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• 10 tips for developers working with the Visio VSDX file format

  29 Jan 2013

  The new Visio introduces a new XML-based file format, VSDX. In a previous post , we provided an overview of the new file format. One benefit of the new file format is its interoperability: it is now much easier to work with the default file format outside of Visio. In this post, we provide some tips...
• Download the free Microsoft Visio Viewer

  28 Nov 2012

  The Microsoft Visio Viewer is a free download that lets anyone view Visio drawings without having Visio installed on their computer. If you have Visio, you can still benefit from the viewer because it allows you to preview drawings in both Outlook and the Windows Preview pane. We recommend that everyone...
• Introducing BPMN 2.0 in Visio

  19 Nov 2012

  Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) is a standard maintained by the Object Management Group that allows businesses to document and communicate business processes uniformly using graphical notation. The new version of Visio supports BPMN 2.0, which is the current version of the standard, and corresponding...
• Containers and callouts in Visio

  5 Nov 2012

  Containers are a convenient way to visually group your shapes together and then easily work with that group. Callouts provide a simple mechanism to attach text to a shape. We’ve improved both in the new Visio. Specifically, there are more shapes to give you increased flexibility to express your...
• UML and Database diagrams in the new Visio

  17 Oct 2012

  Developers and IT professionals frequently use Visio to design and document software and database systems. They recognize the benefits of visualizing complex systems to understand relationships and dependencies, and Visio makes it easy to communicate and socialize designs across the team. As a result...
• Webinar: What is Visio? (and preview Visio 2013)

  15 Oct 2012

  Learn about Visio--designed to help you make great diagrams faster--and preview the latest version. See how Visio creates flowcharts, room layouts, timelines, organizational charts and a lot more. This video is also available at Microsoft Showcase . You can also watch a 30-second trailer . What you will...
• Visio reaches RTM!

  11 Oct 2012

  The Visio team has signed off on the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) build of the new Visio. On behalf of the team, I'd like to thank all of the users of the Customer Preview—your great feedback helped us fix bugs and refine new features. Please keep the feedback coming! The new Visio will be available...
• Insights for developers about Change Shape

  10 Oct 2012

  Lots of customers have told us that they want to exchange one shape with another without losing the text, connections and formatting. The Change Shape feature in the new Visio gives you this functionality. In this post, we will review the Change Shape feature and talk about the implications of the feature...
• API for Themes in the new Visio

  19 Sep 2012

  In a previous blog post , we introduced the new themes, variants, and styles feature in the new Visio. Not only does this feature make it easy and fast for users to create professional looking diagrams , it also fully supports programmatic access. This post will focus on how to use the new API methods...
• Sharing Diagrams with Visio Services

  18 Sep 2012

  The new Visio offers a number of new capabilities - the modern look of the app, new themes and shapes for making professional-looking diagrams, new ways to collaborate with multiple authors and reviewers. We’ve also made it much easier to share those diagrams with your coworkers and friends –...
• API in the new Visio

  12 Sep 2012

  Our previous posts have discussed some of the great end user features we’ve added to the new Visio. For developers, the new Visio supports programmatic access for many of its new features. The new Visio API contains methods that let developers change shapes and pictures, add comments, duplicate...
• VSDX: the new Visio file format

  10 Sep 2012

  Visio 2003, 2007 and 2010 all had the same primary Visio Drawing (VSD) file format. For most users, this was great: files could be shared easily between these three versions of Visio. There were, however, some drawbacks. Most notably, the primary format was binary, which limited both the information...
• Collaborating in Visio

  27 Aug 2012

  Our customers say they spend a lot of time coordinating and communicating with coworkers to get their daily work done. Whether you’re working on a simple illustration or a flowchart documenting an extremely complex process, it’s not uncommon to have to go through multiple revisions, get feedback...
• How to add reflection, glow, rotation and other effects to your Visio shapes

  16 Aug 2012

  One of the many tools you’ll find in the new Visio to help you make your diagrams look modern and professionally designed is the addition of shape effects. If you’ve used effects like shadow or reflection in PowerPoint you’re already familiar with how effects can add visual impact to...
• BPMN Diagramming Basics Course Available

  19 Aug 2011

  A new series of training videos have been posted on Office.com to introduce Visio users to Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN). The videos are packaged as a course named BPMN Diagramming Basics . The course provides both an introduction to the BPMN notation and a tutorial on creating BPMN diagrams...
• Working with Connected Diagrams Programmatically, part 1

  13 Jul 2011

  In a previous blog post , we told you about the new Connectivity APIs in Visio 2010 that make it easier for developers to create and to move across a connected diagram. We’ve shown you how to use some of the new APIs to create new connected shapes ( see here ); now we’ll examine techniques...
• Visio 2010 XML Schema Definition Released

  31 May 2011

  Visio has published the XML Schema Definition (XSD) files for the Microsoft Visio 2010 XML Drawing (.vdx) format. This schema is also known as DatadiagramML. The .XSD files allow developers to better understand the structure of Visio XML documents and design solutions that work with the .VDX file format...
• Video: Adding a Data Graphic Legend in Visio 2010

  3 May 2011

  The video below shows how to add a Data Graphic legend to a drawing using C# code. How might you use this code within the context of constructing diagrams with Data Graphics? As mentioned in a previous blog post , Visio Professional 2010 and Visio Premium 2010 use container shapes to create legends for...
• Visio Baseball Scorecard

  13 Apr 2011

  Spring has arrived and baseball season is upon us! Whether you follow the professional leagues, play recreationally or coach in the little leagues, there is one thread that ties all baseball enthusiasts together – a passion for stats. In this article and the attached diagram, we present a baseball...
• Tips for Copy/Paste in Visio 2010 (Including How to Copy a Page)

  31 Mar 2011

  One of the things we all do a lot is reuse shapes or groups of shapes in several places and often the best way to do that is to Copy the existing shape and Paste it elsewhere. Even though you use it daily, there may be some behavior you’re not familiar with, especially with the Copy/Paste improvements...