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1. Exploring MS-Visio
Tips & Tricks
Compiled by:
Raghunath Soman
www.persistentsys.com

2. Use Equation Editor for Math & Science
• Equation Editor is a formula editor that allows users to construct
math and science equations in a WYSIWYG environment.
• To use Equation Editor in Visio, go to Insert | Object | Microsoft
Equation 3.0
• Select “Create new” radio button to create a new equation.
• Note: Equation Editor is now superseded by MathType, a more
powerful formula editor.
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3. Remove personal info and reduce file size
• Go to File | Info • Go to File | Info
• Click Remove Personal Info • Click Reduce File Size
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4. Enable Developer tab
• Developer tab offers a number of advanced features that make life
easier!
• By default, this tab is not enabled in Visio. To enable this tab, go to
File | Help | Options | Advanced
• In the General section, select Run in developer mode.
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5. Use ShapeSheet
• ShapeSheet is a powerful tool
that enables you configure ALL
the properties of the shape
precisely from a single window.
• Developer tab needs to be
enabled to view ShapeSheet.
• To view the ShapeSheet for a
particular shape, select it and
go to Developer tab. Click
Show ShapeSheet.
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6. Add a ScreenTip
• ScreenTips are just like ToolTips and enable you to provide short
notes about the image.
• Select the shape to which you wish to add the screen tip. Go to
Insert | ScreenTip
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7. Save images as Metafile
• Visio files are often bulky in size.
• Saving an image as a JPG/PNG/GIF often leads to loss of clarity.
• Save the image as a Metafile to maintain the clarity while reducing
the file size.
• Press CTRL + A to select entire Visio diagram. Go to MS-Word (or
any other MS-Office application). Click Paste Special and select
Picture (Enhanced Metafile)
• Note that once pasted as metafile, you cannot edit the image in
Visio.
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8. Enable Document Stencil
• Document Stencil shows the
individual shapes used in a
Visio document.
• Even if a shape has been used
multiple times, only one
instance for it is shown in the
stencil.
• Even if a shape has been
deleted from the document, the
stencil still shows the shape.
• To view document stencil, go
to Developer tab and select
Document Stencil checkbox.
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9. Set double-click action
• Usually, when you double-click
a shape, the default action for
that shape is performed.
• Using Behavior function of
Developer tab, you can
specify the action to be
performed when user double-
clicks a shape.
• You can choose to open the
shape in a new window, or
open the ShapeSheet, run a
macro, go to a target page or
display some help text for the
shape.
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10. Use Keyboard shortcuts
Action Shortcut Action Shortcut
Zoom In Ctrl + Shift + Left click Pointer tool Ctrl + 1
Zoom Out Ctrl + Shift + Right click Text Block tool Ctrl + 2
Close document Ctrl + W Connector tool Ctrl + 3
Switch windows Ctrl + Tab Repeat last F4
Print Preview Ctrl + F2 action
Duplicate shape Ctrl + D Insert picture Alt + N, P
Page Setup Shift + F5
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11. Visio Resources
• http://blogs.msdn.com/b/visio/
• http://www.visiozone.com
• http://www.visguy.com
• … and of course, the MS-Visio online help!
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