I do much of my
mind-mapping using paper and pen but there’s no question that mind mapping
software can be extremely useful, especially if you want to incorporate your
mind maps into Power Point or Keynote presentations or include them in books,
handouts, etc. Here is a quick overview of some of the best mind mapping
software available:
Free
Compendium
– PC, Mac, Linus. The site says: Many people use Compendium to manage their personal digital information resources since you can drag+drop
in any document, website, email, image, etc, organise them visually, and then
connect ideas, arguments and decisions to these. Compentidum thus becomes the 'glue' that allows you to pool and make sense of disparate material that would otherwise remain fragmented in different software applications. You
can assign your own keyword 'tags' to these elements (icons), create your own
palettes of icons that have special meanings, overlay maps on top of background
images, and place/edit a given icon in many different places at once: things
don't always fit neatly into just one box in real life. The tutorials include
videos and exercises and shows you how the programme is being used within the
Open University. See www.compendium.ac.uk.
FreeMind
– PC, Mac, Linux. Somewhat barebones, but it’s free. Good if you need a minimum
of hand-holding. See www.freemind.sourceforge.net
Sort of free
TheBrain
–PC, Mac, Linux. TheBrain technology can be utilized on corporate intranets,
desktops, and the Internet. Some applications include: customer care, project
management, dynamic mind mapping, IT management and helpdesks, impact
assessment, competitive intelligence, marketing and sales support, and personal
information management. TheBrain has two primary products: PersonalBrain for individual users
and BrainEKP, an enterprise
knowledge platform for group collaboration. The interface is unusual in that
it’s a dynamic “floating” image and when you click on any of the links you have
created, that one moves to the center and you see the relationship of it to all
the other elements. You can try the latest version for 30 days; after that you
can pay ($259) to keep this version or revert to a free version with fewer
features. See www.thebrain.com.
Paid
Novamind
– PC, Mac – This is one of the best-established mind-mapping programmes and it
comes in several editions: NovaMind Express for schools, primary school pupils
and beginning Mind Mappers; NovaMind Pro for advanced Mind Mappers, senior
school and university students, coaches and general business use; NovaMind
Platinum for power Mind Mappers who want to make compelling presentations and
also for screenwriters, project planners and business people. They offer a
30-day free trial. After that, The NovaMind Pro costs $149 or £99.18, and the
Platinum version is $249 or £165.75 (the UK prices will fluctuate depending on
the exchange rate at the time you order).
Inspiration
– PC, Mac, Palm. This is the first mind mapping software I used and I still
like it even though it doesn’t have as many fancy features as some others. Its integrated
Diagram and Outline Views work together to help you organize concepts and
information from your desktop or laptop. Using highly effective graphic
organizers, Inspiration gives you a mental model to assist with analysis,
comparison, classification and evaluation of information. They also have a
version for kids. There’s a free 30 day trial, then the basic version costs $69
in download format. The US site is www.inspiration.com
and they have a list of dealers in other countries—at the UK dealer the price
is £59.
iMindmap
– PC, Mac, Linux. This software comes from the mind-mapping guru himself, Tony
Buzan, and it supports the guidelines he advocates, like putting no more than
one word or very short phrase on each branch, using colors and images. There
are four versions: elements, professional, ultimate, and ultimate plus, and
most of the features a personal user would want are in the two lower-price
levels. This includes editable text mode, the ability to attach data, and a
sketch tool, as well as exporting your maps in PDF. You can download a free
trial version. One license for the basic (elements) version is £49, one for the
pro is £99.
See
www.imindmap.com
Smartdraw
– Windows only. The USP of this
software is its large selection of templates, including flowcharts,
organisation charts, project charts, timelines, floor plans, landscape plans,
maps, presentations—70 different kinds of visuals. Using these can save you a
lot of time and would be very handy if you are preparing visuals for
presentations. The interface looks very easy to use. You can try it with a
trial download. The price of the personal version is $197 at the US site, £149
on a UK distributor site.
Omnigraffle
– Mac only (OSX 10.5). It features attractive charts and diagrams. MacWorld
said this about the Pro edition: While OmniGraffle Professional 4.0 is probably
overkill for simple diagrams, this fantastic program is a revelation for anyone
who needs to explain processes and concepts visually. A newer edition has just
been released. There is a free trial, then the standard edition costs $99.95,
the professional costs $199.95.
There are many
more that you can check out, by Googling them, including:
Mindgenius
Xmind
Mindjet
Visual-mind
The bottom line
My recommendations: if you want a simple interface, go for Inspiration. For
extensive functionality, go for NovaMind or Ominigraffle. But my top
recommendation is to take advantage of the free trial periods from whichever of
the above sound most appealing and then buy based on your own impressions and
experiences.