The last couple of months have seen the launch of several new Web-based mind mapping software tools. Chuck Frey predicted that we would see more this year. The recent launch of the beta version of Mindomo from EXswap is a new and welcome addition to the world of mind mapping software, raising the bar significantly for both Web- based and desktop software providers.
Mindomo is a Web-based mind mapping software tool that runs in your browser, with the maps being stored on their server. But what distinguishes Mindomo in this growing field is genuine desktop-quality functionality. Pretty much everything you need from basic desktop software is there - rich formatting, curved lines, images and symbols, relationships, notes fields, task data, drag and drop editing, Web hyperlinks, and import from Mindjet MindManager. Clearly a lot of thought and work has gone into it. But rather magically, you don't need to download or install anything. You only need a Web browser with a Flash player. If you are a corporate user with a locked-down desktop and an active IT police force, this is a highly attractive proposition - especially with the elimination of issues such as upgrades, service packs, multiple location licensing, platform locking, and synchronising files between your desktop and laptop. All these things become history. Most business users these days have a desktop and a laptop, and an increasing number have both Microsoft and Macintosh platforms. I even heard a rumour that Eric Mack was going to get a Mac...
What is scary for desktop software publishers is that straight out of the box, Mindomo is multi-platform and enables collaborative working at no cost. The challenge of persuading your colleagues to purchase and install desktop software so that they can work with you has been eliminated, with few compromises on functionality. No more "read-only" viewers for one-sided collaboration. You can simply create a joint account on Mindomo Free edition and access each other's maps from anywhere. The basic version is free, but there are other (purchasable) editions that provide secure connections or even installation on your own server for security-conscious corporate users. This approach is a critical distinction between "free" and "Open Source"; Mindomo is free to use at one level, but you can migrate to a commercial and contractual relationship where you need to. Open Source will always remain in a grey area for many commercial organisations.
Almost as a by-product, Mindomo creates a visual "Wiki" where users can collaborate on shared maps, and can publish templates and examples for anyone to use. I don't think I am alone in regarding Wikis as full of potential in theory, but rather awkward and to understand and use in practice. On Mindomo, a shared account acts as a Wiki where you can control the membership.
In the article about using mind mapping software to map out events, a few readers asked if there was a template map available. Here is the template on the Mindomo site. If you create a free Mindomo account, you can edit this map and save your own private copy of it, or publish an amended version for others to access, which is all rather cool.
Edit this map on-line now!
As a beta, there are of course some features still "under development" - but based on the quality of this beta, I don't doubt that EXswap will deliver them.
Mindomo Web site: www.mindomo.com
Nick
Excellent summary of the situation. www.mindomo.com and www.mindmeister.com are certainly going to put the cat among the pigeons.
Most of my work on non MindManager product and service development is with partners who are spread predominantly across the UK but also the Rest of World. Working with them is going to become substantially easier as the price and complexity level for starting an on-line mind map looks like dropping significantly.
As Wallace said to Gromit - "Cracking Stuff"
Posted by: Andrew Wilcox | February 28, 2007 at 11:06 PM
Nick
Picking up from your point about the "IT Police" - Mindomo doesn't quite succeed in this regard as it requires the latest version of the browser component for Flash - which appears to need admin rights to install, something which most corporate desktops don't have...
Thin (ish) client delivery is absolutely the way to go to minimise deployment problems - the challenge is to provide the rich functionalty needed for mind mapping within those limitations.
Definitely a space worth watching!
Posted by: Julian Elve | March 27, 2007 at 03:51 PM
Hi Beyond Crayons,
I've been read and subscribed to your blog for a long time and thanks for sharing the wonderful things with us.
we have just released a new mind mapping software that features free branch positioning, freehand branch image drawing, multiple hyperlinks, and so on,
and we wonder if you are interested in trying it out?
looking forward to hear from you for any comment and question. thanks.
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MindVisualizer -- Productive Visual Mind Mapping Software
http://www.innovationgear.com
info@innovationgear.com
Posted by: Edwin -- MindVisualizer -- Mind Mapping Software | May 15, 2007 at 12:01 PM