The Mind Mapping Software Weblog

New MindManager add-in helps users manage tasks, projects more efficiently

Dr. Brian Friedlander, author of the The Assistive Technology Blog, has been covering mind mapping software a lot lately. His latest post is a Q&A interview with the developer of TPAssist 2007, a new add-in for MindManager that will be released on September 1. TPAssist takes MindManager's basic task management functionality, and adds to it such capabilities as automated task tree summarising, structured journal management, brainstorming to task tree creation, powerful project team tracking, plus automated integration with Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Excel.

One of the things that Brad Allen discovered when he tried to manage tasks in MindManager was that it was hard to get a consolidated view of all of his tasks, because they were scattered around the different branches of his map. So he wrote a program that "rolls up" (consolidates) them into a single view, which can then be exported to Excel in a tabular form to share with your colleagues.

TPAssist also offers journaling capabilities, so you can insert notes about your progress on any activity in your map. It tracks your activities by date.

TPAssist 2007 Outlook Integration synchronizes information between your mind map topics and Outlook Task and Appointment items. You can use this capability to drive reminders and also to access your current activities outside of MindManager. Outlook Tasks and Appointment items created by TPAssist 2007 can be used to "jump" directly into your mind maps.

This sounds like a great add-in for MindManager. I can't wait to try it!

Mind mapping featured at Office 2.0 conference

Here's a good sign that mind mapping software has "arrived" and is on the radar screen of computer industry pundits: It will be the subject of a panel discussion at the upcoming Office 2.0 conference in San Francisco, an event that will be focused on the future of online productivity and collaboration. Panelists will include Lisa Arthur, chief marketing officer of Mindjet, and Michael Hollauf, founder of MindMeister.

Here's how the conference website describes this panel discussion: "This panel will show how mindmapping tools can be used to support online collaboration. Mindmapping can help catalyze brainstorming at the start of a project, keep the big picture in view, and be used for project team collaboration. The panel will feature end-user experiences, Web 2.0 mindmapping, and mapping for building mashups and workflows."

The Mindjet Blog has more details on what Lisa will be speaking about, as well as how to register for what is certain to be a very interesting panel discussion! The Office 2.0 conference is September 5-7 in San Francisco, California.

New video capabilities for the Mind Mapping Software Blog

Earlier this week, I published my first video clip on YouTube, a 2-1/2 minute overview of what's available in my new e-book, Power Tips & Strategies for Mind Mapping Software Second Edition. It was produced using an application called Camtasia, which enables you to do a video capture of whatever is on your computer screen, convert a PowerPoint presentation into a video with sound, or to assemble a video based on still images and recorded audio. Here is a link to my presentation.

Now that I have this capability, watch for some new multimedia content to be added to this blog in the weeks and months ahead - such as video reviews of mind mapping software programs!

99 mind mapping resources, tools and tips

If you're looking for a comprehensive list of mind mapping-related links, then look no farther than Eric Hebert's new article, 99 Mind Mapping Resources, Tools and Tips, which does a great job of summarizing the relevant software programs, news pages, resource sites, mind map examples, articles, blogs, books, e-books and more. Wow!

CS Odessa launches ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 for Mac OS X

CS Odessa today announced the official launch of ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 for Mac OS X. Major changes in version 5 include:

• A new brainstorming mode, in which ideas are added as free-floating topics. These can then be freely rearranged using drag-and-drop or edited during the brainstorming session or after its completion.
• Improved map appearance - ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 offers smooth lines and text, along with gradient fills and transparency settings for any map element. This gives users greater control over the appearance of their maps.
• Improved support for project management - ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 for the Mac is compatible with all major Mac OS X project management software titles and MS Office. Support has been added for the MS Project XML file format, which allows data to be transferred between ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 to project management applications and back again.

ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 for Mac OS X is available at the price of US$199 for the professional edition and of US$119 for personal edition from the CS Odessa website.

10 mistakes to avoid with mind mapping software

Mind mapping software is a powerful tool for today's knowledge worker, a versatile platform for business planning and development. Because of its inherent flexibility - the way in which it "encapsulates" information and ideas so they can be easily manipulated, annotated and rearranged - nothing can equal a well-crafted visual map when it comes to communicating ideas and building consensus around them .

But like most types of productivity software, mind mapping software is a double-edged sword. It can just as easily be used to obscure ideas and confuse others. What's worse, a poorly-designed visual map can take an open-minded, left-brained person and completely turn them off to the idea of representing information and ideas visually.

To help ensure that your mind maps don't fall into this latter category, here are ten mistakes you should avoid when using mind mapping software to produce visual maps for your work:

1. Don't include too much detail in your mind maps. It's too easy to create topics with unnecessary amounts of detail, which tends to create visual "clutter" and may be confusing to others, if you share your maps with them.

2. Don't be arbitrary in your use of color, shapes, line styles and other visual elements of your map. Each of these can help to convey additional meaning or context, if used consistently and systematically. Used arbitrarily, they can cause confusion.

3. Avoid using too much text in your topics. Use specific keywords to draw your audience into the flow of your map. Keep your topic names short - 1 to 3 words maximum. If you want to add more detail, use your program's "notes" feature to store that information. This will keep it out of sight, reducing visual clutter, while still keeping it just one mouse click away.

4. Don't ignore your program's icons or symbols. They can be used to help visually classify your map's contents, and are extremely useful when you want to filter the contents of a large map.

