Microsoft Visio 2010 Business Process Diagramming and Validation

Table of Contents

• Preface

• Chapter 1: Overview of Process Management in Microsoft Visio 2010
  • What is new in Visio 2010 for Process Management?
  • Visio Process Management capabilities
  • The foundations of structured diagrams
  • Enhanced process flow templates
    • The Flowchart templates
  • New process flow templates
    • BPMN Diagram template
    • SharePoint Workflow Designer template
  • Validation of process diagrams
  • Visio Process Repository
  • Visio services
  • What are the Visio 2010 editions?
  • Planning your own solutions
  • Summary

• Chapter 2: Understanding the Microsoft Visio Object Model
  • The Visio Type libraries
  • But all I need is the object model
  • Types of Visio document
  • Which programming language should you use with Visio?
  • The Drawing Explorer window
  • The Visio object model
    • The Application object
      • The ActiveDocument and ActivePage objects
      • The Addons collection
      • The COMAddIns collection
      • The CurrentEdition property
      • The DataFeaturesEnabled property
      • The Documents collection
      • The TypelibMinorVersion and Version properties
    • The Document object
      • The Advanced Properties object
      • The DataRecordsets collection
      • The DocumentSheet object
      • The ID and Index properties
      • The FullName and Name properties
      • The Masters collection
      • The Pages collection
      • The ReadOnly property
      • The Type property
      • The Validation object
    • The Master object
      • The BaseID property
      • The Hidden property
      • The ID, Index, and IndexInStencil properties
      • The Name and NameU properties
      • The PageSheet object
      • The Type property
    • The Page object
      • The Connects collection
      • The ID and Index properties
      • The Layers collection
      • The PageSheet object
      • The Reviewer property
      • The Shapes collection
      • The Type property
    • The Shape object
      • The Characters and Text properties
      • The Connects and FromConnects collections
      • The Hyperlinks collection
      • The ID, Index, NameID, Name, and NameU properties
      • The IsCallout and IsDataGraphicCallout properties
      • The LayerCount property
      • The Master, MasterShape, and RootShape objects
      • The OneD property
      • The Parent object
      • The Type property
    • The Section object
    • The Row object
    • The Cell object
      • The Column property
      • The Error property
      • The Formula and FormulaU properties
      • The Name and LocalName properties
      • The Result properties
      • The Units property
      • Iterating through cells
  • Connectivity API
    • The Shape.ConnectedShapes method
    • The Shape.GluedShapes method
    • The Shape.MemberOfContainers property
    • The Shape.CalloutsAssociated property
    • Listing the steps in a process flow
  • Summary

• Chapter 3: Understanding the ShapeSheet™
  • Where is the ShapeSheet?
    • What are sections, rows, and cells?
    • Reading a cell's properties
  • Can I print out the ShapeSheet settings?
  • What is a function?
  • What are the important sections for rules validation?
    • The User-defined Cells section
      • What category is a Shape?
      • What structure type is a Shape?
      • Is the shape inside a container?
      • How many shapes are inside a Container shape?
      • Where is the shape in the List?
      • How many shapes are in a List shape?
      • Are there any Callouts attached to a shape?
      • Which shape is a Callout connected to?
    • The Shape Data section
      • The String type
      • The Fixed List type
      • The Number type
      • The Boolean type
      • The Variable List type
      • The Date type
      • The Duration type
      • The Currency type
    • The Hyperlinks section
    • Layer Membership
  • Summary

• Chapter 4: Understanding the Validation API
  • Overview of the Validation objects
    • The Validate method
    • Can custom rules code be validated?
  • The ValidationRuleSets collection
    • How do I add or update a rule set?
  • The ValidationRules collection
    • How do I add or update a rule?
    • How do I know my rule works?
  • ValidationIssues
    • Which issue is selected in the Issues window?
    • How do I toggle the Issues window visibility?
    • Which issues are caused by a particular shape?
    • How do I clear issues in code?
    • How do I validate in code?
    • How do I retrieve an existing issue in code?
    • How do I add an issue in code?
  • Summary

• Chapter 5: Developing a Validation API Interface
  • The architecture of the tool
  • ThisAddin class
    • Listening for application events
    • Checking for Visio Premium edition
  • Creating the ViewModel
    • Creating the BaseViewModel class
    • Viewing the documents collection
    • Viewing the ValidationRuleSets collection
    • Viewing the ValidationRules collection
    • Viewing the ValidationIssues collection
  • Modifying the Visio Fluent UI
  • Creating the Rules Explorer window
    • Self-describing tree views
      • Informative tooltips
    • Linked detail panels
      • Editing rule set properties
      • Editing rule properties
      • Handling special key strokes
    • The Explorer actions
      • The Add button
      • The Add Issue button
      • The Paste button
      • The Copy button
      • The Delete button
  • Displaying the rule for a selected issue
  • Displaying the issues for the current selection
  • Summary

• Chapter 6: Reviewing Validation Rules and Issues
  • Extensions to our ribbon
  • Annotating Visio diagrams with issues
    • Saving the current user settings
    • Displaying the issue markup page
      • Add in the issue comments
    • Hiding the issue markup page
  • Exporting rule sets to XML
    • Getting the XDocument object
      • Getting the VERuleSet XElement
      • Getting the VEIssue XElement
  • Importing rule sets from XML
  • Creating rule set reports
    • Getting the XSL stylesheet
  • Summary

• Chapter 7: Creating Validation Rules
  • Overview of the document validation process
  • Validation functions
  • Useful ShapeSheet functions
  • Filter and Test Expressions
    • Checking the type of shape
    • Checking the category of shape
    • Checking the layer of a shape
    • Checking if the page contains relevant shapes
    • Checking for specific cell values
    • Checking that connectors are connected
    • Checking that shapes have correct connections
    • Checking if shapes are outside containers
  • Custom validation rules in code
  • Summary

• Chapter 8: Publishing Validation Rules and Diagrams
  • Overview of the Visio categories and templates
  • Creating a custom template
    • Adding embellishments
    • Adding the template description
    • The simplest method to provide a template
      • Editing the file paths for templates
    • Creating a template preview image
      • Enhancing the quality of the preview image
    • The best method for publishing templates
      • Creating a setup project
      • Amending the installation package
      • Running the installation
  • Summary

• Chapter 9: A Worked Example for Data Flow Model Diagrams
  • What are Data Flow Diagrams?
  • Examining the standard template
    • Enhancing the masters
    • Editing the Data Flow master
      • Preparing for AutoConnect
      • Editing the Data Store master
      • Editing the Interface master
      • Editing the Process master
      • Setting the sub-process master
    • Enhancing the page
  • Writing the rule set
    • All processes must have at least one data flow in and one data flow out
    • All processes should modify the incoming data, producing new forms of outgoing data
    • Each data store must be involved with at least one data flow
    • Each external entity must be involved with at least one data flow
    • A data flow must be attached to at least one process
    • Data flows cannot go directly from one external entity to another external entity: such flows need to go through at least one process
    • Do not allow a single page of a DFD to get too complex
    • Each component should be labeled
    • Each data flow should be labeled describing the data that flows through it
    • Each component and subcomponent should be numbered
    • A data flow must be connected between two components
    • A flow must not cycle back to itself
  • Completing the template
    • Creating the installer
    • Testing the installation
  • Summary

• Index

David John Parker

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