|
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, there were some very cool outlining software programs on the market. For the Mac platform, ThinkTank and More! were pioneered by serial entrepreneur Dave Winer (most recently, the founder of UserLand Software, which offers the Manila and Radio commercial weblog platforms). And on the PC platform, there were DOS outliners like MaxThink, GrandView and PC-Outline. I was privileged to use MaxThink for DOS, a powerful program that enabled me to give structure to my ideas and plans like nothing I’ve ever seen. But many of these first-generation outliners faded away within a few years, probably due to lack of awareness or interest on the part of computer users.
Now, some 10-15 years later, there seems to be a renaissance going on in the world of outliners (and personal knowledge management programs that utilize hierarchical outlines as their underlying framework). Here’s a list of recently introduced outlining software:
In addition to these new programs, OmniOutliner, which has been on the market for several years, has gained a solid reputation as perhaps the leading outliner for Mac OS X.
Also, Neil Larson, the developer of MaxThink for DOS, has slowly but surely been working on a Windows version. After being in various stages of pre-release for several years, it looks like MaxThink for Windows may finally be ready for prime time.
In addition, a great many PC-based outliners have been introduced in the last several years, including NoteMap, ActionOutline and TreePad. For more information on Windows-based outliners, check out John Buckman's authoritative list.
I think all of this represents a renaissance in the world of outlining.
Why all the excitement about electronic outliners? Because they’re a very elegant way to gather and organize your thoughts. According to this article by Jonathan Price (click here to read it), “The sheer convenience offered by outlining software makes it possible to record, review and manipulate more ideas with a great deal of flexibility. Outlining on the computer rather than on paper, you can create a much more visible hierarchy, not cramped by handwriting, tiny labels, and irregular indentation, and you can investigate it immediately by changing order, level, phrasing, or sequence without recopying, scribbling over, or drawing arrows. You see the effect of any organizational change instantly.”
If your job involves gathering, organizing, distilling and communicating any type of information or knowledge, I urge you to check out the advantages offered by outlining software. |
