toolbar tool to
display a menu

 Select Open to add the Open


tool to the QAT
It is just as easy to remove 5
tools you don’t want from the
QAT…

 Right-click on the Copy tool


and select Remove from
Quick Access Toolbar

 Repeat step 6 to remove the


Open tool from the QAT

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To customise the Quick Access Toolbar:  You can move the QAT under the ribbon by
1. Right-click on the command you want to add clicking on the Customise Quick Access
and select Add to Quick Access Toolbar Toolbar tool and selecting Show Below
Or the Ribbon. This puts the tools that you use
most frequently closer to your drawing
Click on the Customise Quick Access
making it quicker to access them.
Toolbar tool and select a command

© Watsonia Publishing Page 15 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

UNDERSTANDING THE STATUS BAR


The Status Bar is the bar across the bottom of drawing. It has tools that let you zoom in and out of
the Visio window. It is a useful aid that displays the page, plus tools that can change the document
information such as the current page number and view. You can customise the status bar to change
the size and angle of a selected shape in the the information shown.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

 Page Number The page number indicates which page is open in the drawing page area. This
indicator also tells you the total number of pages there are in the drawing – in this
case 1. If the drawing comprises more than one page and you click on the page
number, the Page dialog box will open letting you select the page that you wish to
open. You can also create a new page by clicking on [New] in this dialog box.

 Shape
Measurements
The shape measurements indicators let you quickly view the overall width, height
and angle of the selected shape on the page.
Clicking on any of these three measurements will open the Size & Position
window. From this window you can alter the selected shape’s location (X and Y),
Width, Height, Angle of rotation, and the relative position at which the shape is
pinned to the X/Y location. Once you have opened the Size & Position window,
click on close to close it.

 Language The language displayed in the status bar indicates the language that is used by
Visio’s proofing tools. Although English (U.S.) appears in the status bar, this will
change to the default language as set by your operating system (if it is not US
English) as soon as you begin typing using the Text tool. In our case English
(Australia) will appear here as we have set it as our default language.

 Macro Recorder You can quickly record a new macro by clicking on this tool to open the Record
Macro dialog box.

 View Tools The Document View tools allow you to change the view of the drawing. You can
select either Normal (as shown above) or Full Screen.

 Zoom Tools The Zoom Level button displays the current zoom percentage (our drawing is set
to 42% above). If you click on the button, the Zoom dialog box will appear so that
you can select a specific zoom percentage.
The Zoom Slider indicates the current zoom level, where the small vertical centre
mark indicates 100%. You can either drag the marker to the left or right, or click
on a specific point of the slider to set a zoom percentage. You can also click on the
buttons at either end of the slider to zoom in or zoom out .
The Fit page to current window tool adjusts the magnification of the drawing so
that the entire drawing fits within the width of the drawing page area.

 Pan & Zoom


Window
The Pan & Zoom Window tool displays and hides the Pan & Zoom window. You
can use this window to quickly zoom in on a specific part of the drawing by dragging
a marquee around the area in the window. You can also pan to different areas of
the drawing by dragging and resizing the marquee as desired.

 Switch Windows If you have more than one drawing open at the same time, you can click on this tool
to switch between drawings. The tick to the left of the file name shows which
drawing is currently open in the drawing page area.

 Resize Icon The Resize icon is visible in the Visio window only if the screen is not maximised. It
allows you to change the size of the window by dragging it in or out.

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Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

CUSTOMISING THE STATUS BAR


The Status Bar, shown at the bottom of the Visio viewing and zooming options. You can customise
window, comprises two parts. The left side the settings of the Status Bar by adding or
displays options and information relevant to the removing options to suit your working
current drawing, while the right side displays requirements.

Try This Yourself:


Before starting this exercise ensure
a drawing is open…

 Click on the shape to select it


If you don’t have a shape on
the page, drag any shape
from the open stencil to the
left of the screen…

 Right-click on the status bar


to display the Customise
Status Bar menu
This shows additional
information about the
drawing as well as listing
settings that you can choose.
By default, all options are 2
selected...

 Click on Width, Height and


Angle until they appear
without a tick, then click
away from the menu to close
it
The Width, Height and Angle
options no longer appear in
the status bar…

 Repeat steps 1 and 2


Although the options are not
visible in the status bar, you
can still quickly see the
information by displaying the
Customise Status Bar
menu…

 Repeat the above steps to


display all options in the
4
status bar

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To customise the status bar:  If you prefer working with the keyboard, you
1. Right-click on the status bar can press to jump to the status bar. Use
2. Click on the options that you want to add or the arrow keys to move between options and
remove press to activate an option. To
deactivate the status bar selection, press
3. Click outside the menu to close it .

© Watsonia Publishing Page 17 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

SAVING A NEW DRAWING


Saving a new drawing for the first time is a critical to save it. There are two main settings when saving
step. Saving a drawing regularly after that is just a drawing: the location where the drawing is to be
as important! There is an overwhelming number saved and the file name that is assigned to the
of ways to lose information and a handful of ways drawing.

Try This Yourself:


Before starting this exercise
ensure a drawing is open...

 Click on the File tab, then


click on Save to open the
Save As dialog box
As this is the first time that
the drawing has been
saved, you need to assign
a location and a name to
the drawing...

 Type My Drawing in File


name and ensure that
Save as type is set to
Drawing (*.vsd)

 Navigate to the Course


Files for Visio 2010 1
folder
This is the folder where
we want to store the
drawing...

 Click on [Save] to save


the drawing
The new file name will
display in the Microsoft
Visio title bar at the top of
the screen

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To save a drawing:  You can also save a drawing using the
1. Click on the File tab, then click on Save keyboard shortcut + or by clicking on
2. Type the drawing name in File name the Save tool in the Quick Access toolbar.
3. Select a Save in location
4. Click on [Save]

© Watsonia Publishing Page 18 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

EXITING SAFELY FROM VISIO


Like all computer applications, you should exit properly. If you forget to do this, Visio will prompt
Microsoft Visio properly to avoid losing data or you to do so prior to exiting
damaging computer files. Before exiting, you
should save and close all open drawings

2
Try This Yourself:
Before starting this exercise ensure a
drawing is open...

 Drag a shape onto the page


from an open stencil in the
Shapes window
This simply ensures that you
have made a change to the
drawing…

 Click on the File tab to open


the Backstage, then click on
Exit
A message box will appear,
prompting you to save your
change...

 Click on [Save] to save the


changes
Visio will save the change to
My Drawing.vsd and then
close the application

For Your Reference… Handy to Know…


To exit Visio: There are a number of other ways to exit Visio:
1. Save and close all open documents  Click on close in the top right corner of
2. Click on the File tab, then click on Exit the application window.
 Press + .

© Watsonia Publishing Page 19 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio


Microsoft Visio 2010 - Module 1

NOTES:

© Watsonia Publishing Page 20 Chapter 1 - Getting To Know Microsoft Visio

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