VUE from Tufts University has just appeared in a new version: 3.0

• New data discovery and exploration tools.
• Import XML documents, RSS feeds and CSV files.
• New Exploration Tools panel.
• Automatic zoom feature for selected items.
• More automation in highlighting specific content.
• Compatible with Firefox’s Zotero extension.

This is free and it runs on Windows, Mac and Linux.  Worth a look, as it brings concept mapping and presentation together.  As far as I know, the only other software that does that is the super-slick Prezi.

Vic (@VicGee on Twitter)

http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

 Happy New Year!  Gradually catching up – more to go though. 

Topicscape Pro

The beta version of Topicscape I wrote about last month has now passed out of beta and been formally released as a live version.  2D and 3D views below.  I’m using this and liking it a lot.  Give it a try.

Freeplane

The alpha version I wrote about last June is now into a more stable release – it’s in beta.  I tried it and had one problem, but that turned out to be an out-of-date graphics driver, so it’s fixed.  Try this one as well and report any bugs to the Freeplane team.  The appearance of the map owes a lot to FreeMind, naturally, and it has a pleasant uncluttered interface.

Regards
Vic Gee  (@VicGee on Twitter)
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

New on mind-mapping.org this week: MOT, RTIME and better information about Thinking Space.

MOT

MOT is an interesting knowledge-modelling tool.  The MOT acronym means “Modelling using Object Types”. A knowledge model is similar to a concept map, except that it is based on a typology of links and knowledge objects.  There’s a MOTPlus, as well.  I have no pricing information for these yet.

RTIME

RTIME is a software requirements and development lifecycle tool with a MindJet mind mapping front end.  In fact there are two products: RTIME which connects to on-line service and is aimed at the enterprise and MyRTIME a single user version.

Thinking Space

This went into mind-mapping.org in September with very little information.  Charlie Chilton, its developer, emailed me with details of his new website, so now the entry for this free Android phone mind mapper is more complete.  Just in time for you to get it for your sparkling new Google Nexus One!

There are many more to go folks . . . I’m aiming to catch up over the next few days with all the new stuff that needs to go in the Master List.

Regards

Vic Gee  (@VicGee on Twitter)
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

New at the Master List: SimpleDiagrams and VuNotes.

VuNotes

This is a kind of concept mapper and reminds me a little of VUE.  It can include images in the map, and has provision for metadata associated with the nodes.  Looks interesting, but I haven’t used it.

Finally, I’m playing with middlespot.com’s MashTabs.  It allows web searching with visual results that you can drag into a sheet and organize by clustering.  Interesting but held back by the fact that to get something onto the page you have to find it with the Middlespot search engine, and the fact that you can’t draw or write on the same sheet (AFAIK).  It does allow clustering, which is good, but I’d like to be able to send a web page, that I found by other means, straight to a MashTab, not have to search for something I already have in a browser.  

[updated: 1/1/10] Middlespot tweeted back to me that their tools page has a tool for adding to MashTabs outside the middlespot.com interface.  It works with Firefox, Chrome or Safari.  Doesn’t help me, as I mostly use IE8 but maybe that will be supported later. [/update]

MashTabs can be shared.

More soon.  I was lazy over the holidays and need to catch up. 

Vic            (@VicGee on Twitter)

http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

Here’s a turnup for the book – 3D Topicscape goes 2D! (in beta so far)

I’m a bit late mentioning this.  I’ve written before that I’ve been using Topicscape since its first beta.  I use it every day for organising files for most of my projects and reference notes. 

Now, Topicscape have a Beta out that gives a new option for viewing all the information stored in a Topicscape – you can opt to see it in 2D.  And you can flip from 2D to 3D and back again.   I’ve tried it and it’s very cool.

Topicscape is not hard to use, but I’ve seen occasional comments from people who don’t tune in to the 3D style.  The 3D scene is different from any other application, but I found it pretty instinctive from the beginning.  For those who didn’t see how the 2D field of cones and zooming interface allow a much improved view on their carefully organised information database, the new 2D option provides something that makes Topicscape worth looking at again.

The 2D view makes use of 3D video cards by giving a ’swinging’ map that lets you see more in an angled view as you slide along it.  Altogether better than scrolling.

It’s hard to avoid comparing this 2D view with PersonalBrain, because it really serves the same market although the appearance is different.  Introducing 2D is surely aimed at encouraging the comparison, and it stands up pretty well.

To try the new 2D view now, you have to apply for a ‘Beta User’ account.  The Topicscape wiki has more information.

Regards

Vic Gee  (@VicGee on Twitter)
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

Cogspace is not software available for download or use in making your own maps, but it’s an interesting attempt at 3D information presentation. 

The sole example, covers limited knowledge domains on three axes.  Though not strong on visibility, it allows some dynamic exploration by rotation and the recall of text notes associated with the small topic balls.

Explore here http://www.cogspace.net/index2.html

Vic Gee  (@VicGee on Twitter)
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

Please vote for mind-mapping.org at

http://eg-search.net/enter.php?user=sun_vivi&desc=Mindmapping%2C+concept+mapping+and+info…&req=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mind-mapping.org%2F

It’s at position no. 10 right now.  Help take this ads-free site to the top!

