Rating: 
Summary: Does not work with Visio 4.0
Review: I was very disappointed in this product because I was unable to install it. The reason it does not work is that you must have Visio 5, but no where in the product description nor on the box does it tell you this. Furthermore, when asked about version 5 of Visio, Microsoft says they no longer have that version for sale. Before you buy this, make sure you have Visio 5 or you will end up paying shipping charges to send it back and still have to buy the full version.
Rating: 
Summary: No Support For Java
Review: Java Is not supported becuase it is a Sun Microsystems format. Accordingly, Microsoft is trying to force customers to migrate to their formats.
Rating:
Summary: Where is my Java Modelling?
Review: Microsoft totally missed an oppurtunity here. While other Java modelling tools are costly, Visio would have been perfect if they added support for Java types.
Rating: 
Summary: Not for me, thanks.
Review: My boss is really into technology, and he bought this and claims it's great, so he asked me to do up an organization chart in Visio (he's capable of doing it himself, but doesn't want to waste his time on things he can delegate, understandably).I'm pretty fast at working out how to use new programs, and, since this was a Microsoft one and I'm used to Office, I worked out quickly how to use it. However, I found it tedious to use, especially for such a simple chart. I ended up opening Word and just doing the chart up in there instead, since it was a lot faster. If you're doing up a lot of complex charts, then this sounds like the program for you. But if you're only doing up simple charts, stick with MS Word and don't spend your money on this. I know I won't be using it again.
Rating:
Summary: Total time wasting product.
Review: No doubt, Visio is a powerful program. But I'm here to advocate a different approach to diagramming. With the release of Office XP, Microsoft has made PowerPoint so intuitive, precise and powerful that - for the vast majority of us - Visio is overkill. I do lots of business flow-like diagrams. I've worked with Visio in the past, but I feel like the following method works far better for me: 1) Start by building a rudimentary version of what you want in PowerPoint. True, PowerPoint doesn't give you the snap-and-lock type features that are at the core of Visio...but you can closely approximate it with various easy-to-learn techniques. The best thing about PowerPoint is that every action is completely intuitive. I've been able to build some pretty complex things without once looking at online help. 2) Now, once your rudimentary version is in place, you can go back through and punch things up with appropriate graphics. Microsoft provides a great online tool for this purpose called "Design Gallery Live." You have access to it as part of your Office XP purchase. Say that at a certain place, your diagram calls for a picture of a CPU. Bring up Design Gallery Live through the "Clips Online" option of PowerPoint and put 'CPU' in as the search term and, voila, there are four pages of images for you to choose from. 3) You can go beyond Design Gallery Live with the help of Google. Their (relatively) new Image search feature is a boon for anyone putting together a presentation. The other day, I needed a generic image of an ATM. I put "Automated Teller Machine" in as a search term for a Google Image search and got nine pages of images back. 4) Back in PowerPoint, once you drop these images into place, you can double-click on them & go to the 'Size' panel of the 'Format Picture' dialogue box. Play with Height & Width parameters to get to proper scaling for each of the images you've selected (keep the ratios equal, though). 5) You can use the various 'Alignment' options (available through the Drawing menu at the left-hand corner of your screen) to line up the various objects as you see appropriate. I suggest you give this approach a try as well before committing extra money to buy Visio. You'll be surprised at how powerful Powerpoint has become & how you can assemble professional, eye-catching presentations in a very short period of time.
Rating:
Summary: For most, PowerPoint will suffice
Review: No doubt, Visio is a powerful program. But I'm here to advocate a different approach to diagramming. With the release of Office XP, Microsoft has made PowerPoint so intuitive, precise and powerful that - for the vast majority of us - Visio is overkill. I do lots of business flow-like diagrams. I've worked with Visio in the past, but I feel like the following method works far better for me: 1) Start by building a rudimentary version of what you want in PowerPoint. True, PowerPoint doesn't give you the snap-and-lock type features that are at the core of Visio...but you can closely approximate it with various easy-to-learn techniques. The best thing about PowerPoint is that every action is completely intuitive. I've been able to build some pretty complex things without once looking at online help. 2) Now, once your rudimentary version is in place, you can go back through and punch things up with appropriate graphics. Microsoft provides a great online tool for this purpose called "Design Gallery Live." You have access to it as part of your Office XP purchase. Say that at a certain place, your diagram calls for a picture of a CPU. Bring up Design Gallery Live through the "Clips Online" option of PowerPoint and put 'CPU' in as the search term and, voila, there are four pages of images for you to choose from. 3) You can go beyond Design Gallery Live with the help of Google. Their (relatively) new Image search feature is a boon for anyone putting together a presentation. The other day, I needed a generic image of an ATM. I put "Automated Teller Machine" in as a search term for a Google Image search and got nine pages of images back. 4) Back in PowerPoint, once you drop these images into place, you can double-click on them & go to the 'Size' panel of the 'Format Picture' dialogue box. Play with Height & Width parameters to get to proper scaling for each of the images you've selected (keep the ratios equal, though). 5) You can use the various 'Alignment' options (available through the Drawing menu at the left-hand corner of your screen) to line up the various objects as you see appropriate. I suggest you give this approach a try as well before committing extra money to buy Visio. You'll be surprised at how powerful Powerpoint has become & how you can assemble professional, eye-catching presentations in a very short period of time.
