Excel Drawings:
How to use Excel as a Drawing Tool

Your Systems2win templates are written using Microsoft Excel.
Everything you already know about Excel, you can use with your Systems2win templates,
and everything you learn here, you can use with anything else you ever do with Excel.

Table of Contents

Working with Shapes
Working with Arrows and Connectors
Viewing & Printing

Also see:

Excel Training

Use "Ctrl+F" to find keywords

Additional Search Tips

Color conventions: Instructions for Excel 97-2003 are in green
Instructions for Excel 2007 follow in orange (only if different)

Working with Shapes

How to use Excel to create drawings without using Visio (13 min training video - turn on sound)

How to view help for any Systems2win shape

RIGHT-click edge of shape > Format Object or Picture > Web
Excel 2007: RIGHT-click edge of shape > Size and Properties > Alt Text

There in the Alt Text, you will find an explanation of what each shape is used for.

How to display the Drawing toolbar

View > Toolbars > Drawing

Tip: Play with Drawing Toolbar
to learn how to align shapes,
rotate, add new shapes, and more

Excel 2007: The Drawing Tools menu tab
appears at the very top of the window
whenever you select any drawing shape.
Click the Drawing Tools menu tab to
display the Drawing Tools ribbon.

Training & video:
How to make Office 2007 easier to use

Where to find Excel's standard palette of AutoShapes

Drawing toolbar > AutoShapes
Excel 2007: Insert > Shapes

Systems2win's standard palette of shapes

Systems2win menu > Copy AutoShape
Requires licensed version; not available in Trial version

Systems2win provides a standard palette of commonly used shapes, that can be quickly copied and pasted into any Excel document - to make it easy for your your people to give your company's documents a consistent and professional look and feel.

How to select an AutoShape

To select an AutoShape, hover your mouse pointer over the edge of the AutoShape
until your mouse cursor turns into a four-sided cross-arrows (like this )

Then either:

Click the left mouse button to select the shape
Right-click to open a pop-up window to format the AutoShape
Right-click and drag to copy or move the shape

Important to notice: If you click in the middle of an AutoShape that contains text - it will assume that you want to edit the text.
You need to click the edge to select the entire shape.

How to mass select a group of shapes

Option 1) Hold down the Ctrl key as you left-mouse-click the edge of multiple objects.
(Just like you select multiple objects in most other Windows applications.)

Option 2) Click the Select Objects arrow on the Drawing toolbar to toggle it "on"
Excel 2007: Home tab > Find and Select > Select Objects

The Select Objects arrow changes the way your mouse functions - to make it easier to select objects.

With the Select Objects arrow toggled on:
a) you can click anywhere on the object to select it. (you don't need to select just the edge of the shape).
b) you can draw a box around a group of shapes, and select everything in the box

To restore normal mouse functions...
either toggle the Select Objects Arrow OFF, or double-click any open space on your worksheet.

Because it is so frequently used...
we HIGHLY recommend adding the Select Objects arrow to your Quick Access Toolbar in Excel 2007.

How to copy & paste shapes and connectors

Regular copy & paste works 99% of the time:
Select the object, then Ctrl+C to copy and Ctrl+V to paste,
or any other favorite way you have for copying and pasting anything else in any typical Windows application, such as Edit > Copy...
If that doesn't work...
(for instance, if you use regular copy & paste to try to copy a straight arrow connector, it might paste as a collapsed tiny dot),
then use this alternate copy method that works 100% of the time:
RIGHT-click and drag the selected object, then select "copy here" from the menu that pops up when you release your RIGHT mouse after dragging

How to move shapes

Select the object, then drag.

Or use the arrow keys on your keyboard to "nudge" selected objects.

Tip: To prevent vertical or horizontal movement, hold down the Shift key while dragging.

How to resize a picture or shape

Right-click the picture or shape > Format Picture > Size tab
or Excel 2007: right-click > Size and Properties > Size tab

To keep the proportional ratio of height and width - left-click the image to select it, then left-click and drag the lower right corner of the image - keep holding down the left mouse as you drag to resize the image.

To make the image thinner or taller - left-click to select the image, then left-click and drag one of the white circles that appears in the middle of each edge of the shape.

How to reset picture size

Many shapes (including Link Icons) are set to move and size with cells. One big advantage is that these shapes are hidden when you hide a row or column, and reappear when the row or column is again unhidden.

