28 March 2008

Visio Rant:
The new AutoConnect feature in Microsoft Visio 2007 Professional doesn't do exactly what you'd like.  Firstly, its unintuitive to turn on - requires a Tools | Options type of enabling, and it also requires a toolbar selection to enable it per-drawing.  Secondly, in UML drawings such as an Activity diagram, you want to modify which connector is being used.  E.g. use Control Flow between States or Action States, whereas the autoconnect puts a two sided generic 'connector' between the states.  This doesn't help because in the Activity diagram, you need to represent which direction the flow is proceeding in with the Control Flow or Object Flow connectors.  Feature request for Microsoft? Automatic connections are so much easier in Rational's eclipse based modelling tool (RSM/RSA).  In RSM the connectors change based on the objects you are connecting.  Seems obvious enough.

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firstly, thanks in advance for your comment - I don't get very many, so I'm sure to follow up if you leave me a way - secondly, come again.