The Mind Mapping Software Weblog

Mindjet releases new MindManager add-in for Microsoft Word 2007

Mindjet has released a new Word 2007 Map Editor for MindManager. It enables you to to share maps created in MindManager with colleagues and coworkers who use Microsoft Word 2007. They can open and edit the MindManager map embedded in the Word document file, and their changes will be reflected in the map when you re-open it in MindManager. This "round-trip" editing capability is made possible by Microsoft's adoption of open XML in its new Office 2007 suite, which includes Word 2007

The Word 2007 add-in installs a predefined set of MindManager icons, images, priorities, resources, and hierarchical structures into Word's new "ribbon" toolbars, helping to ensure a rich environment for collaboration and idea sharing. This new use of XML technology promises to revolutionize the ability of MindManager users to collaborate with colleagues who don't have the popular mind mapping software. It will also expose MindManager to a much larger audience of Office users, who previously would need to have the mind mapping program or a free file viewer installed on their PCs in order to view these visual maps.

The Word 2007 Map Editor is available for free from the Mindjet website.

Beta version of Buzan's new iMindMap now available for download

Tony Buzan's new mind mapping software program, iMindMap, is now available for download. This is a beta version, with the commercial version scheduled to ship some time in the near future. I downloaded and installed it, and it's pretty impressive.

As you might expect, iMindMap adheres closely to Tony's rules of mind mapping - and I mean that in a good way. Creating maps is a unique, almost organic process. You first create a central topic, which has a red dot in the middle of it. Drag away from that dot, and a curved map branch springs to life. Begin typing, and a little window automatically pops up to capture your branch label. It's all very intuitive. You can easily add notes and hyperlinks to branches, although there's very little visual feedback to indicate that a branch has such content (unless you mouse over it). iMindMap is also compatible with Tablet PCs and "smart" whiteboards, which makes it even more akin to creating a hand-drawn, traditional mind map.

The program's developers thoughtfully included some toggle (on/off) icons in iMindMap's toolbar, which makes it easy to select between automatic and free-hand branch shaping, text placement on branches (stretch to the length of the branch or position it near the end of each one), and branch auto-coloring. Very nice!

Editing your map is just as easy. Drag a selection point on a branch, and it instantly reshapes itself. Double-click on a branch, and a text box pops up, enabling you to edit the branch label. You can adjust the thickness and color of branches. You can add images to any branch; the program, when launched will contain a sizeable library of images and symbols that you can use to embellish your maps. I didn't see any evidence of them in this beta 1 version.

While you're creating your diagram in map view, a text view is maintaining an outline version of it in parallel. A presentation view is also available, which grays out the toolbars to minimize visual distractions. You can also use the F-11 key to display only your map, ideal for presenting it to others. I didn't see any option to expand or collapse sub-branches, though...

All things considered, this is a fine first effort from the Buzan organization. iMindMap provides a solid feature set, without any quirky behavior - quite an accomplishment! I can't wait to see what the full version will offer. No pricing is mentioned on the website. A free trial/beta version is available for download (the website says it's a 30-day evaluation, but the program only says 21 days - a minor point).

If you're interested in checking out iMindMap, be sure to explore the product's website. It contains a 4-5 minute video of Tony Buzan, who explains the thinking behind this project. There's also an extensive set of iMindMap video tutorials coming soon. Kudos to Tony and his crew for creating a highly functional, easy-to-use mind mapping program!

MatchWare launches OpenMind 2.0 Business Edition

MatchWare, the developer of the OpenMind mind mapping software program, last week announced the launch of version 2.0 Business Edition. This update incorporates many new and improved features, including:

• The ability to add task information to your maps
• Microsoft Outlook import, export and synchronization of tasks
• A built in GANTT (project management) chart view
• Microsoft Project import and export
• XML import and export (which means that it can read MindManager files, among other things)
• New business templates
• A new OpenMind 2 Business file viewer

I downloaded the trial version and have had a chance to play around with it. It's quite impressive. I don't recall what version 1.0 looked like, but clearly MatchWare has aggressively set it sights on the needs of business mapping users with version 2.0!

A closer look at Norah Bolton's new e-book

A few days ago, I told you about Norah Bolton's new visual mapping e-book, See What You Think! How to Work Better and Faster with VisiMap. I've now had a chance to dig into it a bit more, and I think it's a great resource for users of any mind mapping program. This new resource is filled with practical examples of mind mapping in action (both hand drawn and software produced), and Norah almost waxes lyrical talking about how visual mapping represents a new "language" for communicating ideas:

"If our tools change the way we think, visual mapping is an entry into the much larger framework of thought that has unfolded before our very eyes. In the same way that learning to print was a step on the way to learning to write, visual mapping can be a way to understand what is going on in the new knowledge based world and the way that information is structured and connected... A visual mapping perspective reminds us that our ability to make links and connections, to explore and to make connections is infinite."

I've always been an avid user of software tools, but I've never given that much thought to the fact that they actually enhance the ways in which I think. Seen from that perspective, visual mapping is literally a new language, a language of thoughts and ideas. Norah uses this fascinating quote from Margaret Boden, author of The Creative Mind, to reinforce this point:

"In general, problem solving is critically affected by the representation used by the problem solver... Some of the most important human creations have been new representational systems. These include Arabic numerals, chemical formula, or the staves, minims and crochets used by musicians... As well as recording new ideas for posterity, such languages may make them possible in the first place. For a written language can help us explore the implications of the ideas it represents."

In other words, seen as a type of language for representing ideas, visual mapping literally makes it possible for us to consider our ideas in powerful new ways that aren't possible when they are represented in the conventional linear fashion. Today's knowledge work increasingly demands that we be able to gather information from numerous sources, distill it and communicate it effectively to others, plus be a life-long learner in all areas of our lives. Visual mapping can help tremendously in all four roles.

