Planning your first flowchart with introduction to operators

          

Flowchart symbols

Here are some of the common flowchart symbols.
Terminal/Terminatorterminal
Processprocess
Decisiondecision
Documentdocument
Data, or Input/Outputdata
Stored Datastored data
Flow Arrowflow arrow
Comment or Annotationcomment
Predefined processpredefined process
On-page connector/referenceon-page connector
Off-page connector/reference off-page connector

Flowcharts for computer programming/algorithms

As a visual representation of data flow, flowcharts are useful in writing a program or algorithm and explaining it to others or collaborating with them on it. You can use a flowchart to spell out the logic behind a program before ever starting to code the automated process. It can help to organize big-picture thinking and provide a guide when it comes time to code. More specifically, flowcharts can:
  • Demonstrate the way code is organized.
  • Visualize the execution of code within a program.
  • Show the structure of a website or application.
  • Understand how users navigate a website or program.
Often, programmers may write pseudocode, a combination of natural language and computer language able to be read by people. This may allow greater detail than the flowchart and serve either as a replacement for the flowchart or as a next step to actual code.
Related diagrams used in computer software include:
  • Unified Modeling Language (UML): This is a general-purpose language used in software engineering for modeling.
  • Nassi-Shneiderman Diagrams: Used for structured computer programming. Named after Isaac Nassi and Ben Shneiderman, who developed it in 1972 at SUNY-Stony Brook. Also called Structograms.
  • DRAKON charts: DRAKON is an algorithmic visual programming language used to produce flowcharts.
database flowchart

How to plan and draw a basic flowchart

  1. Define your purpose and scope. What do you hope to accomplish? Are you studying the right things with appropriate start and end points to accomplish that purpose? Be detailed enough in your research but simple enough in your charting to communicate with your intended audience.
  2. Identify the tasks in chronological order. This might involve talking to participants, observing a process and/or reviewing any existing documentation. You might write out the steps in note form, or begin a rough chart.
  3. Organize them by type and corresponding shape, such as process, decision, data, inputs or outputs.
  4. Draw your chart, either sketching by hand or using a program such as Lucidchart.
  5. Confirm your flowchart, walking through the steps with people who participate in the process. Observe the process to make sure you haven’t missed anything important to your purpose.

More flowchart tips

  • Keep your audience in mind and gear the detail in your chart to them. Clear communication is a key goal of flowcharts.
  • If the process you are charting involves different teams or departments, consider using a Swimlane Diagram to clearly delineate responsibilities and handoffs.
  • Use on-page or off-page connectors to “edit” your chart and make it flow logically. This can allow you to break up a chart into separate pages and still flow well.

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