What is a flow chart?
We define a flow chart as an organized combination of shapes, lines, and text that graphically illustrates a process or structure.
An Example:
Written by Bill Patton Sr.
You might need to tell a co-worker how to complete a simple task. To you, it may seem simple, but to your co-worker, it may not. If you describe the task in words, it might sound both complicated and confusing: "If you don't need to do step 4, skip to step 7. When you finish step 7, you can go back to step 2..."
Pretty simple, isn't it?
Putting these same instructions in a flowchart takes the confusion out and makes the complicated look simple. Using flowcharts to describe this very same flow of tasks can dramatically reduce the learning curve.
Here's an example of how you could use shapes, lines, and text to build a chart:
- The shapes (such as rectangles, circles, or diamonds) represent each step or decision point in the process.
- The lines show the continuity of the process, demonstrating the paths the user should follow.
- The text briefly describes each part of the process. Follow along on this simple flowchart:
That's all there is to it! Creating flowcharts is not hard; certainly not as hard as trying to explain a five or ten step process to a co-worker.
Bill Patton Sr. is a founder of Patton & Patton Software Corp.