You can purchase and download Norah's new e-book from her website or from the VisiMap site.

See What You Think: New e-book from VisiMap

Norah Bolton, founder and president of consulting firm Dynamic Thinking, has written an e-book entitled See What You Think! How to Work Better and Faster with VisiMap, which was just announced today by CoCo Systems, the developer of VisiMap. Its goal is to teach you how to use visual mapping in new ways to manage teams, develop projects, improve meetings and write, present, plan and sell more effectively. This full-color, 140-page e-book contains numerous illustrations and templates that you can use with VisiMap to study and work more effectively. The cost is USD $19.95, and you can order it here.

iMindMap: Coming soon from the Buzan organization

Thanks to alert reader Phil Chambers (author of the 101 Top Tips for Better Mind Maps book I recently told you about), I just learned that the Buzan organization is developing a new mind mapping program called iMindMap. Its website says that it will be Java-based, which means it will be able to run on just about any computing platform, and that it will enable users to create maps that look like they were hand drawn. Here's a list of product features. What's notable?

• iMindMap will support the drawing of maps on Tablet PCs and whiteboards
• Multiple images can be attached to a single branch
• Text on branches will follow the curves of the branch, and text can be stretched out or spaced to fit its length

The website says that iMindMap will be available "soon." I'm now writing to the Buzan organization to find out more, and I will let you know as soon as I hear something from them.

Mind mapping and knowledge harvesting

Gael Ltd., developers of MindGenius, offer a consulting service that helps companies to capture and organize and catalog its knowledge, as reported in the British publication eStrategiesEurope.

Knowledge management starts with knowledge capture, which article author Ralph Clark (CEO of Gael) explains is often the most daunting part of the process:

"Capturing the vast amounts of information gathered can be difficult too. It is impossible to make sense of a room covered in flip charts and Post-It notes. Collating the information afterwards is an arduous task and in many organisations is something that takes weeks or may be dropped due to the impossibility of the task."

As part of its intellectual harvesting service, Gael trains client executives on how to utilize MindGenius to quickly capture knowledge during employee input meetings, and then flexibly organize it in ways that make sense to the company. The article explains how one company, Bristow Helicopter, used this technique to identify areas of waste, streamline business processes and revitalize their business.

If you're looking at utilizing mind mapping for knowledge management, this is definitely a worthwhile read.

Selecting mind mapping software

How can you make an informed decision on which mind mapping software to purchase? The author of the Knowledge Mapping Blog walks us through his recent evaluation process, in which he looked at MindManager Pro, MindGenius, ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro, MindMapper and FreeMind.

As part of this selection process, he takes a set of performance criteria and uses it to score the performance of each program - a time-consuming but effective way to make a decision based on quantitative and qualitative factors. He also shows us where he got his inspiration for his performance criteria: an article written in 2004 by Abi James that compares several leading mind mapping programs and includes an extensive chart that you could use as a starting point (with your own set of criteria) to create a similar evaluation and comparison process. Great stuff!

By the way, I'm getting closer to completing my new e-book on how to select the right mind mapping software program for your needs. It will include mini-reviews of all of the major software programs, interviews with leading mind mapping experts and more. If you'd like to be informed when it's published, please send an e-mail to mindmap (at) innovationtools (dot) com.

101 Top Tips for Better Mind Maps

Phil Chambers recently shared with me his excellent book, 101 Top Tips for Better Mind Maps. Although it's focused on hand-drawn mind maps, much of its advice is also applicable to software-produced visual maps. Phil, who is a World Champion and International Grandmaster of mind mapping, has obviously put a lot of thought into this booklet, and you would do well to emulate the "best practices" he has assembled here. Several of the ideas that caught my attention include these:

• Use a photo or image as the center of your mind map, rather than a word or phrase.
• If you plan to use your mind map as a memory aid, limit the number of main branches to a maximum of 9. Research has shown that the human mind can simultaneously hold 7-plus-or-minus-2 pieces of information. Any more than this, and you will tend to get overwhelmed with information.
• When brainstorming, add some empty branches to your map if you feel "stuck." The brain will naturally try to fill in these gaps, and you will come up with as many ideas as you have empty branches.

This valuable mind mapping resource can be ordered here for £4.97 (approximately $9.45 USD).

Amazing new MindManager add-in: theRealizer

For a number of years, mind mapping software has been available to help businesspeople record and organize their ideas. But one area that this type of software hasn't really addressed is helping users to come up with new ideas. Until now.

theRealizer is a new MindManager add-in from Swedish developer Realize AB that solves this problem very elegantly. It installs a side panel into MindManager 6 that walks you through a step-by-step process for defining your challenge, generating ideas and prioritizing them.

During the challenge definition stage, theRealizer creates a new visual map with three subtopics: challenge, idea and prioritize. You can then select from a list of existing challenges, or create one of your own.

During the brainstorming step, the side panel not only displays a dialog box for adding ideas to your map, but you can also click on an icon to display "idea impulse" cards that contain statements or questions that will get your mind thinking in fresh, new directions (see the image, above right).

During the "prioritize" stage, theRealizer creates a pop-up window that enables you to plot your ideas on a four-quadrant grid, with the X-axis representing realism (how practical is this idea?) and the Y-axis representing the degree of the idea's creativity. You can also automatically add branches to your map to help you sort your ideas.

I downloaded and installed this add-in, which is currently free (I would guess that the developer will begin charging for it in the near future), and was very impressed with how the developers have implemented the side panel. It is used with great flexibility to provide instructions, a place for you to input ideas and as a tool to automatically add helpful branches and segments to your visual map.

Kudos to Realize AB on an important new creativity tool for Windows users. If you're a MindManager user, you've gotta see this add-in. It's quite good!