Caution: Prior to version 5, it was especially easy for a shape's size to become distorted. (Yet another reason to keep your Annual Maintenance current)

To reset the original size of a picture or shape...

right-click > Format Picture > Size tab
or Excel 2007: right-click > Size and Properties > Size tab

then ensure that the checkbox for "Lock Aspect Ratio" is unchecked before you click the Reset button.

How to reduce image sizes

To reduce the total megabytes size of your Excel file, you will want to reduce the size of large images that you paste into Excel.

This is especially useful for the Job Instructions template.

Option 1) Compress pictures

In Excel 2002-2003: Double-click an image > Picture tab > Compress button
In Excel 2007: Double-click an image > Compress button

Huge time-saving tip:
Notice that you can choose to compress only selected pictures, or All pictures in document with one click of a button!

Training video - How to quickly compress image file sizes (1 min)

Option 2) Crop picture

In Excel 2003-2003: Double-click an image > Picture tab
In Excel 2007: Double-click an image

Choose what you want to crop, then select the Compress button

Option 3) Use image editing software

If you don't already own Photoshop or some other image editing software, you can always use the Paint program that comes free with Microsoft Windows. (Start > All Programs > Accessories > Paint)

Open your large image file in Paint, and select Image > Stretch Skew.
Enter the percent to which you want to shrink the image.

If you want to keep both a large and small size of the image, use File > Save As – and give your smaller image another name.

How to format an AutoShape or picture

If you right-click anywhere on a picture or on the edge of the AutoShape, a pop-up window will appear with many window tabs full of formatting options.

If you right-click within the text area of an AutoShape that contains text, a pop-up window will appear with only one window tab - allowing you to format the text.

How to edit text within an AutoShape

To enter text in a blank AutoShape - right-click > Edit Text.

To edit text that already exists in an AutoShape - simply left-click and start typing.

If this doesn't work, then either:
a) It is a picture, not an AutoShape, (and pictures don't support text), or
b) You are using Excel 2000 or lower, and this is a grouped AutoShape. You need to ungroup it, do your editing, then regroup it.

How to format an AutoShape to match the formatting of another AutoShape

Format Painter, ( on the Standard Toolbar, or Office 2007 Home tab),
can be used to apply the same formatting to match another AutoShape.

Click the shape with the desired formatting, then click the Format Painter button, then click the shape to which you want to apply the formatting.

Or to format a new AutoShape...

Right-click an existing AutoShape that has your desired formatting, and select Set AutoShape Defaults.
Office 2007: Set As Default AutoShape
Then add any new AutoShapes from Excel's standard palette, and your new AutoShapes will be formatted to match your AutoShape Defaults.

How to change an AutoShape to another shape

On the Drawing Toolbar... Draw > Change AutoShape
Office 2007: Drawing Tools > Edit Shape > Change Shape

How to add custom shapes

Simply Paste (Ctrl+V) any shape that has been copied to your clipboard.

Note: Sample worksheets do not allow custom shapes to be added.

Caution: If you are adding a shape to a master template, (not just a working document),
follow the instructions for how to personalize your Systems2win templates.

To rotate a shape

Simply use the green rotate handle.

Tip: You might need to zoom to a higher resolution for the rotate handle to appear.

Tip: If using Excel 2000 or lower, you can rotate AutoShapes, but can't rotate pictures.
Refer to known issues.

How to bring an object forward or backward

Some objects sit on top of other objects. For instance, a shape might be on top of a line, or a line might be on top of a shape.

To bring an object forward or backward, select one or more AutoShapes, then right-click the edge of one of the selected AutoShapes, then select Order, and choose Bring to Front or Send to Back.

How to group shapes so that they are treated as a single shape

Select all objects that you want to group together, then right-click and select Grouping > Group.

To ungroup shapes, right-click the grouped shape, then select Grouping > Ungroup.

Tip: Whenever you group, ungroup, or regroup, you need to reset Properties if don’t want the shapes to move and size with cells.
(This is true not only for the grouped or regrouped item, but ungrouped shapes also get reset to move and size with cells!)

Excel 2007 tip: Unlike earlier versions of Excel, you can't just select anywhere within the grouped shape. If you select an interior shape within a grouped shape, it treats it as if it was not grouped at all. So you need to carefully select the outermost "box" surrounding the grouped shape.

