Mind Map Software Review Mac

Posted By admin On 01.08.20
Mind Map Software Review Mac Rating: 9,2/10 5588 votes
  1. Mind Map Software Review Mac Pro
  2. Mind Map Software Review
  3. Map Making Software Mac
  4. Xmind
  5. Mind Mapping Software Free

10 hours ago  Mac Miller released 'Self-Care' on this day, two years ago. Today, we dissect the importance of this song. Throughout his career, and by extension life, Mac.

Mac Mind Mapping Review Objectives

  1. May 09, 2020 FreeMind is an open-source mind mapping software that works on Mac devices. As an open-source tool, users are free to make modifications to the software as it is allowed by the developers. FreeMind provides various options like full link following, which works on both links from the internet, and local directories.
  2. Jan 17, 2019  Ideaflip is a great mind mapping tool for capturing ideas and building mind maps, though it lacks analytics tools that some teams may require. Pros Appealing, easy-to-use user interface (UI).
  3. Jan 17, 2019 Ideaflip is a great mind mapping tool for capturing ideas and building mind maps, though it lacks analytics tools that some teams may require. Pros Appealing, easy-to-use user interface (UI).
  4. 44 minutes ago  MindManager mind mapping software review techradar.com - Jacob Parker. MindManager is a mind mapping software for Windows and Mac. With it, you can create flowcharts, organizational charts, and even manage your.
  5. Jul 13, 2020  MindManager is a mind mapping software for Windows and Mac. With it, you can create flowcharts, organizational charts, and even manage your workforce. In this review, we’ll discuss MindManager’s main features and the pros and cons associated with the platform. You’ll quickly see why we consider this one of the most advanced and user-friendly mind-mapping tools on the market today.
  6. Nov 16, 2019  Scapple has been particularly praised for being easy to master compared to other mind map software due its small number of mind map tools.

If you have been spending time researching, trying to figure out which Mac mind mapping software is the right tool for you, you are not alone. With so many options available like online programs, desktop programs and mobile apps, it can be tricky to decide which is the right option for you. Don’t worry, we are here to help. In this Mac mind mapping software review, our team evaluated the leading professional desktop Mac mind mapping software tools to see which are the most useful and if it's worth your money to invest. Although there are some OK free programs available, they lack the functionality that the paid-for-programs offer, so for this evaluation, we chose to evaluate MindManager 11 for Mac, MindView 7 for Mac, and Novamind for Mac.

Rating Scale

Not Available: 0Worst in Class: 1Below Average: 2Average: 3Above Average: 4Best in Class: 5
MindViewMindManagerNovaMind
TotalScore: 91Score: 62Score: 56
Map Formats
Mind Map444
Left/Right442
Right/Left502
Top Down (WBS)442
Organizational Chart542
Outline511
Gantt500
Timeline003
Microsoft Integration
MS Word
Export534
Import420
MS PowerPoint
Export533
Import300
MS Project
Export503
Import300
Additional Exports
PDF333
RTF430
HTML330
Mind Map Features
Attach Notes333
Attachments/Hyperlinks433
Visual Customization333
Multi-Mapping244
Relationship Lines434
Filter352
Presentation Mode245
Focus View / Branch Focus333
TotalScore: 91Score: 62Score: 56
MindViewMindManagerNovaMind

First off, how easy is it to make a mind map, because let’s face it if you can't use the software easily than what’s the point, right?

We found that all three Mac mind mapping software tools were fairly easy to work with because they all seem to share Mac OS best practices. Since we are comfortable with other Mac OS software, these tools made us feel right at home.

Just like with any software, it takes a few tries to figure out the interface, and what is what, but after we built out a few branches of the mind map, we were up and running in all three tools. With MindManager, it took a little while longer to get our map going, whereas MindView and Novamind were more intuitive. We loved the keyboard shortcuts in all three tools, they really speed things up. In contrast, working with online tools was a very different experience, which was expected since with most online tools, it takes a while to find your bearings.

