Mind mapping with Mindjet

I am trialling what promises to be a very useful tool: MindManager from Mindjet. The tool allows you to build a mind map quickly and effortlessly, then convert it into a structured document, a presentation or - more value added - a project plan using Microsoft's Office applications.
The tool is so easy to master that it can be used to capture output from a brainstorm while presenting back on a projector, obviating the need for someone to transcribe the results into document format.
The advanced version boasts integration with Salesforce.com but I have not tested this.
Two immediate ideas spring to mind, my suggestions for candidates to be incorporated into the product in the future:

• A collaborative version, either for real-time virtual team brainstorming or integrated into a wiki for asynchronous contributions
• Support for building logical arguments. I am thinking of Barbara Minto's Pyramid Principle here.

Comments

[David Tebbutt]

You may be interested in BrainStorm which a lot of people use in conjunction with mind-mapping.
BrainStorm overcomes the issues of screen real estate, flexibility, cross-branch linking and sheer volume - eg when scooping up on-screen information from your internet travels.
It allows you to work unstructured or structured and is a good prelude/companion to many mind map programs.
There's a blog as well, which surfaces a lot of user information.
Hope you don't mind me mentioning it.
Thanks.

[Hobart Swan]

Hi Lars,
Good luck with your MindManager trial. Most of our customers find that they are able to get up and running pretty darn fast (one $2.0 billion company reorganized its North American sales operation while still in trial mode!).
By the way, the integration with salesforce.com comes as a separate add in. You need to have either a salesforce professional or enterprise edition to use our MindManager Accelerator for Salesforce.com.
Let me know if you need more info.
Thanks for giving MindManager a try!~
Hobie Swan

[pbarnes7]

I'm a senior programmer at a small college in the US. I've been using MindManager for almost 5 years and recently got my department to purchase 10 more copies once I showed it off to the right manager. :-)

The User Support folks are using it for everything from inventorying equipment across multiple sites to a problem-solving decision-tree for printer problems. Managers are using it for project management. But I really knew MindManager was making solid inroads when I saw a technical manager give our non-technical VP a presentation using it.

Enjoy!