As a System Engineering Manager for a Cisco Systems partner in the Voice over IP Telephony industry, there is a constant need for visual diagrams of information.  This information often includes infrastructure such as routers, switches and IP phones but can also be logic flows for IVR (Interactive Voice Response) systems and how calls are treated coming into a customer's call center.  Until now such diagrams while "on the go" required my laptop and Microsoft Visio.  Now, thanks to Matter and Motions, all I need is my Windows Mobile device.

Matter and Motions has a terrific application named First Diagramming.  As the name suggest, First Diagramming allows you to create simple diagrams of decision making processes, flow charts or conceptual diagrams all within your Windows Mobile device.  The user interface is deceptively simple but this powerful application can make quick work of difficult logical flows and diagrams without having to drag out the laptop.

First Diagramming is installed via ActiveSync and requires approximately 1.5MB of storage space on your Pocket PC 2003, 2003SE or Windows Mobile 5 device.  The application can be stored in your device's main memory or on a storage card.  Along with the application a filter is installed to allow you to save your diagram files in formats such as BMP for easy transfer from computer to computer.

With the application installed and started, First Diagramming's user interface is clean, simple and easy to use.  Tap the New soft key to choose either a Simple Flowchart, a Concept Map or an empty diagram.  Depending on what you choose will determine what operations you can put into your diagram.

The Simple Flowchart, as the name suggests, allows you to create a quick but easy-to-use flowchart of any logical process.  To insert an object in your flowchart, tap the Insert and select the object to insert.  The symbols are universally recognized symbols for flowcharts, making your end file easy to understand for any reader of it.  Additionally with each object, you can edit the properties of it.  For example, you can change the color of the object, the text and font displayed in it and so forth.  This makes it much easier for a reader of the file to understand your logical flow.

Figure 2:  Use The Insert Menu To Insert Objects Into Your Flowchart

Figure 3:  You an Change The Properties Of Any Object In Your Diagram

Once you have inserted objects into your flowchart you can link them by tapping-and-holding an object and choosing the Link As menu.  The way an object can be linked to another object will depend on what type it is but linking functions the same by choosing the 2nd object you wish to link to the first.  Once this is done, an arrowed line is show between the objects.

Figure 4:  Linking To Another Object Is Done By Tapping-And-Holding The Object And Choosing The Link As Menu

Figure 5:  Two Linked Objects

Continue To Page 2...