which Office program to use to make a diagram of a building interior?

Visio is probably the best Office program, but it is very expensive.

Here are some alternatives to Visio, paid and free:

2018 09 16- 8 Online Tools to Draw Diagrams and Flowcharts By Lori Kaufman

Diagramming and flowcharting tools are handy for many purposes. You can use them to brainstorm ideas, create mind maps, sketch software designs, sketch out product roadmaps and milestones, or even create team presentations.

If you’d rather not download and install a tool for creating diagrams and flowcharts, there are many online options. Microsoft Visio is one of those options, but if you’re looking for a tool that’s not from Microsoft, here’s a list of other options.

• Lucidchart
• Draw.io
• Cacoo
• Gliffy
• Sketchboard
• Creately
• DrawAnywhere
• Google Drawings.

2017 08 02- Visio Online goes public, sort of https://office-watch.com/2017/visio-online-goes-public/

The Visio Online preview is only available to: ·    Office 365 business hosting users.

·    Access to SharePoint Online or OneDrive for Business.

·    The administrators have enabled ‘preview features‘ in SharePoint (it defaults on).

Visio Online has limited export options.  Only save to Visio format or embed the diagram in a web page.

There’s no Print option, or save to PDF.

Save the Visio document to your computer then open it in Internet Explorer.  You’ll need the free Visio Viewer.

Otherwise, copy a diagram into another document by taking a screen shot and paste the image into your document.

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ConceptDraw Office ConceptDraw Office pack as a strong alternative to Visio and MS Project.

Pencil Project http://pencil.evolus.vn/

https://code.google.com/archive/p/evoluspencil/wikis/Articles.wiki - Articles wiki about Pencil

http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/pencil.html - walkaround of features

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/pencil/ - Addon for FireFox

Pencil is built for the purpose of providing a free and open-source GUI prototyping tool that people can easily install and use to create mockups in popular desktop platforms. Installers for Linux, Windows, and Mac OSX and iOS, and a FireFox addon.

Looks like work stopped on it around 2012(?)

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Edraw Visualization (free and Paid) http://www.edrawsoft.com/edraw-mindmap.php

Edraw Mind Map is an easy mind map software with rich examples and templates which make it easy to create mind maps, brain-storming diagrams, project timeline, life planner, SWOT analysis and sketch maps. Through this mind mapping software, you can visualize your thinking and quickly arrange and organize your work before taking action, all to benefit you as well as people around you.

Edraw has a section of free floorplan examples

2016 07 20- LucidChart in Microsoft Office https://office-watch.com/2016/lucidchart-in-microsoft-office/

Browser based (IE Specific!) addin that exports static image charts 20 July 2016

LucidChart is a very nice diagramming and flowchart tool which is now better integrated with Microsoft Office.

Office has diagram tools via Insert | Shapes but they aren’t very elegant.  Shapes can be linked if you select the 3 “Connector” type lines/arrows.

Lucidchart is a lot smarter.  Here’s a simple example where moving the ‘Heading 1’ shape automatically adjusts the arrows and there’s guides to indicate the gaps above and below..

According to LucidChart’s press release “Previously, Lucidchart users exported files as static images and copied them into Microsoft Office documents. With the new add-ins, users can now create and insert Lucidchart diagrams directly into their Word, Excel and PowerPoint projects”.   That’s stretching it … the new system isn’t as good as those words might appear.

You still can only add an image into Office documents, but the process is somewhat easier.  It’s not true Office integration where the diagram is editable inside the Office program, but it’s better than what we had.

LucidChart for Office is an Office addin for Word 2013 Service Pack 1 or later, Word 2016 for Mac, Word 2016 for Windows and Word Online. Go to Insert | Addins | Store and search for LucidChart.

We had trouble with the log in process which is surprisingly clumsy.  Scroll down for options to log in with a Google or Yahoo account (but not a Microsoft account).

In our tests, the Lucidchart addin would only open Internet Explorer when a browser window is needed.  The users default browser or Edge (on a Windows 10 machine) aren’t available.  That’s important because the work you do in LucidChart will be in that browser.

The LucidChart addin for Office is a portal to view the documents (diagrams) saved in your account with Lucidchart.

From the addin pane you can create a new diagram or edit and existing one.  Clicking those buttons opens up a browser window and starts LucidChart.

