John Walkosak
11-01-2004, 05:00 PM
<img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept002-manager20.jpg" /><br /><br /><b>Product Category:</b> Productivity software<br /><b>Manufacturer:</b> <a href="http://www.mindjet.com"> Mindjet </a><br /><b>Where to Buy:</b> Available from the <a href="http://store.mindjet.com/store/product.asp?catalog_name=Mind+Manager+Catalog&category_name=&product_id=MX5M"> Mindjet </a> Website.<br /><b>Price:</b> $49.99 USD (MindManager X5 for the desktop is $199.00, MindManager X5 Pro for the desktop is $299.00)<br /><b>System Requirements:</b> Runs on all Pocket PCs.<br /><br /><b>Pros:</b><li>Great synchronization with desktop software;<br /><li>Can create mindmaps on the fly.<b>Cons:</b><li>Expensive;<br /><li>Does not allow for the same freeform inputting;<br /><li>Not much use without the $200.00 to $300.00 desktop software.<br /><b>Summary:</b><br />Many people have heard of mindmapping software for desktop PCs, which helps to organize ideas and structure thoughts, but that only works when you are sitting at your desk. Some of my best thoughts occur when I am walking through a store, or sitting in a restaurant. Can MindManager Mobile X5 for Pocket PC help me to herd these thoughts into something usable?<br /><br />Read on for the full review!<!><br /><PAGEBREAK><br /> <span><b>Mapping my Mind Without an MRI</b></span><br />Some months ago Don Tolson reviewed <a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/articles.php?action=expand,28287">Pocket Mindmap 1.3</a> mindmapping software for the Pocket PC. In his review Don does an excellent job of explaining what mindmapping can do for you, so I won’t try to reiterate here. At the close of his article, Don mentions that Pocket Mindmap 1.3 has sychronization capabilities with Mindjet’s MindManager mindmapping software.<br /><br />MindManager is one of the best known mindmapping software packages for the PC, and one of my favorite programs, whether on my desktop PC, or on my trusty Toshiba Tablet PC. While I strive to be organized, quite often my ideas seem to surface in a chaotic jumble, or I may find myself faced with a complex planning project with myriad goals and constraints. Simply writing these things down is usually not sufficient to help me process everything. MindManager X5 software gives me powerful tools to be able to throw out bits of ideas or streams of consciousness as they occur to me, almost as if I were putting Post-It notes with thought snippits on my desk. I can then move these ideas around graphically (this is so cool) and then explore relationships, organize hierarchies, etc. As the ideas develop, I can add more detail, images, sketches, etc., to the mixture to further flesh out ideas or explore possibilities. The software allows me to assign graphics to items, import elements from other applications, and even assign items as tasks in Outlook - one of my favorite functions. <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept004-manager1.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 1: This is an example of a mindmap in the desktop version of the software. Notice the connections and all of the added graphics.</i><br /><br /><span><b>Yeah, But Can I Do This on the Bus?</b></span><br />Not surprisingly, MindManager Mobile does not provide the all of the same freeform capabilities as the desktop version. The graphical nature of the desktop is missing from the mobile package. This isn’t really a surprise given the differences in processing power, so the mobile version is effectively limited to an outline structure. Luckily, there is still a lot of flexibility to the outline’s organization, so topics can change, and relationships evolve. On the downside, only a portion of the outline is visible at any given time. Unfortunately, I found this to be really distracting.<br /><br /><PAGEBREAK><br /><span><b>The Swing....</b></span><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept002-manager20.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 2: The same mindmap as in Figure 1, as displayed on the Pocket PC. Notice that the icons transfer across. </i><br /><br />MindManager allows you to add formatting and icons to the elements in the mindmap. MindManager x5 Mobile does a pretty good job of keeping this formatting intact. Notes attached to various items are transferred across to the Pocket PC.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept003-manager21.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 3: Associated notes make it across to the mobile version.</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept04-manager9.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 4:Formatting options for your map elements...</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept04-manager9.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 5: Graphics can be assigned or changed in the mobile version.</i><br /><br /><PAGEBREAK><br /><span><b>The Miss....</b></span><br /><br />My major disappointment lies with the fact that I am limited to working with the outline view. However, this alone wouldn’t be enough to really upset me except for the fact that I cannot view the entire outline; only one topic and its branches at a time. If I want to move a subtopic from one branch to another, I have to perform several actions. The major appeal of MindManager (the desktop version) is its unstructured nature. It seems very contradictory to me to hobble the Pocket PC version to so much unnecessary structure.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept04-manager3.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 6: This is an example of a generic outline.</i><br /><br />Referring to Figure 6 above, if I want to reassign an idea to another topic, it takes several steps, not a clean and simple drag and drop.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept04-manager4.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 7: I start by dragging an idea...</i><br /><br />I start by dragging the idea from its original location to a new category.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept04-manager6.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 8:...into an new relationship. But I can't control where it goes in the new topic...</i><br /><br />After dropping, I have to open the new home category. The idea is at the top of the list. If I want to associate that idea with a topic, I have to drag and drop again.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak-sept04-manager7.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 9:...until I manually open further levels of the outline.</i><br /><br />I open the newly desired topic, and drag and drop the idea to the desired location. While this may not seem like a lot of work, the process becomes cumbersome when trying to move large amounts of items when fleeting new concepts find you. Because of this, I have found MindManager X5 Mobile to be a good resource to view elements of a map I created on the desktop, but not a serious tool for brainstorming on the fly.<br /><br /><span><b>Conclusions</b></span><br />MindManager X5 Pro is a powerful program that offers powerful yet freeform tools to capture thoughts and and explore ideas through the creation of mindmaps. The mobile version is good for referring to these MindMaps, but the software is too structured to help with more than basic mindmap creation.