Powerdraw Setup
1.3 Drawing Tips
Objective
This section introduces a few simple but practical techniques that make working in Visio easier and faster when creating wellbore diagrams.
-
As you build diagrams you will frequently zoom in to your drawing to fine tune or edit details, then zoom back out to review the overall layout and look. Efficient navigation around the drawing page will quickly become an essential part of your workflow.
In the Getting Started section we set some Visio options that allows the Keystoke Zoom method.
Hold the Ctrl + Shift keys simultaneously with your left hand and then use your mouse to quickly perform multiple zoom functions.
With these two keys pressed use your mouse…
Scroll wheel – to zoom in or out
Left-click – zoom in
Right-click – zoom out
Left-click and drag – draw a box around the area you want to zoom into
Right-click and drag – pan across the page
This method effectively turns your mouse into a navigation tool for the drawing environment. As you work with wellbore diagrams you will constantly move between close-up detail work and full-page review, so efficient zoom control becomes very useful. In time you will be accustomed to this method eventually becoming unaware of your new habit.
(For left-handed users, simply reverse the hand positions.)
-
In the View tab of the ribbon toolbar, you will find more Zoom controls. The Fit to Window and Page Width are two views commonly used as well.
Feel free to experiment and choose the method that works best for you. The important point is that during wellbore diagram creation you will zoom in and out frequently, especially when placing components, adjusting spacing, and reviewing the full layout of the diagram.
-
Visio uses several cursor tools that behave differently from typical Windows applications.
In the Home tab, look for the Tools section in the ribbon toolbar.
The most commonly used tools are:
Pointer Tool – used for selecting and moving objects
Text Tool – used for adding or editing text
Basic Drawing Tools – lines, curves, and shapes
It is important to note that when you select a tool in this section is that tool remains active until you manually switch away from it. So, when you select the Text Tool, it does not automatically default back to the Pointer Tool.
This may take some time to get accustomed to.
You now have several basic navigation techniques that will help you move efficiently around the drawing page while building wellbore diagrams.