Flow charts / Diagramming software

[shiphen]

Hi

I am a bit confused by all the versions of Xara. I need a tool to create good looking flow charts (AKA flow diagrams). Are any of the versions of Xara any good for this?

The diagrams we need to build are for modelling business processes and need to be good looking with nice colors and drop shadows etc. The tricky part is that the designs are likely to *change* many times, so we will need to move boxes around but with the connectors (arrows) staying connected.

Or should we be looking elsewhere? If so what do you folks use?

Background
We are a very small, cash-strapped company so the budget for this will need to be extremely small. (i.e. < c.$50 ?)
So msVisio (�279+VAT minimum) is out of the question. Likewise we used to use Edraw Max but that is now $149.50 to buy.
We don't know how much cash we will have in the future so the monthly rental is out of the question (e.g. Gliffy)
In truth we might go a bit higher say �100 for something truly *awesome*...
...but either way it would be good to get something that can be imported into Xara without losing quality.

Any thoughts?

Thanx

[Gamerprinter]

I'd say Xara Photo & Graphic Designer 10 is the version that you'd need for creating flow-charts.

[shiphen]

I'd say Xara Photo & Graphic Designer 10 is the version that you'd need for creating flow-charts.

Oops I've just installed Xara Designer Pro X10. :^(
Quick shapes are pretty cool, but don't seem to connect anything to anything else, if the else is then moved(!)

OK I've just tried "Photo & Graphic Designer 10". It has the quick shapes tools too. However still no "connectors" if that's the right word. So my thinking is that for more complex / less stable designs perhaps none of Xara's tools are really up to the task... (??)

[mwenz]

I don't know if the free version of DrawPlus contains the flowchart and connectors or not. If so, can't get any cheaper...though when you exit you'll have a nag screen. PagePlus can also do flowcharts. And again, don't know if it is included in the free version.

So depending upon whether you want another drawing application or a layout application, choose one or the other.

[Gamerprinter]

Oops I've just installed Xara Designer Pro X10. :^(
Quick shapes are pretty cool, but don't seem to connect anything to anything else, if the else is then moved(!)

OK I've just tried "Photo & Graphic Designer 10". It has the quick shapes tools too. However still no "connectors" if that's the right word. So my thinking is that for more complex / less stable designs perhaps none of Xara's tools are really up to the task... (??)

When I say you can easily make flowcharts, I didn't mean that there is a mechanism to create connected shapes, like an actual flowcharting function. Rather I meant its easy as a drawing program to create rounded rectangles, then draw lines with arrows as end points connecting your various shapes to create a true flowchart. Xara isn't a flowcharting program, per se. I'm sure there are applications that have an actual flow charting function to it, though I don't think any Xara product does that as a built-in capability. If you are using Xara Designer, that can do everything XP&GD does and a lot more.

[shiphen]

To get clear - we would like to make ATTRACTIVE flow diagrams!
i.e. With nice layouts, drop shadows, subtle fades/blends, choice of arrowheads, precise use of colour palette - maybe even a bit of transparency... anti-aliasing (ideally in real time) ... in short all the good stuff Xara has.

I am at the start of my search but the cheap flowcharting tools I've seen so far are v ugly and crude.

I'll have a look at DrawPlus/PagePlus.

Btw, what is "XP&GD".

[mwenz]

To get clear - we would like to make ATTRACTIVE flow diagrams!
i.e. With nice layouts, drop shadows, subtle fades/blends, choice of arrowheads, precise use of colour palette - maybe even a bit of transparency... anti-aliasing (ideally in real time) ... in short all the good stuff Xara has.

I am at the start of my search but the cheap flowcharting tools I've seen so far are v ugly and crude.

I'll have a look at DrawPlus/PagePlus.

Btw, what is "XP&GD".

The attached PDF is a sample that is included with the full version. It's a live flowchart. Beauty is up to the designer.

[Acorn]

To get clear - we would like to make ATTRACTIVE flow diagrams!
i.e. With nice layouts, drop shadows, subtle fades/blends, choice of arrowheads, precise use of colour palette - maybe even a bit of transparency... anti-aliasing (ideally in real time) ... in short all the good stuff Xara has.

I am at the start of my search but the cheap flowcharting tools I've seen so far are v ugly and crude.

I'll have a look at DrawPlus/PagePlus.

Btw, what is "XP&GD".

The only blocker is the lack of dynamic connectors.
I have used the Online Web Catalogue Text Panels to good effect. The come with their own Named colours.

Ii would spend time creating the equivalent of an MS Visio Stencil of all you needed shapes and lines.

As lines readily snap to shapes the lack of a dynamic link is not too restrictive.

In fact, using Shift+C gives you a shape that can be a rectangle, a curved box and even a circle, all in one. Try that Visio.

Soft-group the same inside a diamond gives you a decision box.

Add shadows and you're there.

Acorn

[shiphen]

The attached PDF is a sample that is included with the full version. It's a live flowchart. Beauty is up to the designer.

What tool did you create that with? Was it PagePlus?

I just installed PagePlus but I didn't like it.

a) The arrow head seem to finish BEYOND then end of the line (Xara's long-standing problem)
b) The defaults are irriating. The text immediately goes in far too small.
c) I couldn't connect boxes that moved when the boxes move... Ah but I think that's because I'm only using the demo version and cant use the Elbow Connector tool. And now I'm not about tho blow �71.99 for a quick look!

Hmm... I think the initial signs are NOT good. Prob time to look elsewhere.

Btw, draw.io looks surprisingly promising. The defaults are quite promising, with easy mouse-overs to connect shape. The only irritating thing is that there is no obvious way to paste properties (e.g. colour) like you can Xara...

Also lucidchart.com is pretty promising at a quick look. The connectors are easy to create and they snap in rather a cool way to exactly where on the shape you connect them. Shapes can have blends and shadows. However I couldn't work out how to put a drop shadow onto an arrow. Also flow charting decision boxes are intelligent enough to default to "Yes" and "No", each of which is editable. BUT I can't stand the pay per month model (about $40/year) - I'd much rather actually own the software.

[Acorn]

Smart Arrows connect at their tips.
Acorn