Much appreciated – thank you.

[Updated 31/10/2009: We've reached position #2 in terms of number of voters, so far, but the rating is the highest of all, as 4.8 out of 5.  Thank you again.]

Vic

I’ve done separate posts about two recent findings over the last couple of days: Diagramic and the filling in of a historical entry.  Time now for the remaining new items in Mind-mapping.org:

Creately

Creatley is a nice on-line diagram-drawing software with mind mapping as one of the type of diagrams supported.  It has a free version, and a Plus version with a rather special subscription scheme: Pay what you think it’s worth, provided you spare at least US$1/month!  Creately can make Flowcharts, Network Diagrams, Organizational Charts, UML Diagrams, Sitemaps, SWOT templates, Wireframes, UI Mockups as well as mind maps.

CUECards

CUECards is a hierarchical information store based on a ‘card’ metaphor – something of an outliner.

MindDecider

MindDecider incorporates a form of mind mapping and uses it as a framework for information gathering, analysis and calculation that leads to decision support.

SpicyNodes

I’ve seen SpicyNodes described as mind mapping software.  It really is not, unless you’re prepared to build a web site for each mind map you make.  But it does use the hierarchical mind mapping style for connections between nodes. 

Spicy nodes is a new approach to web site navigation.  It would be interesting to see mind mapping software that could export the code needed to build a SpicyNodes web

InFlow

Inflow is social and organisational network analysis software with many ways of displaying relationships.  It appears to be aimed at enterprises rather than individuals.

Hope to see you on Twitter before my next post.  Visit http://twitter.com/VicGee and click on the Follow button on the left.

Vic
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

Did you know that unless you dig deep, you’re only seeing part of  mind-mapping.org?  If you click through to the link above, for now, you’ll see 284 entries.  Observant readers will see that the top line adds “from a total of 349″.  So what’s with the missing 65?

That’s where all the dead mind mapping and similar software packages go to their final rest.  If you want to see them, go to the “Refine software list” tab, uncheck “Current software” and check “Historical software.”  Then press “Show selected items.”  These historic items are retained in the list partly for completeness (the pack rat in me) but also for any researcher who wants to track the development of mapping software. 

Some are worth knowing about anyway, even now, because they may no longer be supported or sold, but be available for download somewhere.  Cayra is an example.  Others are totally dead because no information is available, the original site has gone, and no download sites have a copy (hello GNletting Mindmap!).

Down to the point of this:  Long ago I heard of software called EGLE Mind Mapper*. From then until last week I had no information about this software. In 2002 I wrote an email, it came back adressee unknown.

Then last week, Dr Dirk Hopper wrote out of the blue and sent me information and even an installer (the licence encourages copying and sharing). At last I was able to see the type of map it produces and include a screenshot. It can be installed on Vista and XP, and works, but I found it to be a little buggy.  That’s not surprising on Vista – it was probably written for Windows 3, or at best 95.

Now my inner nerd is satisfied!  One of the potholes in mind-mapping.org is filled in.

I often get unexpected tips like this and they nearly always make their way into the list eventually.  So do let me know if you know of anything interesting that should be there.

Vic (@VicGee on Twitter)
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software

* This software is not related to ‘MindMapper’ from SimTech Systems.

Up till now, I’ve known of three text-to-diagram applications: Mappio, Text2mindmap and Diagrammr.  Now I’ve come across another: Diagramic.  I just added it to mind-mapping.org.

It’s a little web-based application, and as it stands it is fun but only useful for very simple cases.   Here’s an image with data I took from a paper by Scavarda, Bouzdine-Chameeva and others, about causal maps:

I made this with simple text like this:
“Cognitive maps” -> “Undirected graphs”
“Cognitive maps” -> “Directed graphs”
“Undirected graphs” -> “Knowledge maps”
“Undirected graphs” -> “Concept maps”
“Undirected graphs” -> “Mind maps”   …. …. and so on.

When Diagramic makes graphs from plain text like that above, it will use one color and one shape.  The automatic layout is fine with simple, regular graphs, but it needs manual adjustment for even the modest one above.   As you can drag nodes wherever you want them and adjust the zoom to make best use of the fixed-sized box, it is easy to achieve a presentable result.

The biggest weakness is that to preserve the result, you must use the PrintScreen key on your keyboard and Word or some graphic-editing software to preserve and perhaps crop the image.  There is no other obvious way to make a chart and embed it on your own site.

Diagramic can also accept data from spreadsheets, so as a component in a mash-up, it has more promise.  Forbes.com have made a web component that feeds data to it, selected from its own database, to allow users to generate relationship diagrams dynamically.  Here’s an example image taken from the Diagramic web site:

The web gadget is at the Forbes site.  Tip: Start by selecting a network from the little combo box at the top centre.  

Diagrams generated from Google spreadsheets will have 2 colours and 2 shapes – the first column in table is considered to contain the prime data.  There’s no detail on the site about how the many colours in the Forbes diagram were achieved.

See you on Twitter or back here soon.

Vic Gee  (@VicGee on Twitter)
http://www.mind-mapping.org/
The master list of mind mapping &
information management software