In the March 2011 newsletter, we asked our customers whether they use multiple arrowheads on combined homeruns or not. Using a single arrowhead was the most common response, but it was not an overwhelming majority.
We also asked how important this graphic standard was. No one was willing to say they would stop using our software if we did not support their standard, though most would not be happy if forced to use the other option.
The importance does depend upon which graphic standard is used. The respondents who use a single arrowhead were evenly distributed between the various choices. However, the respondents who use multiple arrowheads felt much more strongly about the importance of using multiple arrowheads. None of them would be happy changing to a single arrowhead.
We also included an open comment box. The first response left was, “I don’t use homeruns, they are messy and unnecessary.” We didn’t include that as an option in the survey, but fortunately you can do that with our software!
The other three comments were all from respondents who use a single arrowhead and felt that multiple arrowheads added unnecessary clutter to the drawings. These comments reflect a common tension that exists in graphic standards, particularly for electrical: the need to include lots of information on the plan versus the need to keep the plan readable.