The Death of Mind Mapping...? programs that is

[George Wright]

Hi all,

I couldn't or at least let me say I would not want to go from point a to point z without a mind map of one kind or another.

As a kid I didn't know I was "mind mapping" but I would plan my day/week by making a list of things to do in circles and squares connected by lines.

When I got to college and started taking computer classes (think punch cards) I was introduced to a template that was for making flow charts and I quickly learned that this little tool was great for making my "lists."

I can't remember when I first heard the term "mind map," however I'm certain that it was long before I got my first PC. I loved the term "mind map," as it described perfectly and put a name to what I had been doing for so many years to keep my wandering mind on track for projects from planning a vacation to making a buck.

Sometime around the time I discovered the Warrior Forum I discovered mind mapping programs. My favorite one is freemind, one, because it works and two because it's free.

The things I don't like about mind mapping programs are One, I can't move thoughts around and connect them in different ways without redoing a lot of work, and Two the map is...

Boring!

You have two choices of "nodes" to put your thoughts in. Bubbles and no bubbles. As far as connecting lines go, there are no choices. You have straight lines and they have to go from thought to thought with no way to connect thought one to thought 25. BORING!

I have been longing for a long time for the "old days" when I mapped my mind using squares, triangles, cylinders, bubbles, and any number of other geometric shapes.

Many Many searches of the term "mind map" have never turned up a program that gave me the freedom to express my mind in a way that is as exciting as the old pencil and paper flow chart method.

FLOW CHART!

Of course, Flow Chart. This morning lightening struck. If I could find a program that would create a flow chart I could probably use it to mindmap.

I googled "free flow chart." That took me to Microsoft where they let me download a free flow chart template that works with exel.

The rest is history. Thanks to freemind for letting me continue to mind map on my PC it was nice, if boring. I will now uninstall freemind and from this day forward let my thoughts "flow."

This method took me about 10 minutes to figure out and it is FUN.

Maybe some other Warriors will like this as a mind mapping method.

Enjoy,

George Wright

[Jelasco]

I haven't seen how mind mapping is any better than pen and paper.

[George Wright]

I know Jelasco,

You either like it or you don't. I do.

George Wright

[Peter Bestel]

I've never got into the mind map programs - I much prefer a big sheet of paper and a bunch of coloured pens. If you're at all artistic (and even if you're not!) it's great fun making up images that you'd never find in a clipart library.

Some of my mind maps I put on the wall and it's great that they're A3 or A2 size rather being constrained by my Epson printer limitations.

I guess I'm just old fashioned.

Peter

[George Wright]

Peter,

That's probably the best way. I've just sort of given up on pen and paper for that the same way I don't write books out in long hand but use ms word or openoffice for article writing and ebooks.

Sometimes when I'm out I'll plan things with a pen and paper but usually when I'm working I'm at the keyboard.

George Wright

[debra]

I wouldn't be able to function without a mind map of my plan and how I intend to accomplish all the tasks involved til completion.

Pen and paper starts the process for me but, having my mind map in electronic form just sets the mind set.

It really comes in handy when you are prone to many interuptions during the day.

[impact-productions]

I don't really get on with any off the diagram-based forms of planning and mind mapping (but simple tables/spreadsheets etc are fine). However, one of my colleagues swears by mind42.com - which is free, and has collaboration features. For those of us working as a sole Internet Marketer, I guess large pieces of paper are fine, but it could perhaps be useful for working on joint ventures and the like.

Would be interested to hear if anyone has any experience with mind42, or similar tools.

[ExRat]

Hi George,

As I read your OP I was wondering whether you wanted the different shapes to use as they do with typical flow-charts used for programming - IE - a diamond means one type of action, a square means another etc...

But I don't see any correlation on your example between the shapes. So I am wondering what benefit you have gained by using the different shapes rather than just bubble/no bubble?

Also, there are other things that make me want to ask questions - IE - why does 'finish and launch ebook' occur before getting paypal approval or making the e-cover?

Sorry if these sound like silly questions, but I am curious to hear the answers.

[factotum]

I'm a fan of mapping/flowcharting...
Like others, though, I'm not a fan of doing it with a computer.

