Wish List: Visio Alignment Options in Right-Click Menu

[moflaherty]

I have been using the 2007 beta of Visio and I have a wish request. I would
like to be able to multi-select objects on a page, right click, and then be
presented a fan-out with alignment choices. I like the Shape > Align Shapes
dialog that has been around for a few years, but it is clumsy getting to it.
It would be nice to have a fan-out in the right-click menu like this:

Align Shapes > Vertical Top

Vertical Middle
Vertical Bottom
Horizontal Left
Horizontal Middle
Horizontal Right

Some shortcut keys could prove useful too.

Just a thought!
Michael

----------------
This post is a suggestion for Microsoft, and Microsoft responds to the
suggestions with the most votes. To vote for this suggestion, click the "I
Agree" button in the message pane. If you do not see the button, follow this
link to open the suggestion in the Microsoft Web-based Newsreader and then
click "I Agree" in the message pane.

http://www.microsoft.com/office/com...6e280bfde45&dg=microsoft.public.visio.general

 

[Mark Nelson [MS]]

This is a good suggestion. In the meantime, you can press F8 to quickly
open the Align Shapes dialog.

--
Mark Nelson
Office Graphics - Visio
Microsoft Corporation

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[moflaherty]

Perhaps to add to this thread:

Align Shapes > Vertical Top + Horizontal Left = CTL+SHIFT+ 7 (NUM KEYPAD)

Vertical Top + Horizontal Middle = CTL+SHIFT+ 8 (NUM KEYPAD)
Vertical Top + Horizontal Right = CTL+SHIFT+ 9 (NUM KEYPAD)
Vertical Top = CTL+ 7, 8, or 9 (NUM KEYPAD)
Horizontal Left = SHIFT + 1, 4, or 7 (NUM KEYPAD)

Just a quick thought! I am an interface designer by trade, but I have not
thought the keyboard shortcuts through completely, so don't judge too quickly
(ha!)

Michael

 

[Mark Nelson [MS]]

Good suggestions. The keypad area is an interesting possibility. From a
usability standpoint, the variations on CTL, SHIFT and CTL+SHIFT are a
little complex. Less variation would be better.

--
Mark Nelson
Office Graphics - Visio
Microsoft Corporation

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[moflaherty]

I agree. I was trying to think of a good set of keys to represent HORI and
VERT. Since CTL and SHIFT are used for functions like switching tabs (or
zooming in Visio), these keys seem *easier* for me on the left hand. My other
suggestion may be the UP arrow for vertical and the LEFT arrow for
horizontal, though that may be clumsy. The other option is to identify three
keys -- one that represents HORI (CTL?), one that represents VERT (ALT?), and
one that represents both (SHIFT?), but I think that is more to remember. I
think the two keys approach is easier on users.

Regardless, the more I think about the keypad side of this, the more I like
it. It does a good job representing the field of play (LEFT, MIDDLE, RIGHT,
TOP, BOTTOM.) But at a minimum, even making this available in the right-click
menu would make me happy

I won't write anything else about this, but it is nice to know that you do
listen. I have a ton of other Office suggestions especially now that I see
the new approach in Office 2007, so it makes me more willing to suggest them
if you at least acknowledge them and don't laugh publically. Visio and Paint
(believe it or not) are my favorite tools for interface design, and I long
for the day when you will add some better templates to Visio to make my job
easier. For example, I would LOVE to see a Software template for Vista that
mimics all the controls in VS.2005 and Orca (?) so we can start designing
Vista interfaces -- right now, I have to *draw* all my own art/interfaces for
the developers. It slows us early adopters down when the tools are not quite
there. We are left to sift MSDN or run the beta to figure out all the
interface business rules. A template could be used to communicate all of that
to us developers out here. And I just know that your interface guys use
Visio; there are not a lot of tools out there for this kind of thing.

If I wasn't working 80 hours a week doing shrink-wrap for other people, that
would be my next product -- an add-in for Visio (ha!) Back to the grind...

Thanks again! Good writing with you...
Michael O'Flaherty

 

[Per1000IPDay3]

Avoid typing the same text again and again
Stop wasting your time on mouse movements
Open favorite web pages with a single hotkey press
Record keystrokes and play them back with a single hotkey press