Labeling shapes and relationships

All flowchart shapes should be labeled with a short description, and at least the connectors exiting a decision diamond should be labeled to differentiate the yes and no routes.

Every shape in Visio has a block of text, even if there are no characters in it, and this should always be used in preference to a separate block of text to the page because the text will stay with the shape whenever it is moved around. Editing the text of a shape is usually as simple as this:

1. Select a shape.
2. Type the text; this will enter text edit mode.
3. Hit the Esc key to exit text edit mode.
4. Hit the Tab key as required to advance to the next shape that needs text.
5. Repeat steps 2 to 4.

There is an extra step required in Visio desktop after using the Tab key because it does not automatically select the shape when we tab. It displays a gray rectangle around the shape tabbed to, indicating where the focus is, but then we need to hit the Enter...