5. Avoid over-use of visual mapping. Like anything, it's possible to take your mind mapping software to its logical extreme, even using it to create your shopping list.

6. Don't create one huge map with everything in it, because it will quickly become unmanageable. Instead, leverage your program's ability to create sub-maps - multiple linked maps, each of which are easier to understand and manipulate.

7. Don't just create text-based mind maps. To get the biggest benefit out of visual mapping, be sure to include images in your maps, which will help them to appeal to both sides of your brain.

8. Avoid “map shock.” An audience can be overwhelmed when viewing a complex visual map, and can experience “map shock.” Consider presenting information in both mapped and linear formats to avoid overwhelming your audience.

9. Avoid the conventional wisdom that mapping is simply about inspiration and creativity. It's actually so much more. It's a powerful tool for managing information overload, developing and implementing projects, making better decisions and has many other business benefits!

10. Avoid reinventing the wheel. Look online and in books for best practices and strategies.

Compiled from the new edition of my ebook, Power Tips & Strategies for Mind Mapping Software.

New Mindjet add-ins for MindManager 7

The development team at Mindjet Labs has been busy during the summer months, writing new add-ins to extend the functionality of the latest version of MindManager. Since August 1, six new applications have been posted to the Mindjet Labs MindManager 7 download page. They are:

• A map explorer for for MindManager Pro 7, which adds a vertical pane on the right side of the program's workspace, with your map displayed in an outline view
• OneNote 2007 integration with MindManager Pro 7, which enables you to create links from your MindManager maps to OneNote notebooks and pages, and to embed MindManager maps in your OneNote pages.
• A new version of the Research Accelerator for MindManager Pro 7 - this application adds a task pane that enables MindManager to pull in search results from desktop services such as Microsoft Windows Desktop Search and Google Desktop and online services like MSN, Yahoo, Google, Technorati, and Flickr.
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 add-in, which adds a project template to Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 for MindManager 7 Add-Ins built with C# and Visual Basic.Net.
• A requirements manager add-in, which enables you to use MindManager Pro 7 to develop software requirements
• An HTML help file builder

Interesting stuff! I'm definitely going to have to try out the research accelerator and the map explorer!

NovaMind Pro 4 for Windows now in beta testing

Gideon King, founder of NovaMind Software Pty., reports in his blog that NovaMind Pro 4 for Windows is now in beta testing. He hints that it will contain a "much improved user interface, better usability and many new features." If you want a sneak peek at what's planned for version 4.0, many details are revealed on the version 4 pre-release page of the NovaMind website.

One of the biggest areas of improvement will be the ribbon toolbar, which debuted in version 3.2 (you can read my review of it here). Gideon and his team did extensive usability testing, which helped them to regroup some of the toolbar functions in ways that are more logical to users.

Version 4.0 will also have some interesting "preview" capabilities. If you mouse over a map theme, for example, NovaMind 4 will temporarily apply it to your map, so you can get a "full size preview" of the visual impact it will have on your map. This is illustrated via a video clip on the NovaMind website.

Gideon hopes to release the final version of NovaMind Pro 4 for Windows in a few weeks. Watch for more details as soon as they become available, on this blog!

MindMeister announces release of its new developer API

MindMeister, one of the leading web-based mind mapping tools available today, yesterday announced the availability of the new MindMeister API - a set of programming standards that allows anyone to write applications that interact with MindMeister maps. To prove what's possible, the developer has posted two demonstration apps to its blog. Documentation for the API is also available.

What does this mean to visual mappers? We ought to see an explosion of "mashups" for MindMeister in the coming months, which combine features of MindMeister with other desktop and online applications. If you've seen all the different things that are being done with Google Maps, Flickr and other online services, then you know what I'm talking about!

MindManager 7 review gets to the core of why mind mapping software is so valuable

Kickstartnews.com just published a review of MindManager Pro 7, which was very positive, calling it "an unusually useful and amazingly creative product." But that's not what I want to highlight in this post. What's most significant here is what author Mark Goldstein has to say about the real value that mind mapping software provides to business people today. I think he has articulated this quite clearly (he mentions MindManager 7 repeatedly here, but keep in mind that his comments can also be applied to most commercially available mind mapping programs):

"We've been getting along just fine for all these years, developing plans and ideas, creating designs, making agendas and so on. So why on earth do we need to add yet another tool or layer to the process? The answer is unusually simple. In fact, for whatever business or effort you're involved in, MindManager Pro 7 can used to effectively and productively reduce the number of layers in your design, planning and development processes. Our view is that MindManager Pro 7, if you fully embrace it for use throughout your business (no matter what size business—from one employee to thousands), can provide a versatile foundation for planning and development. From simple maps such as meeting agendas and sales projections, to deeply complex expression of new ideas, MindManager Pro 7 provides you with ability to physically demonstrate the way in which you visualize a particular idea or plan. At its core therefore, MindManager Pro 7 is a tool to help others understand what you're thinking about, how you thought it up in the first place, and all the things you think are important and relate to the main point you're trying to make, thereby providing the means by which people can see your thoughts from your perspective. That's gold baby—pure gold."

To summarize, what Marks is saying here is this:

1. Mind mapping software is a versatile platform for business planning and development. Because of its inherent flexibility - the way in which it "encapsulates" information and ideas so they can be easily manipulated, annotated and rearranged - there isn't another genre of software that comes close!
2. Mind mapping software exposes the thinking behind your ideas, and places them in context with one another, which increases your ability to share them more effectively.

I couldn't have said it better myself!