Microsoft Visio 2010 : Creating and Using Shape Data Fields (part 1) - Adding Simple Data Fields

3/13/2014 1:50:37 AM

You can add Shape Data fields to any Visio shape. The fields can hold several different types of data, and you can save sets that you’ve defined and apply them to other shapes all at once.

1. Adding Simple Data Fields

Adding basic Shape Data fields is a snap using the Define Shape Data dialog. Let’s jump in and give it a whirl!

Adding Shape Data Fields to a Shape

1.	Start a new, blank drawing.
2.	Rename Page-1 to Light Bulbs and then save it somewhere convenient as Ch7 Shape Data.vsd.
3.	Draw a circle on the page and add a bit of line and fill formatting so that it isn’t too boring. I’ll call this a light bulb shape. I know it’s not much of a light bulb, but it will do for learning purposes.
4.	Right-click the light bulb and choose Data, Define Shape Data. Alternatively, if the Shape Data window is visible, select a shape, right-click the Shape Data window, and then choose Define Shape Data. The Define Shape Data window appears.
5.	Create a field to hold the bulb’s power rating. a. In the Label field, type Power (Watts). b. Change the Type to Number. c. You can choose a number format by clicking the arrow to the right of the Format field. Light bulbs are rated in whole-number wattages, so you don’t need decimal places. Some options for units are provided, but Visio understands only linear or angular units; there’s no choice for power units in the list. You can specify custom prefixes and suffixes in the Format field, however. For the Power field, enter #\ \W in the Format box. The pound symbol tells Visio to repeat the full nondecimal part of the number, and the backslashes tell Visio to append the next character. So you are appending a space and a W to denote Watts. d. Set the default by typing 100 in the Value field.
6.	Now add a Model field. a. Click New at the bottom of the dialog. You see Power in the list of fields, plus a new “Property2”, which is highlighted. b. In the Label field, type Model. c. Leave the Type as String. d. Make a placeholder for the default value by typing <model>. Figure 1 shows how the dialog should appear. Figure 1. Two new Shape Data fields being defined using the Define Shape Data window.
7.	Click OK. With the bulb selected, note that the Shape Data window displays the two fields you just created.
8.	Make a few copies of the light bulb and experiment with changing the Shape Data values. Notice what happens if you try to enter non-numerical text in the Power field.
9.	Save the drawing and keep it open for the next Let Me Try It.