How to create Visio diagrams from Oracle Sales Data

Automate the process of entering data into Visio diagrams and keeping your diagrams up to date with the CData ODBC Driver for Oracle Sales. The driver surfaces Oracle Sales data as an ODBC data source that can be accessed by applications with built-in ODBC support like Microsoft Office. This article shows how to create a simple diagram to start brainstorming about Visio projects linked to Oracle Sales data.

Connect to Oracle Sales as an ODBC Data Source

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Oracle Sales uses Basic authentication over SSL; after setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:

• Username: Set this to the user name that you use to log into your Oracle Cloud service.
• Password: Set this to your password.
• HostURL: Set this to the Web address (URL) of your Oracle Cloud service.

Connect Oracle Sales Data to Diagrams

Follow the steps below to use the Data Selector Wizard to import data into your diagram.

1. Open Visio and click File -> New. Open the Brainstorming template.
2. On the Data tab, click Custom Import and select Other OLEDB or ODBC data source. 👁 Selecting a data source
   
3. Select the ODBC option and select ODBC DSN.
4. Select the DSN for Oracle Sales, select the table you want to import, and finish the wizard. This article uses Opportunities as an example.

Link Oracle Sales Entities to Shapes

Follow the steps below to create a simple diagram that shows how to create shapes from your data, one of the ways to link Oracle Sales entities to shapes:

1. Click Brainstorming Shapes and drag a main topic onto the drawing page. Enter Opportunities as the text of the main topic.
2. Click Topic.
3. Select a row in the External Data window and drag it onto the drawing page.
4. Right-click the Topic shape and click Data -> Edit Data Graphic.
5. Click New Item.
6. In the Data Field menu, select a column. In the Displayed As menu, select how to display them. 👁 A data graphic for a column.
   
7. Drag a few other Oracle Sales entities onto the drawing page and add association lines back to the main topic, Opportunities. New topics have the same configuration: Numeric columns displayed in data bars stand out in contrast to other Opportunities entities. 👁 Brainstorming with external data. (Salesforce is shown.)
   

You can refresh your diagram from the Data tab, synchronizing your shapes with the external Oracle Sales data.