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Mind Mapping Software - What are the current top players now?
Renegade:
Check out this one:
http://www.thebrain.com
Free and paid. It's extremely capable.
Also:
http://www.mindmaple.com
I used to work for the company (ESTsoft), and I know their design philosophy. Pretty much if you need to ask about software, and they make it, that's what you want. They have an uncanny ability to create highly user-friendly software that you will be hard pressed to find anywhere else.
I still use ALTools from ESTsoft not because I used to work for them, but because it really is that easy and good to use. Every now and then I need to use something else, but it's pretty rare.
40hz:
Also:
http://www.mindmaple.com
-Renegade (October 07, 2014, 07:39 AM)
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I like MindMaple. I only wish they did a Linux version.
However, if you decide to go for the paid Pro version of MindMaple, be sure you look at the differences between the "lifetime" and "annual" licenses.
The "lifetime" @ $50 is good only for the life of a major version number. If they upgrade to a new major release, the lifetime license no longer applies. The "annual" license @ $10 does cover new major versions since it's essentially a subscription. It's all spelled out quite clearly on their website. But their 'lifetime' license may not mean what you think it does.
※ Minor version updates are updates that version number under the decimal point increases. For example, MindMaple v1.2 is a minor update for MindMaple v1.0. However, MindMaple v2.0 is regarded as a major update of MindMaple v1.0. Lifetime License will not update major updates, on the other hand, Annual License will during the license period
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I'm not criticizing (too much), other than for them being a little nuanced about what they consider 'lifetime' to be. I'd rather they called that license something other than "lifetime.". Because those terms are pretty much what most software developers call a 'standard' license.
For the record, a "lifetime" license that covers all current and future versions isn't a sustainable business model. I can understand MindMaple not offering such a thing. Because no company that wishes to remain in business can make such an offer. But I do take minor issue with companies that don't actually offer lifetime licenses (in the generally understood sense of the word "lifetime") call what they do offer by something it isn't.
Just my :two: anyway.
superboyac:
Man, a lot of these are good. I looked at the Mind Maple demo and it looks very nice, but there are several of these that are extremely similar and all very nice. Like MindManager...I like using this occasionally for more formal looking mindmaps...Mind Maple looks to be about 90% the same thing.
The Brain is also something I've tried, very fun program. But it didn't end up grabbing me and I lost interest. I'd use the Brain if I were to give a presentation about some convoluted ideas or something because it would be a really great visual. But for productive day to day work, I find it not as practical.
My problem with this category of software called "Mind Maps" or whatever...my main problem is that it needs one single center node/idea. Everything branches off a center point. It just seems too rigid for me, but I may be confusing brainstorming with mind maps. That center thing is the difference.
So why am I so high on Scapple? In Scapple, there is no center. You just put bubbles and text anywhere and connect them with lines. No organization, no outline or hierarchy. And it's simple...click and type. The disadvantage compared to other mind map software is that it doesn't have any fancy features like linking to documents, or embedding stuff, sophisticated visual options.
Again, I seem to have a personal confusion regarding the definition of mind map. What is that? A brainstorm? It seems to imply a center, that's all i know. the Brain is probably the most "mind map" thing I've found in the way it presents information (similar to how we think through connections). But scapple is the same with a more simple format. I like it better in that I can place things on the screen as i please, I don't have to fiddle around with the Brain's weird 3D space-universe.
mind map, brainstorm, flowchart, outline. :stars:
TaoPhoenix:
So why am I so high on Scapple? In Scapple, there is no center. You just put bubbles and text anywhere and connect them with lines. No organization, no outline or hierarchy. And it's simple...click and type. The disadvantage compared to other mind map software is that it doesn't have any fancy features like linking to documents, or embedding stuff, sophisticated visual options.
Again, I seem to have a personal confusion regarding the definition of mind map. What is that? A brainstorm? It seems to imply a center, that's all i know. the Brain is probably the most "mind map" thing I've found in the way it presents information (similar to how we think through connections). But scapple is the same with a more simple format. I like it better in that I can place things on the screen as i please, I don't have to fiddle around with the Brain's weird 3D space-universe.
mind map, brainstorm, flowchart, outline.
-superboyac (October 07, 2014, 11:35 AM)
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Hi Superboy.
I think these are fairly fuzzy related themes.
People extoll the features of what works for them. So forgive me that I just keep adapting the one I chose.
Just for discussion, you sound a bit concerned about hierarchy problems. It's a bit of a weird trade off. I disliked circles because to me they felt they were wasting space drawing circles, and it seemed above a certain amount of info, that model collapses entirely! (Let's just solve that, and call them rectangles, not to waste screen space on graphics.)
I think an aspect of this discussion depends on how good you are at meta-planning your layout. So let's say you're brainstorming/mindmapping ... say ... Ludum Dare stuff. So your first 20 rectangles are easy, you just sorta stick them somewhere. Then you discover you have stuff on the corners that all relates to each other. How do you get quasi-diagonal lines going without making a huge mess?
In choosing my text tree style, I just resorted to textual notes of "see also ___ ____ ___ ___". So you might have two copies of the info on main trees, and then those little links just have to be "see also" footnotes.
40hz:
I think there's too much emphasis on the public side (document, publishing, sharing) of MindMapping. To me, it was always a first-pass and highly personal sort of tool. And I don't find looking at other people's mind maps to be particularly informative or useful. Probably because I likely don't think the way somebody else does. And, to SB's point, the chosen center point for the map may not match what I consider to be the center point when examining the same topic.
FWIW, most times I mind map (which I do rarely), I'll do it on a large piece of 1/4" graph paper with a gel ink pen. I don't bother with colors. I'm not creating a work of art. Just something to help my thinking process get something done.
If I feel the even rarer urge to "pretty it up," I'll do it in FreeMind or something similar. For me, a mind map is a somewhat specialized process that fits some projects very well (e.g. exhibition, kiosk, menu or website design) very well, but misses the boat for most others. I don't see it as a general enough tool for the things I do to put a lot of time or effort into mastering it beyond how I use it now.
There's a bunch of Thinkertoys out there. Beyond a pen and a blank sheet of paper, I haven't found anything that fits all use cases for ideation, project planning, or info organizing. Not to say I haven't looked. But life is short and I have things to accomplish - so I abandoned the quest to find the perfect all-inclusive mind tool about 5 years ago. Now, I just use whatever I think fits best for what I'm up to.
Increasingly, pen and paper (or index card) seems to work best for what I do. YMMV. 8) :Thmbsup:
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