Some Mac mind mapping software tools can be overloaded with features, making their interface seem overwhelming. MindView, however, has solved this problem with a simplified user interface that was packed full of useful features, well organized in a logical and customizable menu structure.

In the end, making a mind map in Novamind and MindView was pretty similar, kind of like comparing Ford vs. Chevy. If you like more features and options in your interface, however, MindManager is the choice for you. If you like a simplified user interface, then go with MindView.

But we didn’t stop there..

Let's dig into the features a little deeper. Being able to attach files is very useful in Mac mind mapping software. When attaching files, MindView, MindManager and Novamind were similar and intuitive, but viewing the attachments was what stood out for us. MindView has a quick-click view option that is activated by simply hovering the branch attachment icon and clicking your attachment. MindManager, however, forced us to first open the Inspector, find the attachment and then double-click to view it. A few too many clicks in our opinion… Don’t worry, it wasn’t too difficult to figure out, but we preferred the ease of use in MindView above the other three Mac mind mapping software tools.

I hope we still have your attention, because here comes the section that all you Mind Mapping die-hards have been waiting for. Not to worry though, we will keep it brief!

Mind map software review mac os

In all three applications, you can add images and colors to your mind map, change line colors, branch colors, branch shapes, line thickness, and branch order. Also, all three Mac mind mapping software tools enable you to easily add images, icons, and colors to the branches at any level, not just the main branches, which we found very helpful.

So far, we have focused only on mind maps, but not all of us think non-linearly as in a mind map. Some may want to overview data in a linear layout like an outline. And this brings us to the different ways you can communicate data. MindView made it very easy to swap back and forth between the various views and had the most options, whereas MindManager and Novamind only offered a mind map and outline view. If you’re wondering about a Gantt or timeline view, sit tight, we discuss these two views later.

Since there were plenty of ways to customize the maps in all three Mac mind mapping software programs, and all three were basically the same, let's move on to something more interesting… something that really separated the pack… MS Office integration.

Office Integration

When it came to integration, free and online mind mapping tools just couldn’t compete with the desktop applications in this category. What makes the desktop applications true productivity tools is the ability to transfer data out of the mind mapping software without having to re-create the information.

So if all desktop mind mapping software is so great, what separates these three Mac mind mapping software applications in this category? MindView and Novamind both had exports to Word, PowerPoint, and for you PM’s out there, MS Project. MindManager was limited to Word only. So what’s the bottom line?

Mind Map Software Review Mac Pro

MindView had the edge in this category for two reasons. First, MindView uses a template-driven export system, so there is no hassle to the export and the final product is “meeting-ready“. Second, MindView is “bi-directional” meaning you can export to and import from MS Office. We feel that this helped tip the scales in MindView’s favor by making it more of a productivity tool than the others, giving us maximum results with minimal effort.

We gave an honorable mention in this section to Novamind. Their exports were much better and more 'polished' than MindManager’s and had a few more options in the export wizard.

Project management is another category where the online and app options just can't compete. We came to realize that the online tools weren’t mature enough, and the apps couldn’t handle the size of the data. As a result, when referring to mind mapping and project management, desktop software is the only real option.

Bypass proxy software for mac. For a beginner project manager who needs an easy-to-use tool to replace the 'white board' exercise and move that data to a Gantt chart, MindView is the best choice. Though all three programs let you include task information on the branches, only MindView had a fully functional Gantt Chart view.

We actually liked the ease of use of Novamind over MindManager. The one feature that Novamind had that MindManager didn’t was an export to MS Project, but for those that don’t want to use Project, this feature was not really that useful.

Once again, we feel MindView has beat out its competition in this category too. If you're a PMP or need an alternative to MS Project, your only choice is MindView. MindView even surprised our project managers with the level of sophistication of its Gantt chart. MindView gave you the ability to create predecessors, select effort-driven tasks, resource calendars and export to Excel or MS Project, just to name a few of its possibilities. Plus their timeline view was pretty sweet, much more robust than Novamind’s. So if you are looking for a serious project management tool, give MindView a try, you won’t be disappointed. If not, have a go with Novamind or MindManager as lighter alternatives.

