This\r\nscreenshot gallery is also available as a TechRepublic article.
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As a freelance technology writer, I find myself often having\r\nto create various types of charts. In doing so, I have discovered that there\r\nare a number of different tools available to help you to create flowcharts.\r\nHere are five such tools.
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Credit: Images by\r\nBrien Posey for TechRepublic
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1888\r\nQuick Flow Chart Creator is a free flow chart application. This particular\r\napplication doesn’t really measure up to the paid applications, but it will get\r\nthe job done.
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The program provides a series of flow chart symbols that you\r\ncan place on the screen and connect to one another. You also have the ability\r\nto change the color of the symbols or add text to them.
\r\n\r\nThe program is fine for\r\ncreating a basic flow chart, but it isn’t really conducive to high precision\r\nwork. There don’t seem to be any tools to help you line up the objects that you\r\nplace on the screen, so producing a clean looking flow chart can take a bit of\r\npractice. The software could also benefit from some better documentation, as it\r\ntook me a few minutes to figure out how to use some of the features.
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
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WizFlow\r\nFlowcharter is a very basic flow charting application that seems to work\r\nreally well. This program starts off by asking you to choose a color pallet,\r\nfont, etc. After doing so, you are presented with a screen containing a series\r\nof objects that you can drag and drop to create your flowchart.
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I found the interface to be very intuitive, but admittedly,\r\nit took me a few tries to get the hang of object placement. The process wasn’t\r\ndifficult, it was just a little bit different from what I was used to. All\r\nthings considered, this application is probably a good choice for those who\r\nneed basic flow charting capabilities.
\r\n\r\nWizFlow Flowcharter sells\r\nfor $69.95, but a free 30-day trial is available.
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
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RFFlow\r\nis everything that a flow charting application should be. The utility is fast,\r\nefficient, and intuitive. It makes light work of object placement and a popup\r\ntakes all of the guess work out of adding text to an object. The program also\r\nmakes it simple to resize, move, or delete objects that you have already\r\ncreated. The software even includes templates that you can use to create\r\nvarious other types of charts.
\r\n\r\nRFFlow sells for $49.00,\r\nbut a free trial version is available for download.
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
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Novagraph\r\nChartist is a relatively powerful tool for creating flow charts and other\r\ntypes of charts (such as organizational charts). Although there is a bit of a\r\nlearning curve associated with using this tool, it is at least somewhat\r\nintuitive. More importantly, the tool is jam packed with features and should be\r\nable to accommodate even the most demanding flow charting requirements.
\r\n\r\nNovagraph Chartist sells\r\nfor $49.00, but a free trial version is available for download.
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
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Microsoft\r\nVisio Professional 2013 is the flow chart application that I personally use\r\nfor my day to day work. The main reason why I use Visio is because it’s built\r\nin network diagramming tools are extremely helpful for some of the books and\r\narticles that I write.
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When it comes to creating flow charts (as opposed to network\r\ndiagrams or other types of diagrams), Visio is easy to use. It behaves much\r\nlike other Microsoft Office applications, such as Word or Publisher. Visio\r\nallows you to drag and drop objects to build your flow chart.
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In all honesty, Visio performs almost identically to RFFlow,\r\nwhich costs a small fraction of what Visio costs. If you only need to create\r\nflow charts, you are probably better off getting RFFlow than Visio. However, if\r\nyou need to be able to create a wide variety of chart types then Visio is an\r\nexcellent application choice.
\r\n\r\nMicrosoft Visio Professional\r\n2013 sells for $589.99.
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
Credit: Images by Brien Posey for TechRepublic
* 1988 - Started teaching myself about computers \ * 1992 - Mainframe programmer for an insurance company \ * 1993 - Network Administrator for a different insurance company \ * 1996 - Author for The Cobb Group \ * 1998 - Network Administrator for Fort Knox \ * 1999 - CIO for chain of hospitals \ * 2000 - Gave up the corporate rat race to work out of my home. I have been a full time technical author ever since. Visit my Web sites at http://www.brienposey.com and http://www.relevanttechnologies.com \
