What I Like About Visio 2013 Standard

Have your friends talked you into getting VisioStandard 2013? Then you should familiarize yourself with all the good things that the app can afford you. First, you should know that this version of the platform has greatly expanded its abilities in terms of themes. You can also go for a more cohesive pattern so that you can be uniform while you are working in the confines of a single page or across other projects.

Before the 2007 version of the app, you could observe certain trends in the shapes such as local values being delineated within the shape or inherited values that are the same way as it is inside a shape’s master. Furthermore, master-based designs may also be applied to the master shapes them so that the formatting would then depend on – that particular style and it carries over onto the shape you would be using.

So what’s new in 2013 theme-wise, you would ask? This time the idea of what a theme is has now been inclusive of Variants and Quick Styles. The former are variations in colors and styles – the themes serve as the base. Quick Styles is a method to put a pre-set color and style onto a particular shape. Comparing it to older versions of Visio, you can now use a range of color palettes and effects rather than singular palettes being deployed in a given set.

When you settle on a palette and style that you like – or if you choose the default also known as Variant, you would then use a particular Quick Style for a single shape using the context menu or the Shape Styles batch within the Home tab.  By then you are given the option to either select a Variant Style item or that of a Theme Style. Once you choose any of the 4 Variant Styles, you will then be given a predefined Fill, Line and Font and Effect set that is juxtaposed with the first 4 colors of the palette that is active.

You can also embellish your themes in Visio 2013 Standard. But this only applies to certain of the types of shape. From built-in patterns, it identifies certain containers, timelines and charts. Generally, shapes can take advantage of the embellishment option. This way you can change their geometry, shaping orientation or text. In fact you have a lot of freedom with affecting the anatomy of the shape.