Does Visio allow to plot a mathematical function?

Question

Does Visio allow to plot a function such as y=(1/sin(x)).

I am keen on being able to specify the function directly, rather than having to fiddle with some stencils dimensions. Is there a specific stencil that allows to type in the function, can one do that using a shape sheet or VBA?

Solution

I recommend using the Microsoft Mathematics Add-In for Word and OneNote. Unfortunately, they don't provide a Visio version. So, this is what I would do:

1. Install the add-in

2. Embed a Word document into your Visio document

   
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3. Edit the embedded document by double clicking on it. Insert an equation, either with the ribbon option or the Alt= keyboard shortcut.

   
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4. Enter your equation

5. Select the equation (or focus on it by clicking inside it) and graph it. There's also a graphing option on the far right of the Equation tab

   
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It's also possible to plot 3D curves with this method.

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You can also plot them directly in Word and copy the image into Visio. That doesn't allow editing later though.

Comments

[nik]

Try notes at xy-curve - calculating with visio

[tvdo]

Wait, you want to plot a 3D curve (y=(1/sin(x))^z)? Just checking.

[toksing]

Ahh - actually even 2d is enough for now. Have edited the question.

[toksing]

Wow, I did know about this. In principle, Word is just as fine for me as Visio. Thanks. But the quality does not seem to be that high. Anyway, I'll leave the question open for a little while but your answer is definitely a strong candidate.

[tvdo]

2D is alright, 3D isn't that great. You might want to play around a bit with the standalone Microsoft Mathematics, but the quality should be the same. If you want something better, it's time to look at more dedicated programs, such as Mathematica (not free). Geogebra is excellent for 2D and there's a beta GeoGebra 3D. All of those require copy/paste or save/import into MS Office.