Every shape has default internal margin spacing built into it. However, most shapes also support adjustable internal margins. You can control the width of the internal margin by selecting a fixed margin width from the diagram's properties dialog box (general tab). This width determines the amount of space between the text and the edge of the shape throughout your diagram. For a simple rectangular shape, the result is obvious. Irregular shapes handle margins as best they can, but some extreme examples simply stick to the original definition regardless of the margin. The diamond-shaped symbols are a special case described in the next topic.

Diamond shapes are very irregular compared to the text area. The text area must be rectangular and must fit completely within the symbol's bounds. Therefore an adjustable internal margin does little good and has not been implemented. Instead, a more common frustration arises with diamonds. Rather than wanting additional margin space, you will more likely find it difficult to fit enough text within the text area without making the shape unmanageably large.

A special option has been added to allow you to override the text boundary in diamonds and control exactly how you would like to fit your text within the shape. By checking the 'Disable text margin limits for decision (diamond) symbols' option in the diagram properties dialog box (general tab), you can release the internal text area and instead use the entire bounds of the symbol. If you use this option, you can fit as much text as possible into the diamond. The catch is that you have to take responsibility for formatting it such that it remains within the bounds of the symbol.

The option described above is enabled by default. However, there are cases when you may want to dsiable it. One such case is when you want to use justification other than centered. Another is if you prefer to use the four 'point' text areas to include condition indicators 'y', 'n' etc. (These are still supported but have been largely replaced by flow labels.)

In this program you always work with a diagram as a whole. Think of your diagram workspace as a very large virtual chalkboard. When your diagram gets too large for a single page, there are several options:

• Use a larger page. If you have access to a printer or plotter that can print a bigger page, this program can probably handle it. Use Print Setup to select a different page size for your diagram.
• Break the diagram into smaller parts and store each part in a different diagram file. For convenience you can use the diagram linking feature to connect diagrams. One way to link diagrams is to create a figure in diagram A that has the text "Click here to view diagram B", then link the figure to diagram B. Another way is to use hierarchical diagram linking. For example, create a simple high-level flowchart and link each figure to a lower-level chart that expands the meaning of the figure. The downside of the linking approach is that the separate files have to be moved around together, saved together, and printed separately. Note, only EDGE Diagrammer has this feature.
• Use the Postering feature. With this feature you can lay out your diagram on a grid of pages. The usual intent is to tape the pages together to build a large wall poster of your diagram. However, you may also split your diagram up into several pages and use the grid to manage and print the pages separately.
• Finally, if you really require a multi-page book-type diagram, you can create it in a word processor and use OLE to insert diagrams onto each page. For example, use MS Word to create a multi-page document. On each page, use Insert Object to embed or link a different diagram.

Page set-up including orientation and paper size is controlled through Print Set-up. Use Print Set-up to adjust page layout and the layout will be saved within the diagram.

You can export to different graphics formats using Export from the Tools menu (not located in the SaveAs menu). We currently do not support saving files in other editable diagramming formats such as Microsoft Visio.

When you create a diagram, that diagram contains a "copy" of all the styles that were in the diagram template you selected. Therefore, changes to styles in your diagram affect only that diagram UNLESS you intentionally edit the diagram template file. For example, suppose you create a flowchart but for this particular flowchart, you want all the shapes to have thicker borders than usual. After you do the New to create the diagram, go into Figures Styles and select each shape and change its border width, then make your diagram and save it. If you wanted this change to apply for all future flowcharts you create, open the diagram template file and make the change there. Better yet, create a new template of your own so that the next time you update the program you won't lose it - future upgrades will overwrite the current template files.

A style is like a model or template for creating new objects. When you create an object, that object's style determines its initial properties. Properties are specific to a particular object.

Every object you create begins with a style. The style determines certain things about how that object will look, its color is a good example. When an object is bound to its style, it automatically updates if you update the style. For example, if you change the Process style color from white to red, all process boxes that you've added to your diagram will become red, except those that are not bound. You can change whether an object is bound to its style by changing the Bind checkbox in the object's properties. It gets a little tricky when you discover that each style also has a Bind checkbox. The bind field in a style just determines the default bind state for objects created with the style.

JPEG graphics are converted to bitmaps for internal usage. Therefore when you resize the image in your diagram it becomes distorted as with all raster graphics. Often JPEG images are photographic quality and this distortion is very noticeable. If you import it and do not resize it, it will not distort (even though it may look distorted because of your zoom settings). If you want to scale a JPEG image so it does not distort as badly, do so with a drawing tool such as LViewPro before you import it.

There are several options. The simplest way is to create it as a bitmap with a paint program and then import it as the shape in a new figure style. However, this method will leave the shape rather limited in functionality unlike the built-in shapes.

For the technically inclined with some programming experience, you might want to try to create your own shapes using the built-in macro language. If it's a simple change to an existing shape, this is quite easy - just open the SYMBOLS\*.EDE files with a text editor to see the format. You can obtain a document describing the format and how to use it from the Accessories area (under Product, Downloads).

You can also choose to contact us to request custom symbols be created for you. You will need to provide drawings of the symbols you want and there will be a charge that will vary depending on how complicated the symbols are.

You can't actually do this outright, but you can use an alternative method. Create a connector and add flow symbols to it (the one that looks like a double line). Position the flow symbols close enough together so that they overlap, for example use a size of 5 pts and a spacing of 4 pts. The result will be a rough but usable double line.

In most cases, you'll find the program performance to be very fast. However, users of older computers with slower CPUs may find it useful to check the following.

First, make sure your computer has adequate memory. It's also important to know what parts of diagrams are the slowest to process so you can avoid them unless necessary. First of all the overall complexity of the diagram is very important, such as the number of figures and connectors. You can increase performance by breaking a large complex diagram into multiple smaller ones. Avoid excessive imported graphics. They require a large number of steps to draw. Also slower are (in order of most to least slow) (a) Curved connectors, especially smoothed (b) Connectors with thick and/or patterned lines (dashed or dotted) (c) Connectors with flow symbols - these can really slow down redraws.

Fonts and initial object properties are determined by styles. To change the font used for a particular figure style (for example), enter Figure Styles, select the Text tab and set the font. Repeat this for each style that you want to save and save your diagram. If you want your changes to be present for new diagrams, update the corresponding diagram template(s) accordingly.