[Update: April 15, 2004]   Microsoft Releases Royalty-Free XML Reference Schema for Office Visio 2003.    Microsoft has announced incorporation of the DataDiagramML XML Schema used by Microsoft Office Visio 2003 into the Microsoft Open and Royalty-Free Office 2003 XML reference schema program, announced in November 2003. Visio 2003 is a drawing and diagramming solution that helps users transform business and technical concepts into visual diagrams, automatically creating database diagrams, UML software diagrams, Web maps, timelines, calendars, organizational charts, and related types using data within other tools. Because the DatadiagramML XML Schema defines a text-based format, the user "can take advantage of all the text-based tools available for document management, including text utilities for archiving, differencing, searching, indexing, or versioning. One can create a multifile utility to search all the text in a DatadiagramML documents without running Visio; index files and search on more than just document properties; post DatadiagramML files on the Web to easily share data; and retrieve data embedded in the documents and run offline data processing and data analyzing applications." Microsoft has provided documentation for use of the DataDiagramML schema, together with a royalty-free license, so that "customers and partners can take advantage of the XML schema in its diagramming and data visualization tool. The availability of the Visio schema builds on Microsoft's commitment to XML by providing a complete and W3C-compliant description of the Visio Extensible Markup Language (XML) file format, enabling organizations to access information captured in their Visio diagrams and use it with other XML-enabled applications, such as customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, as part of their business processes.

[May 05, 2001] Microsoft Corporation has released a new version of its Visio 2002 drawing and diagramming software to manufacturing companies with new XML capabilities and support for Component Object Model (COM) add-ins. "Based on Extensible Markup Language syntax, the XML for Visio format allows developers to create tools for searching and indexing, revision tracking, and version control. This new format gives Visio data synergy with new Web tools, better archival data format, and an open exchange of Visio data with other XML-enabled applications. XML for Visio is capable of describing Visio data with as much fidelity as VSD format, and is intended to provide open access to data in Visio and to enable more open exchange of Visio data with other applications. In addition, by using the 'Save as Web Page' feature, users can publish Visio drawings to the Web and at the same time generate a XML for Visio file that will permit round-tripping-re-opening the file in Visio without loss of data. The XML for Visio format requires considerable complexity; however, developers who have a knowledge of Visio (the Automation and ShapeSheet models in particular) will have no trouble understanding the format and, with a reasonable amount of effort, writing software that uses it. The XML for Visio schema is organized so that individual shapes and masters can be represented without requiring the complete document structure. In practice, this means that Visio can both emit individual objects as XML for Visio data and read in and merge such objects. XML for Visio is extensible with SolutionXML; Visio solutions can save data in XML format into the XML for Visio stream and access it using standard XML tools externally to Visio, or from within Visio at runtime."

From the announcement 2001-04-25: "Microsoft Corp. announced the release to manufacturing of Microsoft Visio 2002 drawing and diagramming software, the first new version of the product developed by Microsoft since the company acquired Visio Corp. last year. Industry partners and early evaluators are calling Visio 2002 a significant step forward in business diagramming and technical drawing software, applauding the product's Web integration, closer alignment with Microsoft Office and other Microsoft products, and adoption of industry standards... ISVs and other solution providers are finding it easier and faster to build products and customized solutions on top of the Visio 2002-based development platform, thanks in part to new Extensible Markup Language (XML) capabilities and support for Component Object Model (COM) add-ins."

"XML for Visio Schema and Specifications - Visio 2002 Beta." From MSDN Online. "This schema and specification describes a new file format for native data in Visio 2002. An XML for Visio file is an XML document that contains all of the components of a binary VSD file. An XML for Visio file, like a VSD file, contains document-level containers and hierarchical containers of other containers. This specification describes a new file format for native data in Microsoft Visio. This new format, called XML for Visio, is based on XML (eXtensible Markup Language) syntax, is capable of describing Visio data with as much fidelity as VSD format, and is intended to provide open access to data in Visio and to enable more open exchange of Visio data with other applications. In addition, by using the Save as Web Page feature, users can publish Visio drawings to the Web and at the same time generate a XML for Visio file that will permit round-tripping-re-opening the file in Visio without loss of data. The following list provides a brief summary of some of the most important features of the XML for Visio format: (1) Full Fidelity - The XML for Visio format offers full-fidelity: that is to say, it is possible to write any Visio document as a XML for Visio file and read it back in to the same version of Visio without data loss. (2) Understandable by developers - In order to offer full fidelity, the XML for Visio format requires considerable complexity. However, developers who have a knowledge of Visio (the Automation and ShapeSheet models in particular) will have no trouble understanding the format and, with a reasonable amount of effort, writing software that uses it. (3) Represents complete documents or individual shapes or other data - The XML for Visio schema is organized so that individual shapes and masters can be represented without requiring the complete document structure. In practice, this means that Visio can both emit individual objects as XML for Visio data and read in and merge such objects. (4) Extensible with SolutionXML - XML is an increasingly important format for storing all types of data. Visio solutions can save data in XML format into the XML for Visio stream and access it using standard XML tools externally to Visio, or from within Visio at runtime... Visio namespace: xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:visio". The default namespace will be the XML for Visio schema namespace. Any SolutionXML data or unknown XML data that appears within a XML for Visio file must also be prefixed with its own namespace. Visio will not attempt to process elements that are not within the default or o: namespace; it will cache those elements and save them back to the XML for Visio file..."

See the 'VisioDocument' XML schema (XDR), and context. From the self-extracting executable.

See also: VisioModeler 3.1. Microsoft Unsupported Product Edition. "If you use the Microsoft Visio 2000 Enterprise Edition to create Object Role Modeling (ORM) conceptual information models, you may want to download Microsoft VisioModeler. Using the Microsoft VisioModeler program, you can display several ORM constructs in diagram form -- for example, nested relationships and any constraint other than internal uniqueness or simple mandatory -- that you can't currently display in Microsoft Visio. You can export models you build with VisioModeler to Microsoft Visio 2000 Enterprise Edition to take advantage of updated database drives and other features. No further development is planned for the Microsoft VisioModeler program, which is now [03/01/2001] classified as an unsupported product. A future modeling solution based on the Microsoft Visio engine will support most of the ORM constructs..." 25 MB, requiures Windows 9x, Windows NT, or Windows 2000. Download ['MSVM31.EXE']. Reference: Object Role Modeling (ORM) web site.