Conclusion

So what is the conclusion of this Mac mind mapping software review, do we have a clear winner? In just making a mind map… not really… We think all 3 are solid options over the alternatives (online, apps and free software). The real takeaway that we discovered during this review is that it's not just about making the mind map. It's more about what you do after you make the mind map. How do you share the data, or manipulate the data without recreating it? In this fast-paced world we live in, it’s all about productivity and time savings. As a result, we found that MindView isn’t just a mind mapping tool, it is a true productivity tool.

Mind Map Software Review

MindViewMindManagerNovamind
Score: 91Score: 62Score: 56

Objectives of this Mind Mapping Review

Are you in the market to purchase a mind mapping software but struggling to figure out which tool is the right one for you? Is the best option online, desktop or just an app for your smart phone? Is it worth while paying for a professional mind mapping tool as opposed to downloading a free online tool? In this review, our team will evaluate the best professional desktop mind mapping software to see which is most useful and if it's worth your money to invest. In this evaluation, we have chosen to evaluate MindGenius, MindManager and MindView.

A review conducted by Andrew Makar of TacticalProjectManagement.com

Category Ratings

Not Available: 0Worst in Class: 1Below Average: 2Average: 3Above Average: 4Best in Class: 5
MindViewMindManagerMindGenius
TotalScore: 193Score: 173Score: 109
Platform
PCYesYesYes
MacYesYesNo
TabletNoYesYes
WebYesYesNo
Map Formats
Left/Right443
Right/Left433
Top Down (WBS)553
Organizational Chart453
Outline530
Gantt534
Timeline530
Other View/Modes030
Microsoft Integration
MS Word
Export532
Import441
MS PowerPoint
Export423
Import400
MS Excel
Export524
Import300
MS Visio
Export003
Import000
MS Outlook
Export454
Import452
MS Project
Export534
Import534
Additional Exports
PDF353
HTML543
Mind Map Features
Attach Notes553
Attachments/Hyperlinks454
Visual Customization453
Multi-Mapping353
Relationship Lines444
Filter554
Presentation Mode340
Focus View / Branch Focus553
Legend420
Project Management Features
Allocate Task Information In Map Views444
Gantt Chart Functionality534
Allocate Resources434
Effort Driven Tasks330
Set Milestones555
Set Constraint Types525
Set Dependency Types545
Baseline400
Priority Levels434
Project Calendars420
Project Reports530
Indicators140
Collaboration
Online Environment / Workspace350
Online Task Management440
Viewer352
SharePoint Integration140
Multi-User Editing340
Branch Locking300
Task Distribution353
Other Features
Branch Calculation550
TotalScore: 193Score: 173Score: 109
MindViewMindManagerMindGenius

Making a Mind Map

Let's start with the basics, how easy is it to make a mind map because if you can't use the software its worthless, right?

All three desktop applications felt easy to understand and use right away because they all adopt the Microsoft Office interface. Further, you are able to use familiar keyboard shortcuts, so the learning curve was dramatically decreased. This seems very different to online tools where you have to find your whereabouts, learning a new interface, before getting started.

MindManager and MindView seem to have implemented and updated the Microsoft Ribbon system (menu structure) and Backstage particular well, whereas MindGenius is beginning to look a bit outdated. MindGenius is like using your dial-up AOL account to download a photo album..the millennials won't understand that reference but it's accurate.

Mind Mapping software can have an over-abundant amount of features in their interface which may be rather overwhelming for beginners. In the software world this is called 'bloatware'. MindView's simplified user interface is the first tool we have encountered that tries to solve this conundrum. We agree, I think they may have done it!

