Visustin - Export flow charts to Visio

Visio export requires Visustin Pro Edition.

Reverse engineer your existing code to Visio flow diagrams automatically. Visustin can create flow charts for Microsoft Visio 2002, 2003 and 2007. You can edit the diagrams in Visio and use in your documentation.

Sample Visio flow diagrams

Here you can find a few charts to compare how the Visustin and Visio versions differ. The layout is roughly similar, but the links work differently. Also some of the shapes look different.

Click the pictures to zoom in

Visustin original	Visio version

View code	Visio .vsd diagram (Save to a file, then open)
Visustin original	Visio version

View code	Visio .vsd diagram (Save to a file, then open)
Visustin original	Visio version

View code	Visio .vsd diagram (Save to a file, then open)

Click the pictures to zoom in

See Online samples for more Visustin/Visio flow chart pairs.

Export instructions

Method 1: Export. In Visustin, select Export to Visio in the File menu. You can also press Ctrl+E. Visustin runs Visio, opens a new diagram and adds the chart shapes to it.

Method 2: Save. Use the Save As command in the File menu to save directly to a Visio file. You can also press Ctrl+S. Select Visio drawing as the file type. The default file format is .vsd. You can also save in the .vdx format (XML) by typing .vdx as the file extension instead of .vsd. Visustin runs Visio the same way as with the Export method. When the export process is ready, Visio saves the diagram into the file you specified.

Method 3: Bulk export. Visio export also works in the Bulk flowchart feature. Use the Bulk flowchart command in the File menu. You can also press Ctrl+B. Bulk export can save diagrams in .vsd files, but not in the .vdx file format.

Demo version export test. The demo version of Visustin has a very limited export capability. It allows you to verify that the export works. Select Export to Visio in the File menu to make sure the export works on your PC.

Practical export advice

Visustin controls the position of the diagram shapes, but not the position of the connectors. Visio will route the links the way it sees best. This is why the Visio version will differ from the one you see in Visustin.

In a complex graph the connectors are likely to overlap. If this happens, adjust the shapes and connectors. You can also try the Lay Out Shapes command in Visio. Experiment with different settings. Large charts will need to be split on multiple pages or alternatively adjusted to fit on one page. If your chart exceeds page boundaries, you can adjust the page size in Visio's Page Setup dialog box.

Customizing Visio

You can customize the import template to match your preferred flow charting style. Simply edit the file called visus6.vst in your Visustin directory.

Change the Page Setup to use curved lines instead of the default straight connectors. In Visio 2003, select File, Page Setup, Layout and Routing, Appearance = Curved or Straight (the default).
Customize the master shapes. Change colors and font. Go black & white or use wild colors.
Edit the master shapes. You can use any shapes you like, but keep the shape names unchanged. Visustin uses the names to add the correct shapes. You also need to provide enough connection points on the shapes. The exact number of connection points depends on the shape. A branching shape typically requires 3 connection points (1 in, 2 out). The first connection point is for incoming links. Additional connection points are used for outgoing links. As to shape size, Visustin will take care of this and resize the shapes to fit the text in them.
Utilize another layout. Select Lay Out Shapes in the Shape menu.

Future Visustin versions are likely to provide new versions of the .vst file, so be prepared to configure the file again when updating your copy of Visustin.

Loading Visio diagrams in Visustin

You cannot load .vsd or .vdx files in Visustin. You need to save the Visio diagram in an image format that Visustin can read. In Visio, choose Save As in the File menu and select PNG as the file format. You can now load the image in Visustin.

Note: A bug in Visio 2003 caused it to save bad GIF files. The bug has been fixed in Visio 2003 SP3 and Visio 2007, so you can now save as GIF too.

Requirements and limitations

Visio export requires Visio 2002, 2003 or 2007 installed on the same computer. Other versions are unsupported.

Visustin Editor

Visustin Editor is an alternative to Visio. The Editor lets you edit Visustin flow charts the same way they appear in Visustin. Designed especially for flow charts, Visustin Editor is an ideal way to adjust, comment or modify even complex flow charts. Compared to Visustin Editor, Visio diagrams have a different layout, the most apparent difference being the links. Depending on your preferences, you might find Visustin Editor best suited for Visustin charts.

Note: You cannot export flow charts from Editor to Visio.

Visustin - Export to Visio