Computer Systems Odessa ConceptDraw V Professional review

Despite the V in the product name, this is the first version of ConceptDraw to have been actively promoted in the UK so it is, in effect, a brand new product.

It is promoted as an alternative to Microsoft's Visio, which means that it's a package for creating charts and diagrams using templates. However, like Visio, it also offers some of the functions of a standard drawing package such as CorelDraw (reviewed opposite) so you're not limited to the types of diagrams in the template libraries.

Drawing a diagram using the template approach involves dragging symbols to the page from one or more libraries and connecting them together. The connections are intelligent, so if you subsequently move some of the symbols, the connecting lines are redrawn to ensure that the diagram remains connected. There's a vast array of libraries covering diagram types from organisational charts and business diagrams through building plans and maps to software flow diagrams and electronic circuit diagrams.

Unfortunately, though, we found a number of glitches. Some symbols refused to be dragged on to the page and others, when on the page, became distorted when we tried to manipulate them. We later discovered that the unusable symbols were being positioned outside the drawing area, suggesting a problem with their definition in the library. An update should correct these issues.

The non-template approach to drawing is simply to build up diagrams using basic shapes such as lines, boxes, circles and the like. As with most drawing packages, shapes can be scaled and rotated, different line styles and fill patterns can be specified and objects grouped together. This is arguably more advanced than the equivalent function in Visio, but it's still basic compared to a fully featured drawing package such as CorelDraw.

Objects onscreen, either library symbols or basic shapes, are each defined by a table of parameters that you can edit manually. This is a powerful feature, allowing you to define, for example, some parameters as functions of others. Even so, this is very technical and it's questionable how many ordinary users will use it. A similarly sophisticated feature is the Basic-like scripting language, which can be used to extend the facilities.

In addition to the Professional Edition of ConceptDraw, there's a Standard Edition that costs around £130. The main omissions from the Standard Edition are templates for the more technical types of diagram such as electrical and mechanical engineering, building plans, software and network drawings. Also missing is support for the ConceptDraw Basic scripting language, connectivity to ODBC databases and AutoCAD DXF import.

In theory ConceptDraw V Professional is a fully featured alternative to Visio at an attractive price. Unfortunately, though, it is marred by a number of glitches in the libraries. When the update is available to correct these, ConceptDraw V will be an attractive proposition.