Both Craig and Dan were kind enough to send me links to bubbl.us a Flash-based mindmapping tool online. It’s pretty! Unfortunately, like most web apps, it doesn’t quite move as quickly as a desktop app. Maybe it’s my old laptop (last of the G4’s!), but the movement through the app impedes me using it. Now, I’m used to MindJet’s MindManager, so maybe I’m spoiled.
Also, with mind mapping tools, I’ve found that there’s a steep key learning curve between each app. Keyboard lock-in! For example, in bubbl.us hitting Enter creates a child, while in MindManager it creates a sibling. I forget what FreeMind does.
So, naturally, it takes some getting used to when you switch mind mapping tools. Mind mapping software usability, as the preceding implies, rests largely on how well the key-boarding works: which keys you choose for what (create a child, create a sibling, create a parent, edit the text, etc.) and how fast those keys respond.
The other thing missing from bubbl.us is an export. The only way I could find to export my map was to print and then use OS X’s native print to PDF. As a side-note, I can’t tell how many times that pattern is a crutch for “exporting” content.
Now, that’s all overly harsh. In my mind, what I’m seeing is a great start at becoming a platform for bubbl.us. For example, when I heard about it, the first thing I was hoping for was the ability to import MindManager maps and share them on the web. Now, that’d be fantastic! I’m always angling for platforms for this reason: I’ve got all the data, I just need platforms on the public web to link and expose and allow others to view and link to it. Of course, collaborating around it, as Dan pointed out in the case of mind maps, would be super-duper.
Realtime, multi-user mind maps. Now that’d be awesome.
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