Rating:
Summary: Worst Graphics Program Ever
Review: Once again Microsoft is putting out {garbage}. I use Adobe Illustrator and Visio is not even in the ballpark as far as ease of use or capability. Even for the most simple functions Visio is cumbersome, clumsy and difficult to use. One example is text that is not scaleable. Why would anybody in their right mind want a graphics program where the test does not scale with the graphic? Selecting objects and using layers are both absolutely horrible. The interface is also very not intuitive! Microsoft, please put this foolish excuse for a graphics program out of it's (and our) misery!
Rating:
Summary: Worst Graphics Program Ever
Review: Once again Microsoft is putting out {garbage}. I use Adobe Illustrator and Visio is not even in the ballpark as far as ease of use or capability. Even for the most simple functions Visio is cumbersome, clumsy and difficult to use. One example is text that is not scaleable. Why would anybody in their right mind want a graphics program where the test does not scale with the graphic? Selecting objects and using layers are both absolutely horrible. The interface is also very not intuitive! Microsoft, please put this foolish excuse for a graphics program out of it's (and our) misery!
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Product
Review: The bonehead above apparently can't read - it's an upgrade!!
Rating: 
Summary: The good, the bad and the ugly
Review: The good - features that I am excited about: (1) Professional and Technical versions are combined. You get IT and facilities diagrams and wizards in the same package. (2) You can create diagrams that can export properties to XML. The possibilities are endless: exchange product data with suppliers and customers based on your own product's attributes, export bill of materials to ERP systems, manage assets and get control of total cost of ownership and export process model data to other tools. (3) You can directly scan images or download photos from digital cameras into Visio and use the new photo editing tools to enhance or modify the images to suit your needs. (4) Analyze your web site and develop a complete report of all links. A powerful feature is spotting broken links, making this a good tool for your quality assurance group. The bad - stuff I do not like: the web link feature has some possible "gotchas". Specifically, When you type a hyperlink in a Microsoft Office XP application (of which this version is a part), it has been reported that the application will alter what you've typed, without notifying you or giving you an opportunity to undo the "correction." Not good. The ugly - things about this product that scare me: As part of the XP family of products, Visio 2002, like the XP operating system and Office family, will require activation over the Internet once it's been installed. You can bring it up and use it 5 times before activation, but after that it will not work. This is Microsoft's defense against piracy, and at first glance is a sensible scheme. However, if you reinstall it you have to call Microsoft and get instructions. This is NOT a sensible scheme for a number of reasons. First, I travel, and sometimes outside of the country. Calling Redmond is not viable if my system crashes and I need to reload applications. Second, if I want to upgrade my hard drive I cannot simply reinstall this application (or any of the "XP" family applications or operating systems) because when I first activated it there is an entry made in some database somewhere that says this application is already installed and cannot be activated again. The solution is to call and have some unknown drone bypass big brother. What is this going to cause me in lost productivity? If you need the "good" and can live with the "bad" and "ugly" then this is a worthwhile upgrade. Think long and hard about the "ugly" part, though, because it has ramifications that can be much more serious than I've described. On the other hand, perhaps a wave of good sense will descend upon Redmond and they come up with a more workable solution that shows they care about customers and understand stuff like total cost of ownership and the value of productivity. For the record, I am not ruining a perfectly good version of Visio by installing this version over it. My productivity and sanity is worth more to me than the new features. You have my opinion and must decide for yourself.
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