MS Visio -- A Cool Tool From Microsoft? || Olga Kostiouchina

MS Visio -- A Cool Tool From Microsoft?

by Olga Kostiouchina 

If you have been searching for a technical writing job and have scanned a good measure of job ads, you’ve probably noticed that working knowledge of MS Visio is often on the list of required or desirable skills.

The Technical Writing program at BCIT doesn’t have a course that would teach you how to use Visio though. So I decided to take a plunge and learn it myself.

Turns out, it’s a really special tool that could make your portfolio look great and help you in your workplace when you get that job!

What can you do in Visio?

First of all it comes with an enormous beginner’s help – templates, and lots of them! Even a complete newbie can start using Visio to create all kinds of excellent visual aids for the technical and business documentation and presentations.

Here’s a list of all eight categories of templates available in Visio Professional 2007:

Business  (business process flowcharts, diagrams and maps; design charts, graphs and diagrams; brainstorming diagrams)

Engineering (electrical, circuits and logic diagrams, industrial control systems, part and assembly drawings, etc.)

Flowchart (basic  and cross-functional flowcharts; work and data flow diagrams, etc.)

General (basic flowcharts and general-purpose diagrams)

Maps and Floor Plans (simple 2-D or 3-D directional maps; home, office, building and site plans)

Network (physical and logical network designs)

Schedule (Gantt charts, timelines and calendars)

Software and Database (tools for modeling and design of software, databases and user interfaces)

Impressive, eh?

How can you learn Visio?

If I did it – you can do it, too! Here’s a short step-by-step:

1. Go to your local library and check out a pretty decent Microsoft published resource: Microsoft Visio 2007 Step by Step. (BCIT library has an electronic version of the book, or you can order a hard copy though Interlibrary loan if your local library doesn’t carry the title)

2. Once the book is in your hands (or electronic version is on your screen), go to:

http://download.cnet.com/Microsoft-Office-Visio-Professional-2007/3000-2064_4-10704836.html and download the 2007 free trial version.  

-    The reason I’m suggesting you try to learn the 2007 version is that many employers are not too fast to upgrade to the latest and greatest, so there’s a good chance you’ll have to work in Visio 2007, not 2010. But I won’t discourage you from learning the latest 2010 Visio – it will give more power to you!

3. Now bring the two together! Set aside some time each day to practice and you’ll have a good handle on the program’s functions within a week!

Alternatively, you might want to explore the training courses right on Microsoft’s website, available for 2003, 2007 and 2010 versions, so you can learn right at the source. There’s also a plethora of training videos on YouTube, be sure to check them out if you’re more of a visual learner. However these are mostly unorganized as they come from different sources. For a quality video instruction, visit my favorite learning website - lynda.com. There’s a lot of free “teaser” videos there, but for $25 a month you get access to all of them – and they are abundant!

The final step is to create the material you can use in your portfolio. Start thinking about the processes you could present in forms of flowcharts or diagrams. Visual aids are always great and make things easier for everyone. Pick a few and fire away using your newly acquired knowledge. Now print the results and insert them in your portfolio folder with brief notes; add a line in your resume’s list of software skills – you’re done!

Copyright © 2011

Olga Kostiouchina

Vancouver, British Columbia