ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 offers a well-designed toolset to business users

By Chuck Frey

CS Odessa, the developers of ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro, unveiled version 5 of this well-respected mind mapping software program in late 2007. I'm happy to report that the latest iteration of the program provides a wealth of well-designed features and functionality that are designed to meet the needs of business users. It has evolved into one of the top-tier mind mapping programs.

In this "first look" review, we'll take an in-depth look at what’s new and notable in ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5, with a special emphasis on those capabilities that are focused on business focused.

A colorful, well-designed interface

ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 has a nice, clean, colorful interface. Map properties, topic properties and other map adjustments are made using a series of tabbed properties boxes that are displayed in a vertical pane to the right of the workspace. This arrangement resembles Adobe’s graphics software, and is a very efficient way to display a lot of information in a very compact space. 

The top set of tabbed properties boxes give you access to line and fill settings, symbols, clipart and topic links. Below that, a second set of tabbed properties windows are used to add notes and task information to your topics. These panels can be open, minimized (displayed as a series of vertical tabs on the right edge of the screen) or completely closed. In addition, if you double-click on the title bar of a panel, it becomes free floating, so you can position it anywhere on the screen. This gives you an excellent level of control over your workspace.

The left side of the screen contains a toolbar with the most common commands for adding content to your map and manipulating it, plus a set of buttons for drawing rectangles, ovals and lines (these are carried over from CS Odessa’s vector drawing program, ConceptDraw). A "format topic" button gives you fast access to topic shape, alignment and spacing settings – sometimes buried in the menus of other programs. It’s nice to see it front and center in ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5.

For those executives who need to work with large, complex maps, the ability to create and manage maps and sub-maps is a must. CS Odessa makes it easy and intuitive to move among your sub-maps. The bottom of the workspace contains a tab for the "page navigator," which pops up a horizontal pane that displays thumbnail images of the pages within your map file. Clicking on a thumbnail loads that page into the workspace. In addition, when you send a topic to a new page, ConceptDraw MINDMAP adds a small link icon to the topic that is the "bridge" to the sub-map. Left-clicking on it instantly loads that page – very intuitive!

One of the program’s strengths has always been its extensive support for right-click commands. This enables you to make modifications to topics and other map elements without moving your cursor away from your map’s contents. That translates into improved productivity. A case in point: If you have a topic selected, you can right click and select “detach” to make it a free-floating topic. Many programs support the creation of free-floating map topics, but no one makes it so easy to do so.

Another capability that makes ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 unique is its brainstorming mode, which in my opinion is the best in the genre of mind mapping software. I love the fact that it inserts each of your ideas as free-floating topics, which you can then group the way you want in map mode. It also makes the program an ideal fit for group brainstorming sessions, where the meeting facilitator must be able to add a number of ideas quickly, without the program getting in the way.

ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 also offers the ability to track task information in topics, and to export this data to Microsoft Project and Outlook. You can also export maps to PowerPoint, Word, HTML and PDF formats, ensuring that you have many options for further developing and sharing your ideas.

In addition, ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 can import MindManager files with all of their data intact. I tried this with one of my larger MindManager files, and it worked remarkably well – except that it didn’t maintain links to individual Outlook e-mail messages that I had set up. Instead, it converted this content to notes.

What’s new in version 5?

New interface: ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 features an updated user interface with customizable toolbars, which enables you to group the buttons and commands that you use most often in one location. The graphical display engine of this new version has also been improved, enabling it to display smoother lines and gradient fills. Overall, the user interface has a more professional look to it.

Map/outline view: ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 offers the unique ability to view your information as a visual map and an outline, side by side. Any changes in one view instantly appear in the other. How is this useful? Seeing your information and ideas in different contexts can trigger new ideas, insights and connections. Displaying both views simultaneously may increase the odds that this will happen.

Smart topic ordering: ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 gives you six options for how topics will be positioned as you add them to your map: Clockwise, clockwise from horizontal (3 o’clock), counterclockwise, counterclockwise from horizontal (9 o’clock), down both sides – right first and down both sides – left first. If the ordering of your topics is important to you, then you should appreciate this feature, because it may eliminate some manual repositioning of topics.

Formatted text notes: Formatted text notes are new to version 5. Notes are displayed in the lower half of a vertical pane on the right side of the workspace – a good, compact place for this information to be displayed. Some programs use the entire vertical space on the right side of the screen, or place notes across the entire bottom of the screen – which has always seemed like a waste of valuable screen real estate to me. I like this approach better, because most topic notes aren't that long! If you hover over a notes icon in your map, a tooltip pops up showing the first few lines of it – a nice way to preview its contents without actually opening it.

iCal integration: For users of ConceptDraw MINDMAP 5 on the Mac OS X Leopard operating system, you can now export information about tasks from your map to iCal.

Conclusion

ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 is a solid, well-designed mind mapping program that has a lot to offer to business users, including an excellent brainstorming mode, project management tools, Microsoft Office integration, the ability to store maps and sub-maps in a single file and move between them with ease, and compatibility with MindManager files, this program can help you to be more productive and well organized. While the changes to version 5 are incremental, it ought to be on your short list of top-tier programs, well worthy of consideration if you’re planning to invest in mind mapping software.

ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 retails for US$199 and can be purchased from the developer’s website or resellers. A 30-day trial version is also available for download if you want to evaluate this polished, full-featured mind mapping program.

Published on 5/27/2008

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Summary ConceptDraw MINDMAP Pro 5 is a solid, well-designed mind mapping program that has a lot to offer to business users.
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