Improving process layout

As you add elements to your process diagram, Blueworks Live automatically lays out the elements according to a default layout algorithm. You can change this layout in several ways to customize your diagram.

• By default, new elements are inserted to the right of the previous element in the same swimlane. You can drag an activity below or above the previous activity to lay out sequential activities vertically by dragging the activity to the desired position until the gray positioning bar appears and dropping the element in its new location. You cannot place an activity in a location that is further left than a preceding activity or further right than a following activity.
• When you are authoring gateways with multiple outgoing paths, the default layout of the paths might become cluttered and difficult to read as you add more flows. To realign the outgoing parallel paths, right-click the gateway and select Align Parallel Flows.
• You can move the labels relative to the lines on your diagram to make them easier to read. Click and drag the label, and a green box appears. Drag it and drop it in another position in the same swimlane.
  • For vertical lines, move the label along the line, or to the right, left, or center of the line.
  • For horizontal lines, move the label along the line, or to above or below the line.
• You can choose to dock a connection at different points on a diagram element, such as an activity, gateway, endpoint, or collapsed subprocess. Click a line that connects two elements and you see small icons on each end.
  
  If you drag one of these docking point icons, you see the available docking points for the line.
  
• You can maintain elements in the same position by pinning them. Right-click an element and select Pin Activity, or select and right-click a group of elements and select Pin. Pinned elements in a diagram are shown with a surrounding aura.
  
  These elements retain their pinned position whenever possible, even if you modify the diagram, until you select Unpin. However, certain modifications to the diagram, including creating a subprocess that contains pinned elements, causes them to unpin and revert to their default layout positions.
• You can undo any layout customizations that you made and revert to the default layout by right-clicking the background of your diagram and selecting Reset Layout. Pinned elements do not move.

Prefer to watch?

Watch this short video about customizing process layouts.

Read a transcript of this video.

For more videos, visit Big Blue Helps and go to the playlist "How to use IBM Blueworks Live."