To change the Properties of a shape

to move or size with cells, or to lock or unlock the shape

Right-click > Format AutoShape > Properties tab
Excel 2007: Right-click > Size and Properties > Properties tab

Snap To Grid

On the Drawing Toolbar... Draw > Snap > To Grid. (Toggle it on or off.)
Excel 2007: Drawing Tools > Align > Snap to Grid. (Toggle it on or off.)

Snap To Grid Tips

Many shapes have been specially designed by Systems2win to fit perfectly within the grid - so that you can instantly resize all shapes in an entire column just by dragging the column width.
When using specially-sized snap-to shapes - always nudge the shape just a little to the RIGHT - rather than to the left.
It is wise to lay out most of your snap to grid shapes first - before adding connector arrows.

Working with Arrows and Connectors

How to attach connectors to shapes

so that the connectors move with the shape

Tip: Lines and arrows with green and red ends (when selected) are "connectors".
Lines and arrows with white ends do not stay connected to an object when it is moved.

On Systems2win templates, the standard palette of shapes will often contain identical-looking connecting and non-connecting lines and arrows..

Excel 2007: All lines and arrows are now connectors. The white ends turn red when connected.
The legacy non-connector arrows provided in the Systems2win stencil, however, still work as non-connector arrows.

How to:

Copy your chosen connector from the Systems2win palette of shapes.
Tip: Straight connectors sometimes paste as a tiny dot if you use regular copy & paste. If this happens, use our 100% method to copy.
Drag an end of a Connector to the place where you want it to connect to the AutoShape.
Tip: You can connect to any of the blue dots that appear when you hover a connector line near an object. Or use a Connector Diamond for special placement.
When the end of the Connector turns red and the AutoShape lights up for a moment - the Connector is now "connected" to the shape.

Option 2:

This method is not supported in Office 2007, but works in Office 2003 or lower.

Right-click your desired connector in the Systems2win palette of shapes, and select Set AutoShape Defaults.
Office 2007: Set As Default Line
Select your desired connector from Drawing Toolbar > AutoShapes > Connectors.
Office 2007: Drawing Tools > Elbow Connector.
Left-click the two objects you want to connect.

Connector Diamond

Systems2win menu > Copy AutoShape
includes a tiny Connector Diamond - which is a tiny object that can be used as an anchor point for connecting a connector arrow to an unusual place. (Perhaps you want your connector arrow to terminate in "open space", or to connect to a place on an object other than the blue connectors that are part of every shape.)

Tip: Consider grouping your Connector Diamond with a shape.

Change a Connector between straight, elbow, or curved

Right-click the Connector, and select your choice.

How to bend shapes

to create curved arrows or freeform circles

Right-click a shape that is already formatted the way you want your new shape to be,
then select Set AutoShape Defaults. Office 2007: Set As Default Line
then ...

a) To create a curved arrow or line...
select Drawing Toolbar > AutoShapes > Lines > Curve. Office 2007: Drawing Tools > Curve
Left click to start your line, and for each corner position. Enter to finish.

b) To create a freeform circle...
select Drawing Toolbar > AutoShapes > Lines > Freeform. Office 2007: Drawing Tools > Freeform
Draw your circle

Viewing and Printing

View in Page Break Preview

View > Page Break Preview

Tip: When viewing in Page Break Preview mode,
(rather than View > Normal),
you can simply drag the thick blue lines to change the Print Area.

How can I change the size of my drawing space?

Systems2win has defined your drawing canvas to automatically print on a single page, and has defined your AutoShapes to scale appropriately... so you can simply hide, unhide, delete, or insert rows and columns.

a) Rather than deleting, it is usually better to hide and unhide rows and columns.

b) To insert rows or columns, use Insert Copied Cells or Shift Down/Right and Copy
(Get out of the novice bad habit of using Insert > Rows)

c) Change row height or column width
(This is rarely your best option)

To resize a drawing in Word or PowerPoint

Format > Drawing Canvas > Size tab
Word 2007: Drawing Tools > Size

Caution: Don't just "pull the corners" of your drawing canvas, or you might be in for some rude surprises.

To resize the drawing space of an Excel Organization Chart

Refer to Org Chart training

Printing

File > Print

More printing tips

Excel Drawings: How to use Excel as a Drawing Tool