I have a big ol' whiteboard and a fistful of markers and it works for me.

I find even the fastest computer-based options m.u.c.h. slower and restrictive than standing in front of the board with the marker.

[George Wright]

Roger,

Not a silly question at all. My reason is probably what's silly. I just have more fun with different shapes and lines. Less boring for me. I fall asleep easily. On a more practical note I can move them around and arrange them without redoing them.

Thanks for asking,
George Wright

[ExRat]

Hi George,

Thanks for the answer. I kind of guessed that from the 'boring' part of the OP but I didn't want to suggest it. Actually I have similar illogical quirks that work for me.

For example, I prefer using 'shiny' software products with comfortable, sleek interfaces, rather than ones that look all 1970's with bevelled edges and no real shiny 3D bits. Even if the old-fashioned stuff rocks, I am still convinced that the sleekness of the interface of the other one will improve it's performance.

And I'm convinced that unmanageable clutter, whether it's copious amounts of unorganized notes on different sized pieces of paper or the hard-drive of an OCD hoarder - is a sign of greatness and impending early retirement - there must be a good reason why most geniuses in Hollywood films work this way?

[Eric Johnson]

I am a BIG, HUGE sucker for the shiny stuff too. I like the pretty colors

[Barry Walls]

Originally Posted by Jelasco

I haven't seen how mind mapping is any better than pen and paper.

Im a mind map freak...so please forgive my enthusiasm. I still remember when I first got Tony Buzans first book. I was never the same after...I was better.

Heres why its better than paper:

The branch layout makes things super easy to find...even years later
Customisable lines, shapes, connectors, fill colours, outlines, shapes...everything is customisable! Theres no limit to it.
Categorisable infinitely
Reusable map part templates with drag and drop, cut and paste
Embed files, notes, hyper links, video, images etc right onto the map
One click export and integration with MS Project, to one note, PDFs, Outlook, Word, powerpoint (great for producing videos),
Create appointments, contact records and a lot more on the fly
Brainstorming, recordkeeping, note taking, diarising, everything.

Organisation and collection of data...I have one map with all other maps linked to it using categories/subject areas. No more hunting around your hard drive for files.

heres a map attached - probably 50 pages of A4 data on this map

there are dozens of files, hpyer links, a few images, 4 pages of text notes, a powerpoint, 4 articles and a few blog posts on this map. Not to mention the back bone of all the notes on the subject, organised and connected. Time to do...an hour. Solid reference material for ever...an idea of scale, the image in the center is an A4 sheet of paper.

Barry

PS - This is mindjets pro edition...$300

Edited to say...theres an plethora of plugins and clipart for this.

PPS - Im not a mindjet salesman...but probably should be!

[Peter Helps]

I have MindJet's MindManager on my computer and it is one of the best programs I have ever used. I am literally addicted to mindmaps now. I mind map everything. I helps me thing, bring ideas to life, organize, and do more faster and better.

Thanks Rich (Schefren) for getting me on that wagon

Peter

[suparo]

mind map is very important for bussiness also associated date tables to do work on scedule and grantee that you are in the right way and i mean first from research market need and creating a product to build a site structreaccording to SEO to marketing way before louch and after lunch then watching result and traching weakness points eliminatin them and positive points and keep doing them.

[Art Turner]

I've actually found bubbl.us - free web application for brainstorming online to be really helpful at organizing my thoughts without spending a lot of time learning the interface.

Art

[BIG Mike]

My very "low-tech" way is to use a whiteboard and colored markers. I usually do that in the brainstorming phase of a project. If you don't have a whiteboard, believe it or not, the Windows Paint program can be used the same way (or the MAC equivalent).

Back in the nineties, I used a program called SmartDraw, which was great too. When I need something more formal (say for a report), these days I like Visio, which also works very well.

[Richard Odell]

Why bother with all the other inferior tools and use Compendium ?

Compendium Institute

This application goes way beyond mind-mapping....

Rich

[fm1234]

I use FreeMind -- flexible, free and open source.

Main Page - FreeMind - free mind mapping software


Frank