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Quotation Apprentice for Visio
What is Visio?
What kind of computer do I need to run the application?
What types of applications is Quotation Apprentice best suited for?
Can Quotation Apprentice run without Microsoft Visio?
Can I use shapes I've already created?
Can I use my existing AutoCAD drawings and blocks?
Can I use components and parts currently in my company's database?
Visio is a Microsoft product, and is considered an extension of
Microsoft Office. It is a drawing tool that makes it easy to assemble many
typical business drawings by dragging and dropping shapes off of stencils.
Different stencils focus on specific drawing applications (e.g. block diagrams,
floor plans, org charts), and many of these stencils revolve around different
engineering specialties (e.g. electrical, mechanical, process). Visio has what
is called 'smart shapes', which can store data and which connect to one another
in programmable ways. Every Visio shape is backed by a shapesheet – a
spreadsheet that tells the shape how to behave based on contained data. This
makes Visio a very powerful tool when enhanced with the knowledge modeling
capabilities provided by the Apprentice. Many deployed Apprentice applications
do not use Visio, but most Apprentice modeling tools use Visio as part of the
knowledge capture environment.
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What kind of computer do I need to run the application?
· 128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (64 MB minimum supported; may limit performance and some features)
· 50 megabytes (MB) of available hard disk space.
· Super VGA (800 x 600) or higher resolution video adapter and monitor
· Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device
· Microsoft Windows 2000 with Service Pack 3 (SP3) or later, or Windows XP or later
· Microsoft Visio Standard 2003 or later. (must be purchased separately).
· Microsoft .NET Framework V1.1 or later.
· Microsoft Office Access 2003 or later.
What types of applications is Quotation Apprentice best suited for?
If your company designs and quotes systems or projects that combine both parts, materials and/or labor, the pricing model and automation in Quotation Apprentice will save you significant time and effort.
If your company writes proposals that often contain diagrams as part of the communication and design effort, Quotation Apprentice for Visio is a good choice.
If your company utilizes rate-based pricing, where labor and materials are based on the size of items that are built/sold, as they are in the construction or landscaping industries, the pricing automation combined with interactive design in Visio can dramatically reduce the time and effort required to generate a proposal.
Can Quotation Apprentice run without Microsoft Visio?
Yes, the non-Visio version is Quotation Apprentice - Standard.
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Can I use shapes I've already created?
Yes, you can use your custom shapes as well as all the shapes in
the Visio library. Quotation Apprentice for Visio does a number of things
automatically to make your shapes work better in a design application, such as
applying movable text and placing the text at the bottom of the shape. We
also provide special treatment for 1D shapes that allow them to calculate areas
and have variable widths while behaving like a 1D shape (e.g. the paths and
walls in Landscaping).
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Can I use my existing AutoCAD drawings and blocks?
Yes. Visio lets you import graphics from AutoCAD and other
programs and turn them into smart shapes. The Apprentice can associate your
product knowledge with any Visio shape.
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Can I use components and parts currently in my company's database?
Yes, you can extract or link your own databases into the Quotation Apprentice database.
