M
Mike Greenawalt
Hello -
We have designers who use a stencil of 16 customized shapes provided to
them to create designs. Typically, the individual shapes are used
multiple times.
When the design is complete, we use the .vdx representation of the Visio
document in further processing to develop customized documentation. At
this time, our processing of the XML has relied on the master shapes in
the document having a NameU property, which certainly they usually have.
I know that Visio is sensitive to action sequences, etc. For instance, I
know that if one takes a shape from the stencil onto a page, and then
takes another instance of the same shape from the stencil onto the same
page (without any other action in between), then the *second* shape will
not have a NameU property in the XML.
Today, I encountered an instance of a Master shape in the Document
Stencil without a NameU property. But I do NOT know how such a construct
can happen. When this happens, it completely destroys our post-design
processing.
The only ways I have found to fix this is to a) replace all the shapes
in the document that refer to the errant Master; or b) hand-edit the XML
to give that Master a NameU property. The first is tedious and
time-consuming. The second is not to be undertaken lightly by the
non-technical designer.
Can anyone shed light on what sequence of actions in Visio might lead to
a Master Shape that has no NameU? I would like to be able to advise our
designers how to avoid having this happen.
Thanks for any light you can shed.
-- Mike Greenawalt
Tellme Networks
We have designers who use a stencil of 16 customized shapes provided to
them to create designs. Typically, the individual shapes are used
multiple times.
When the design is complete, we use the .vdx representation of the Visio
document in further processing to develop customized documentation. At
this time, our processing of the XML has relied on the master shapes in
the document having a NameU property, which certainly they usually have.
I know that Visio is sensitive to action sequences, etc. For instance, I
know that if one takes a shape from the stencil onto a page, and then
takes another instance of the same shape from the stencil onto the same
page (without any other action in between), then the *second* shape will
not have a NameU property in the XML.
Today, I encountered an instance of a Master shape in the Document
Stencil without a NameU property. But I do NOT know how such a construct
can happen. When this happens, it completely destroys our post-design
processing.
The only ways I have found to fix this is to a) replace all the shapes
in the document that refer to the errant Master; or b) hand-edit the XML
to give that Master a NameU property. The first is tedious and
time-consuming. The second is not to be undertaken lightly by the
non-technical designer.
Can anyone shed light on what sequence of actions in Visio might lead to
a Master Shape that has no NameU? I would like to be able to advise our
designers how to avoid having this happen.
Thanks for any light you can shed.
-- Mike Greenawalt
Tellme Networks