Symptoms

The Define Styles and Style commands do not appear on the Format menu.

Cause

In Microsoft Office Visio 2007, the Define Styles and Style commands are hidden unless you turn on developer mode.

Resolution

You can use the Themes feature in Office Visio 2007 to apply built-in or custom styles. You can also use the style commands in developer mode to set specific style details, such as bullet styles or character spacing.

Turn on developer mode

1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
2. On the Advanced tab, under Advanced Options, select the Run in developer mode check box.

The Style and Define Styles commands appear on the Format menu.

 Note   Turning on developer mode makes additional features available, but it does not change your drawing.

Apply a theme

A theme is a set of colors and effects that you can apply to a drawing. There are many predefined themes available, but it is easy to create a custom theme as well.

A theme has two parts:

• Theme colors — a set of colors designed to work well together
• Theme effects — a set of effects for font, fills, shadows, lines, and connectors

You can mix and match theme colors and effects in any combination.

Apply a theme

1. On the Format menu, click Theme. The Theme - Colors task pane opens by default.
2. Do one of the following:
   • To apply a theme color to the current drawing page, right-click a thumbnail, and then click Apply to Current Page on the shortcut menu.
   • To apply a theme color to all of the pages in your drawing, right-click a thumbnail, and then click Apply to All Pages on the shortcut menu.
3. To open the Theme - Effects task pane, click the Theme - Colors list, and then click Theme - Effects.
• To apply a theme effect to the current drawing page, right-click a thumbnail, and then click Apply to Current Page on the shortcut menu.
• To apply a theme effect to all of the pages in your drawing, right-click a thumbnail, and then click Apply to All Pages on the shortcut menu.

Create a custom theme

1. In the Theme task pane, click New theme colors or New theme effects.

    Note   If you don’t see the Theme task pane, on the Format menu, click Theme.

2. In the New Theme Colors or New Theme Effects dialog box, choose the colors or effects you want, and then click OK.
3. Follow the steps in Apply a theme.

 Tip   Before you create a custom theme, first apply a theme that is similar to the theme you want to create. Then, when you open the New Theme Colors or New Theme Effects dialog box, most of your choices will already have been made.