Flow Charting Tools : Free and Open Source

The flowchart is a means of visually presenting the flow of data through an information processing systems, the operations performed within the system and the sequence in which they are performed. In this lesson, we shall concern ourselves with the program flowchart, which describes what operations (and in what sequence) are required to solve a given problem.


The program flowchart can be likened to the blueprint of a building. As we know a designer draws a blueprint before starting construction on a building. Similarly, a programmer prefers to draw a flowchart prior to writing a computer program.

American National Standard Flow Chart Symbols


Gliffy is a free web-based diagram editor to create, share, and collaborate on a wide range of diagrams.
http://www.gliffy.com/


Project Draw is a free web-based diagram editor to create basic network, flowchart or quick form layout diagrams.
http://draw.labs.autodesk.com/ADDraw/draw.html


DIA is a desktop application on Windows and Linux to draw E-R diagrams, flowcharts.
http://live.gnome.org/Dia




MEANING OF A FLOWCHART

• A flowchart is a diagrammatic representation that illustrates the sequence of operations to be performed to get the solution of a problem.
  
• Flowcharts are generally drawn in the early stages of formulating computer solutions. Flowcharts facilitate communication between programmers and business people.
  
• Flowcharts play a vital role in the programming of a problem and are quite helpful in understanding the logic of complicated and lengthy problems.
  
• Once the flowchart is drawn, it becomes easy to write the program in any high level language. Often we see how flowcharts are helpful in explaining the program to others.
  
• Flowchart is a must for the better documentation of a complex program.
  
  Examples
  
  
  Source : eDrawSoft