Computer Tools for Crafting Clear and Attractive Diagrams in Social Science

Abstract

This article evaluates two categories of software with which diagrams can be created. Diagrambuilding programs are usable mainly for drawing simple figures such as flow charts, decision trees, and organization charts—essentially boxes containing labels connected to one another with lines. Inexpensive general-purpose drafting or computer-aided design (CAD) programs generate much more complex images with greater varieties of shapes. The evaluation criteria used are flexibility—variety of drawings that can be rendered; variety of built-in shapes; attractiveness of results; exportability; ease of operation; screen-printer agreement; ease of drawing a flow chart, simple graphics, and complex diagrams; and automatic line routing. All but one program are Windows -based, and most are relatively inexpensive.