Editing Flowchart (section)

== Building blocks ==
=== Common symbols ===
The [[American National Standards Institute]] (ANSI) set standards for flowcharts and their symbols in the 1960s.<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011">{{cite book|author1=Gary B. Shelly |author2=Misty E. Vermaat |title=Discovering Computers, Complete: Your Interactive Guide to the Digital World |url=https://archive.org/details/discoveringcompu00shel_187 |url-access=limited |date=2011 |publisher=Cengage Learning |isbn=978-1-111-53032-7 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/discoveringcompu00shel_187/page/n716 691]–693}}</ref> The [[International Organization for Standardization]] (ISO) adopted the ANSI symbols in 1970.<ref name="Myler1998">{{cite book|author=Harley R. Myler |title=Fundamentals of Engineering Programming with C and Fortran |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IisfMsdBe2IC&pg=PA32 |date=1998 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-62950-8 |pages=32–36|chapter=2.3 Flowcharts}}</ref> The current standard, '''ISO 5807''', was published in 1985 and last reviewed in 2019.<ref>{{cite web |title=ISO 5807:1985: Information processing — Documentation symbols and conventions for data, program and system flowcharts, program network charts and system resources charts |url=https://www.iso.org/standard/11955.html |publisher=International Organization for Standardization |date=February 1985 |access-date=23 July 2017}}</ref> Generally, flowcharts flow from top to bottom and left to right.<ref name="IBM1970">{{cite book |url=https://fulmanski.pl/zajecia/wdi/zajecia_20142015/materialy/IBM-FlowchartingTechniques-GC20-8152-1.pdf |title=Flowcharting Techniques GC20-8152-1 |date=March 1970 |publisher=IBM |page=10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211015061455/https://fulmanski.pl/zajecia/wdi/zajecia_20142015/materialy/IBM-FlowchartingTechniques-GC20-8152-1.pdf |archive-date=2021-10-15 |url-status=live}}</ref>
 
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! ANSI/ISO Shape
! Name
! Description
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Line.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Flowline (arrowhead)<ref name="Myler1998" />
| Shows the process's order of operation. A line coming from one symbol and pointing at another.<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /> Arrowheads are added if the flow is not the standard top-to-bottom, left-to right.<ref name="Myler1998" />
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Terminal.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Terminal<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" />
| Indicates the beginning and ending of a program or sub-process. Represented as a [[Stadium (geometry)|stadium]],<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /> oval or rounded (fillet) rectangle. They usually contain the word "Start" or "End", or another phrase signaling the start or end of a process, such as "submit inquiry" or "receive product".
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Process.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Process<ref name="Myler1998" />
| Represents a set of operations that changes value, form, or location of data. Represented as a [[rectangle]].<ref name="Myler1998" />
|- 
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Decision.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Decision<ref name="Myler1998" />
| Shows a conditional operation that determines which one of the two paths the program will take.<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /> The operation is commonly a yes/no question or true/false test. Represented as a diamond ([[rhombus]]).<ref name="Myler1998" />
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart IO.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Input/output<ref name="Myler1998" />
| Indicates the process of inputting and outputting data,<ref name="Myler1998" /> as in entering data or displaying results. Represented as a [[rhomboid]].<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /> 
|- 
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Annotation.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Annotation<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /> (comment)<ref name="Myler1998" />
| Indicating additional information about a step in the program. Represented as an open rectangle with a dashed or solid line connecting it to the corresponding symbol in the flowchart.<ref name="Myler1998" />
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Predefined Process.svg|100px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Predefined process<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" />
| Shows named process which is defined elsewhere. Represented as a rectangle with double-struck vertical edges.<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" />
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Flowchart Connector.svg|50px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | On-page connector<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" />
| Pairs of labeled connectors replace long or confusing lines on a flowchart page. Represented by a small circle with a letter inside.<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /><ref name=RFF>{{cite web |title=What do the different flowchart shapes mean? |url=https://www.rff.com/flowchart_shapes.php |publisher=RFF Electronics |access-date=23 July 2017}}</ref>
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Off page connector.png|50px]]
| style="text-align: center;" | Off-page connector<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" />
| A labeled connector for use when the target is on another page. Represented as a [[Baseball field#Home base|home plate]]-shaped [[pentagon]].<ref name="ShellyVermaat2011" /><ref name=RFF />
|}

=== Other symbols ===
The ANSI/ISO standards include symbols beyond the basic shapes. Some are:<ref name=IBM1970 /><ref name=RFF />
{| class="wikitable"
!Shape
!Name
!Description
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |[[File:Flowchart_database.svg|54x54px|Flowchart database]]
| style="text-align: center;" |Data File or Database
|Data represented by a [[cylinder]] symbolizing a disk drive.
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |[[File:Flowchart_Document.svg|64x64px|Flowchart Document]]
| rowspan="2" style="text-align: center;" |Document
|Single documents represented as a [[rectangle]] with a wavy base.
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |[[File:Flowchart_Document_multiple.svg|64x64px|Flowchart Document multiple]]
|Multiple documents represented as a stack of rectangles with wavy bases.
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |[[File:Flowchar_Manual_input.svg|67x67px|Flowchar Manual input]]
| style="text-align: center;" |Manual operation
|Represented by a [[trapezoid]] with the longest parallel side at the top, to represent an operation or adjustment to process that can only be made manually.
|-
|[[File:Flowchart_manual_input.svg|66x66px|Flowchart manual input]]
| style="text-align: center;" |Manual input
|Represented by [[quadrilateral]], with the top irregularly sloping up from left to right, like the side view of a [[Computer keyboard|keyboard]].
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |[[File:Flowchart_Preparation.svg|70x70px|Flowchart Preparation]]
| style="text-align: center;" |Preparation or Initialization
|Represented by an elongated [[hexagon]], originally used for steps like setting a switch or initializing a routine.
|}

=== Parallel processing ===
*''[[Parallel computing|Parallel Mode]]'' is represented by two horizontal lines at the beginning or ending of simultaneous operations<ref name="IBM1970" />

For [[Parallel computing|parallel]] and [[Concurrent computing|concurrent]] processing the ''Parallel Mode'' horizontal lines<ref name="Valvano2011">{{cite book |author=Jonathan W. Valvano |title=Embedded Microcomputer Systems: Real Time Interfacing |date=2011 |publisher=Cengage Learning |isbn=978-1-111-42625-5 |pages=131–132 }}</ref> or a horizontal bar<ref name="Nakatsu2009">{{cite book |author=Robbie T. Nakatsu |title=Reasoning with Diagrams: Decision-Making and Problem-Solving with Diagrams |date=2009 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-470-40072-2 |pages=68–69}}</ref> indicate the start or end of a section of processes that can be done independently:
* At a ''[[Fork–join model|fork]]'', the process creates one or more additional processes, indicated by a bar with one incoming path and two or more outgoing paths. 
* At a ''join'', two or more processes continue as a single process, indicated by a bar with several incoming paths and one outgoing path. All processes must complete before the single process continues.<ref name="Nakatsu2009" />