Lucidchart is a browser based program and a good example of how advanced programs can be in the once humble browser.

Once you’ve finished making your diagram, save it and switch back to Office.   Select the Lucidchart document when click Insert.  The add-in will convert your diagram into an image then insert the image into your Office document.

The inserted image and Lucidchart diagram are NOT linked. Any changes to the LucidChart are not automatically reflected in your Office document.  You’ll need to re-insert the diagram and replace the image.

The Office add-in is free and Lucidchart has free accounts plus a seven day trial of their paid offerings.

For more details go toLucidchart. Lucid

IT / Engineering

·     Free ERD diagram tool

·     UML diagram tool

·     Network diagram software

·     P&ID software

·     AWS network diagram software

·     Database design tool

·     Visio online

·            Workflow diagram software

Business

·     Free flowchart software & examples

·     Free org chart software

·     Data flow diagram software

·     Value stream mapping software

·     Business process mapping tool

·     Process documentation software

·     Process mapping software

·            BPMN software

Product Management & Design

·     Wireframe software

·     iPhone mockups

·     Android mockups

·     iPad mockups

·     Floor plan software

·     Venn diagram maker

·     Mind mapping software

·     Concept map maker

Basic: $60/yr, $5/mo

Pro: $108/yr, $10/mo

Visio compatible

Import Visio files (.vdx, .vsd, or .vsdx) with the click of a button. Once they’re uploaded, you can view them and make your own edits with our easy-to-use tools. If your colleagues still use Visio, you can even export your original Lucidchart diagrams as Visio files!

2016 04 02- Visio alternative SmartDraw makes diagramming and drawing a breeze for Mac/iPhone users (online) **http://www.techrepublic.com/article/visio-alternative-smartdraw-makes-diagramming-and-drawing-a-breeze-for-maciphone-users/**

Cloud provider SmartDraw closes the gap that Visio created for Mac and iPhone users who want to create network diagrams, flowcharts, and more.

With an annual site license everyone in your organization can use SmartDraw for as low as $2,995 per year. (ie price of 6 Visio Standard or 5 Visio Pro licenese …)

With a site license you also get:

1.   The power of SmartDraw Enterprise, our premium, flagship product

2.   As many seats as you need to use

3.   No more upgrade fees

4.   Free premium support

5.   Free content updates

6.   Enterprise level license administration

7.   Access to SmartDraw Cloud (if desired)

You can work behind the firewall and save your diagrams locally and in the cloud.

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2016 02 00- 10 Best Free Flowchart Software For Windows http://listoffreeware.com/list-of-best-free-flowchart-software-for-windows/

yED – Graph Editor, Dia, Dynamic Draw, ClickCharts Diagram Flowchart Software, Pencil, Diagram Designer, Diagram Ring, Software Ideas Modeler, Edraw Mind Map, Create Flowchart using Google Drive.

This article contains 9 free flowchart software and 1 free online service which can create different types of flowcharts. They can create the simple and the complex flowcharts easily. Some of them can also create multiple flowcharts simultaneously. You can also use them for creating other types of charts and diagrams, such as: UML diagram, Network Diagram, ERD, DFD, Class chart, Pie chart, etc.

This is the list of 10 best free flowchart software for Windows.

A flowchart is a collection of symbols or shapes which collectively represent a process. It can be effectively used for explaining even a complex process and it is frequently used in educational, business and social organizations. One of the easiest way to create it is by using a software.

This article contains 9 free flowchart software and 1 free online service which can create different types of flowcharts. They can create the simple and the complex flowcharts easily. Some of them can also create multiple flowcharts simultaneously. You can also use them for creating other types of charts and diagrams, such as: UML diagram, Network Diagram, ERD, DFD, Class chart, Pie chart, etc.

Now, I am going to show you each of these software one after another with some useful features.

You can also check out these CAD software, CDR viewer and logo creator software.

Or you can even use the Shapes feature in Word/Excel/PowerPoint.  Here is a quick and dirty 5 minute approximation of my house floor plan using Shapes in Word

You have to start by inserting a "Drawing Canvas" (from bottom of Shapes drop down list.

I think Visio is the one best suited for that, but it may not be among the Office programs that you have (it's not in most editions).

Thank you!