♥ Quickly create stunning mind maps
♠ Automatically produce impressive presentations
♦ Plan and organise complex processes easily
♣ Effectively brainstorm professional projects
♦ Streamline note-taking and summarise books and talks
♠ Enjoy studying and improve exam results
♥ Free your best ideas
What is iMindMap 9? It’s the latest version of the mind mapping software program from the ThinkBuzan company. It is the only program to be officially endorsed by Tony Buzan, who popularised mind mapping in its modern form in the 1970s and closely follows his mind mapping principles.
The producers describe it as:
A digital thinking space designed for brainstorming ideas, visually capturing information, planning projects, organising and managing tasks, and delivering stunning presentations.
My parents gave me a copy of Tony Buzan’s legendary Use Your Head book back in the 70s to help me with my studies, so we go back quite a way, Tony and I!
Back in 2006 ThinkBuzan brought out the first version of their now famous brainstorming and mind mapping software, iMindMap.
It’s now in its ninth incarnation and has evolved into a fully-fledged ‘digital thinking space’, as they say, and a uniquely inspiring productivity tool which can only be described as… amazing.
There are already a few iMindMap 9 reviews out there since its recent release, so I’m not going to reinvent the wheel.
What I will do is highlight some of the main cool features (most only available in the full ‘Ultimate’ version) along with a few images and quotes lifted from the ThinkBuzan web site (shhh, don’t tell them!).
They say it’s the only mind mapping software tool which has a ‘free-form Brainstorm View, to help you capture ideas without restriction before developing them in a Mind Map’.
I practice this takes the form of colourful (of course) virtual post-its which are placed on an imaginary cork-board.
These ‘sticky’ notes can be grouped into themes and the really cool thing is that these themes will automatically become the main branches of the mind map when you flip over into mind map mode. If that doesn’t get you salivating, then I don’t know what will…
They say you can ‘create visually stunning Mind Maps and flowcharts, with images, icons, Branch Art and a variety of styles, to make your ideas pop.’ I’m not going to argue.
For many non-professional users, this ‘view’ may be the guts of the system with the brainstorming view and the presentation aspects being less used. And what a beautiful view it is!
The interface has been completely revamped to be crisp, clear and contextual. You see what you need to see, when you need to see it.
You can ‘Seamlessly transform ideas into actions with iMindMap’s integration with visual task management app, DropTask’, also produced by ThinkBuzan.
This latter is an optional feature, particularly interesting for professionals, but you get 6 month’s trial subscription with your iMindMap Ultimate purchase so you can try it out.
The software producers tell us that ‘The intuitive builder will help you plan and create stand out presentations, while the presenter screen ensures your delivery goes off without a hitch.’
This feature is truly excellent, with all sorts of ways of making your presentation impressive and memorable.
The way you can construct the flow of the slides, the smooth panning transitions from one to the next, the automatic exporting to PowerPoint or YouTube… everything is good.
The producers say you can ‘bring your business to life’ with their ‘captivating’ 3D view.
They invite us to ‘glide around (our) work from a multitude of angles and get (our) points across in a clear and powerful way.’
And the truth is, it’s fun. Once you start playing around with it, it’s difficult to stop!
With these well-implemented apps you can ‘save, sync and share your creations across all your devices, with 1GB storage in iMindMap Cloud and the fully featured iMindMap mobile apps for Android and iOS.’
I’ve been using the iPhone app for a few months now, and it’s great to be able to get some initial ideas out onto a map on the train on the way to work, and then carry on seamlessly on the PC at work or at home later.
It’s so quick to enter ideas spontaneously into a mind map on your mobile phone or tablet that you’ll find your never losing important thoughts again through not having a pen handy.
Finally, according to ThinkBuzan, ‘Working with the most-used desktop tools, iMindMap Ultimate can effortlessly export your maps into clean Word documents, spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, and webpages.’
The fact that the innovative format of the mind map isn’t always practical is no problem.
Thanks to the ease with which you can convert them over to more traditional applications, you can develop your ideas as creatively as you like before ‘calming’ them down for those that prefer a more sober approach.
As a very special offer exclusive to Mind Map Mad readers, for a limited time you can purchase this amazing mind mapping software at a 10% discount. Click the image below for details, and hurry – tomorrow it may be gone!
