Start Window
When you click the "Start" button, FlowBreeze will prompt you for a few options before the flowcharting session begins.
Drawing Area
The Drawing Area section lets you specify how you want the worksheet to look when you are flowcharting. The settings are described as follows:
- Create a grid: Changes all column widths to match the row height, creating a grid on the sheet.
- Preserve existing sheet layout: Leaves worksheet as-is, and not change the column widths.
- Load a template: Loads a template. Templates are covered in the Template Generator section of the help file. If you choose to load a template, it will be added as a new worksheet in the current workbook.
Start Terminator
- Add a terminator to the beginning of the flowchart: Adds a Terminator symbol to the start of your flowchart.
- Terminator text: As implied, it's the text to appear in the Terminator symbol, e.g. "Start".
- Worksheet cell: The location on the sheet where the terminator will be placed. Click "Select cell" to change the location. If you choose Load a template, there is a good chance that you need to change this cell, especially if your template has swim lanes.
Tip: It's worth noting that the first step in a flowchart does not need to be generic text such as "start" or "begin". Many flowcharting tutorials advise that the first step be the "trigger action" that kicks off the process. However, at their core flowcharts are communication tools, and if your flowchart will be read by a general audience, keep in mind that many people viewing it may never have read a flowchart. They may have no idea what a trigger action or a terminator symbol is. Instead, they'll be scanning the diagram trying to figure out where the process starts. So matching the text to the audience is advised.
Page Settings
If you click "Page Settings" a sub-dialog will open a sub-dialog for setting the paper size and orientation, as well as the following two options:
- Hide Excel gridlines: This will create a plain white background, hiding Excel's built-in row and column gridlines.
- Show entry guidelines: When you are flowcharting, FlowBreeze will shade a horizontal row and vertical column to indicate where the next line of text should be entered. If you enter your text along a shaded line, the symbols will be automatically aligned and a flow line will be added automatically as well. Note: If you select this option, any shading on the worksheet will be cleared.
Start
When you click the OK button, this window is closed and a flowcharting session will begin.