1.2 Options and Settings

Last updated May 21, 2026

We recommend adjusting several powerdraw and Microsoft Visio Settings to simplify the drawing environment and prevent certain Visio behaviours from interfering with your wellbore diagram construction.

Powerdraw Options

Open the powerdraw Add-ins tab in the ribbon toolbar and select Options.

The powerdraw Options dialog box contains two tabs.

1. General Tab

In the Startup section, uncheck both options:

• Show Help on program start
• Hide Visio macro security warning on program start

Disabling these prevents pop-up messages from appearing each time powerdraw starts.

Below this section is Default Page Units.

These settings are controlled by the templates themselves, so no changes are required here.

2. Icon Settings Tab

Tool On-Drop Settings

Uncheck the following options:

• Show Balloon
• Depth Tag

These features automatically add labels when icons are dropped onto the page. While useful in some cases, they can quickly clutter the drawing during early construction.

They can be turned on later if needed when adding final diagram details.

Tool Group Settings

Enable all three options in this section.

The Bottom-to-Top (Auto Product Details Order) setting controls the order of the product details table. Some users may prefer reversing this order depending on how they structure their diagrams.

Microsoft Visio Settings

Microsoft Visio is commonly used for creating flowcharts, organizational charts, and network diagrams. So, many of its default features are designed to automatically connect objects with lines. For wellbore diagrams these features are unnecessary and may interfere with drawing precision.

Open the Visio Options Panel

1. Open powerdraw
2. Select the File tab
3. Choose Options at the bottom of the left panel
4. Select the Advanced section

Disable Automatic Diagram Behaviors

Turn off the following options:

• Enable Live Dynamics
• Enable Connector Splitting

These features automatically adjust objects when connectors are used. Because wellbore diagrams are not connector-based diagrams, these settings can interfere with object placement.

Adjust Zoom Behavior

Turn off:

• Zoom to Scroll
• Center on Selection

Disabling these options allows the mouse scroll wheel to move smoothly up and down the page.

Zooming can then be controlled using a keyboard shortcut combined with the scroll wheel, which provides faster navigation when working on detailed diagrams.

This zoom method will be demonstrated in Lesson 1.1.3 Drawing Tips.

Adding a Custom Ribbon Tab

Creating a custom ribbon tab provides quick access to commands used for locking objects on the page.

This is particularly useful when working with embedded Excel tables, logos, or other objects that should not move or change size.

Create the Lock Tables Tab

Open Customize Ribbon in the Visio Options panel.

1. In the right-hand window, locate the Home tab
2. Click New Tab
3. Rename the tab Lock Tables

Inside this tab, create a New Group.

Add Commands to the Group

Select the New Group folder first.

In the left-hand window change the command list to All Commands.

Add the following commands:

• Insert Object
• Edit Object
• Protection

Use the Add button between the panels to place each command inside the new group.

Click OK to close the settings window.

Confirm the New Tab

You will return to the Visio interface.

You should now see the Lock Tables tab in the ribbon toolbar.

These commands will be used frequently when working with:

• Embedded Excel tables
• Imported graphics
• Company logos
• Other objects that should remain fixed in position

Customizing the Ribbon

This exercise also demonstrates how Visio commands can be added to the ribbon toolbar.

As you become more comfortable using Visio, you may choose to add other commands. However, when starting out, it is best to keep the toolbar simple and avoid excessive customization.

Final Step

After changing the settings:

1. Close Visio
2. Reopen powerdraw using the powerdraw Start icon

Always launch powerdraw first, not Visio.

Opening Powerdraw ensures that:

• The powerdraw Add-ins tab loads
• The powerdraw stencil library opens
• All drawing tools are available

Opening drawing files directly from File Explorer may launch Visio instead of powerdraw, which prevents these tools from loading correctly.

Common Problems

• Leaving balloon/depth tags on during early drawing cluttering the drawing
• Forgetting to disable Visio auto-behaviors
• Over-customizing the ribbon too early
• Not restarting powerdraw after changes