Although Microsoft has been officially releasing Microsoft Office (e.g Word, Excel, PowerPoint) for Mac, Microsoft still does not release Visio for Mac, at least until now. Since I work as a network administrator, Microsoft Visio is very important for me to draw network diagram / topology. Visio Online Plan 2 includes Visio desktop, Visio Online, and 2GB of OneDrive storage, making it our most powerful diagramming suite. It’s best for professional diagramming needs. Visio desktop comes with a robust library of built-in and third-party templates and shapes, as well as integrated collaboration tools. The Visual Studio for Mac debugger lets you step inside your code by setting Breakpoints, Step Over statements, Step Into and Out of functions, and inspect the current state of the code stack through powerful visualizations.
Microsoft Visio is a professional diagramming and vector graphics application which was first introduced in 1992 and is part of the Microsoft Office family since 2000. Like most Microsoft products, Visio for Mac doesn’t exist, but following are some of the best professional alternatives to Microsoft Visio for Mac users.
You can try these products on most of the recent Mac OS X versions such as Yosemite, Mountain Lion and Lion OS X. You can check similar post about MS Publisher alternatives for Mac here.
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Best Alternatives to Visio for Mac
OmniGraffle Pro
OmniGraffle Pro is a professional diagramming application made by The Omni group and available only on Mac OS X and the iPad. It is a very powerful and user friendly alternative to Microsoft Visio for Mac and in some areas, it offers even more features than Microsoft Visio itself. OmniGraffle Pro is easier to use than Microsoft Visio and the Pro version allow the users to import and export Visio files. It supports all Visio formats including .vsd, .vst and .vss files.
A drawback of OmniGraffle Pro is that it is not as precise as Microsoft Visio and lacks the fine tuning of shapes and objects that Visio offers. OmniGraffle Pro also lacks integration of CAD and features like DWG or DXF (AutoDesk file formats). OmniGraffle Pro is available at Mac App Store for $99 and the iPad version costs $49.99.
ConceptDraw Pro
ConceptDraw Pro is a professional diagramming application which is used for creating business graphics diagrams, flowcharts and infographics. It was first introduced in 1999 and developed by CS Odessa for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X platform. It is mostly used by professional designers working in a CAD environment. It includes lots of different keyboard shortcuts for ease of access. Like OmniGraffle Pro, it also allows the users to import and export Visio files. It offers tons of templates in different categories including landscaping, engineering, management and sciences.
ConceptDraw Pro is a great alternative to Visio for Mac users as it offers more features and can easily handle the most demanding professional needs. It also offers a ConceptDraw Solution Park, which greatly extends the capabilities of the application. ConceptDraw Pro is available at Mac App Store for $199 and a single license is valid for both Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows. Although it is harder to learn, but users are satisfied with it as an alternative to Visio for Mac.
LucidChart for Mac
Lucidchart is a web-based diagramming application with a drag and drop web interface which allows users to draw any kind of diagram. It was introduced in 2008 by Lucid Software Inc and it allows the users to create flowcharts, organizational charts, UML designs and many other diagram types. LucidChart supports all latest web browsers, including Google Chrome, Firefox and Safari.
LucidChart is a cloud based application and it is fully integrated with Google Drive and Microsoft Office 2013. It supports both import and export of Visio files. One of the main features of LucidChart is that it allows multiple users to work on the same file as a team. LucidChart is a diagramming application for a variety of professionals, including designers, executives and engineers. Being a web-based application, LucidChart is very light, free of bloatware and one of the best alternatives to Visio for Mac users. LucidChart offers a free limited version for single users, but to use all the features users must purchase monthly subscriptions.
CrossOver is a third party application/software, which make possible for you to install and run Windows based programs like Microsoft Visio on your Mac like any other Mac Applications.
Crossover comes with ‘easy to use’ user interface, following which anyone can install software like Microsoft Visio on their Mac OS, as well. So far, Crossover is the best solution to get Microsoft Visio on your Mac, as Microsoft has no plan to release any version of Visio for Mac users.
Here is a step by step instructions on how to install Microsoft Visio on Mac OS using Crossover:
Part – 01: Installing Crossover on your Mac.
At first, you must have crossover installed on your Mac, before you are going to install Microsoft Visio or any other windows application on your Mac machine. You can download the trial version of crossover, if you are not sure whether this software is worth buying or not. You can enjoy all features of Crossover for 14 days from that trial version. Follow the instructions below to install the trial version of Crossover on your Mac.
Step – 01: Go to the website: www.codeweavers.com, and click on the ‘Download free trial’ button.
Step – 02: Now, you have to provide your name and e-mail address once you clicked on the ‘Download Free Trial’ button. Click on the ‘Download Now’ button after you provide your name along with a valid e-mail address.
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Step – 03 Your download should be started in the meantime, and you can see the downloaded file in the ‘Downloads’ folder.
You can also check the official crossover installation guide from here, if you find any difficulties during the installation process.
Part – 02: Installing Microsoft Visio using Crossover
Once you are done with the installation part of Crossover on your Mac, now you can go for installing Microsoft Visio on your Mac OS through Crossover by following the steps given below:
Step – 01: Click on the ‘Compatibility’ link on the website: http://www.codeweavers.com
Step – 02: In the ‘Compatibility Center’ you can search your windows application by name, which you intend to install on Mac OS.
Step – 03: Type and search for ‘Microsoft Visio’ on the ‘compatibility Center’ and you will find this in the database entry for your application/software.
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Step – 04: After find and select ‘Microsoft Visio’, click on the orange colored and big ‘Install’ button. Now, you will be asked to download the ‘C4P’ installer file. Check for malware on mac. Click on ‘yes’ if Crossover asks you whether you want to open the file which you are going to download from the Internet.
Step – 05: Agree with the EULA, provide the product serial key for Microsoft Visio and your installation will be done within approximately 15 minutes. Wamp for mac.
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Step – 06: Crossover will generate a launcher icon for Microsoft Visio, click on which you can run that windows application on your Mac machine. What is lync for mac 2011.