By the end of the day, making a mind map in MindManager and MindView was a very similar experience. It was almost like comparing BMW vs Mercedes. If you like more features and options in your interface, then choose MindManager. If you like a simplified user interface choose MindView. But it doesn't stop there..

Let's explore the differences a little further. For example, attaching files was intuitive in MindView, and unlike other mind mapping software lets you attach an unlimited amount of files since MindView links files by default; don't worry MindView also allows you to embed the files.

Here is the section for all you die-hard Mind Mapping theorists (everyone else is starting to yawn). Stay awake, we will make this section brief.

In all three applications, you have the ability to add images and colors to your mind map..blah blah blah..mind mapping theory states something about memory retention. Our interns did the research and the theory is correct, trust us (wink wink). Also, all three software tools enable you to add easily images, icons and colors to branches.

However, not all of us think non-linearly like a mind map. Some of you prefer to consume data in a linear layout. This leads us to the various ways you can communicate the data in an outline, timeline or Gantt view. Spoiler Alert: we will discuss the Gantt and timeline layout later.

Finally, let's talk about customizing the mind map? There are plenty of ways to customize the maps in all 3 programs, and all 3 programs are basically the same. Let's move on to something more interesting…something that really separates the pack…the MS Office integration.

The free tools and the online tools just don't have the moxie to stand with the desktop applications in this category. It's really about the transfer of data and not having to re-create the information that makes the desktop applications more of a productivity tool than anything else.

What separates the desktop applications in this category? All 3 tools export to MS Office, but all 3 tools have varying degrees of sophistication.

An honorable mention in this section is definitely MindManager. MindManager's exports were much better and more 'polished' than MindGenius. Also, compared to all 3, they made it much easier to make custom templates to suit a company's brand.

Mind Map Software Review Mac

Let's get to the point…

MindView has the edge in this category for 2 reasons. The first, the pure speed of the export, MindView is template-driven so there is no fuss to the export and the final product is 'turn in' ready. The second, MindView 'goes both ways' when importing and exporting to MS Office. MindView is more of a productivity tool which allows us minimal effort with maximum results.

Map Making Software Mac

Project Management

Xmind

This is another category where the online and app options can't compete. The online tools aren't mature enough, and the apps can't handle the size of the data. As a result, when referring to mind mapping and project management, size does matter.

Mind Mapping Software Free

For the beginner project manager who needs an easy-to-use tool to replace the 'white board' exercise and move that data to a Gantt chart, take your pick. All 3 programs can make that happen. We actually liked the ease of use of MindGenius over MindManager. The one feature that MindManager had which no one else has achieved is the 'split screen' when working on a project. Basically, you can view your mind map and Gantt chart at the same time. We felt this was very valuable when presenting the data to individuals outside of the 'project' world, such as stakeholders or upper management. They could easily make the connection between the Gantt chart and what was actually planned.

Once again, we feel MindView has edged out its competition in this category too. If you're a PMP or need an alternative to MS Project your only choice is MindView. MindView even surprised our project managers on the level of sophistication it had in the Gantt chart. MindView gave you the ability to select effort-driven tasks, resource calendars and multiple baselines just to name a few. If you know what I was referring to in that last sentence…excellent. We will see you at the next WBS war room. If you didn't, stick with MindGenius or MindManager as a lighter alternative.

In conclusion, do we have a clear winner? In just making a mind map…maybe not…we think all 3 are healthy options over the alternatives (online, app and free software). There is something we discovered while moving down this road less traveled. It's not just about making the mind map. It's more about what you do after you make the mind map. How do you share the data and how do you manipulate the data without recreating it. In a world of constant throttle and high powered energy drinks…it's all about productivity and time savings. As a result, MindView is not just making a mind mapping tool but more of an overall productivity tool.

As our friend Jack Kerouac once said, 'Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.'

We feel this refers to MindView, we think they are starting to 'break the mould' in the mind mapping software world.

MindViewMindManagerMindGenius
Score: 193Score: 173Score: 109