If you have access to the RTM version of Windows 8 and visited the store recently, you have probably noticed that new apps are starting to appear regularly now. Windows 8 RTM users are also the first who got access to paid applications in the store. When you look at the apps on offer, you find the usual assortment of apps and games that other app stores such as Apple’s store or the Google Play store offer. Some may say that there are always alternatives in form of desktop programs or online services, and that is certainly true. But if you do not know where to look, or simply prefer to only install programs that went through rigorous testing, then the Windows Store may provide you with better options.
Mind8 is a free mind mapping app that has recently found its way into the store. All you need to do is click on the install button on the application’s profile page in the store to install it on the system. Once installed, you can load the app with a click on the tile that gets added to the start page automatically.
You can create new mind maps or access existing ones from the application’s start page. Here you can then add and remove nodes, and edit note labels. When you compare the app to existing solutions, you may notice that it is fairly limited in terms of functionality. While you can create. edit and remove nodes, you can’t for instance add labels to connectors, or add other elements like different shaped blocks or colors to the mind map.
Then again, if you want to create a basic mind map it does not really get easier than this. Each mind map that you create can be added as a tile to the Windows 8 start page which improves access considerably. If you log in to the operating system with a Microsoft Account, you also benefit from automatic synchronization so that you can access your mind maps on all systems running Windows 8 that you sign in with your account.
Content is King. We’ve all heard it, we all know it’s true. The mistake many of us make is to start churning out content in a haphhazard manner, without a cohesive strategy. I’ts easy not to pay attention to the structure and relation of each piece to the rest. While this is great for keeping up a writing schedule, it can become confusing for visitors to the site. A Smarter Way to Plan Your Blog Content
You first step is to grab a program like Mindjet MindManager or an online program like MindMeister. These are great programs that make the mindmapping process much quicker and easier.
Next, you need to create your first bubble, which should be the name of your blog.
Figure out the 1-3 main topics that your blog will cover. We’ll use Gardening as an example and create these two categories:
• Indoor • Outdoor
Next you’ll need to expand on these two main categories to come up with the subcategories. These are the smaller “main topics” that posts can be based on. The best way to think of these is that they can serve as the main topics that guides can be written on. Let’s return to our gardening example and create some subcategories.
Individual Blog Posts
Now we have some topics to work from when creating individual blog posts. This is where you really flesh out your mind map, adding in all of the different posts you want to create.
It’s very effective to mindmap posts with the “series” mentality. To use our example above, you could create a series of posts on an outdoor salad garden that completely cover the topic in an exhaustive manner. As a blog owners, your goal is to be the absolute number one source of information on your particular niche. By working out your content in this mindmap fashion, you essentially guarantee that you are going to cover all of the topics in your niche. Incorporating Keyword Optimization into your Strategy
By mindmapping, you can organize your keywords in buckets, just like you’re organizing your content. If you have a large exhaustive list of keywords that you’d like to optimize your site for, you can now work those into your mindmaps so you can be certain you are covering all of the different keyword buckets that revolve around your product. In this way, you can target both primary, secondary, and long tail keywords. Tightening Up Your Mindmap
If you follow the steps above you’ll be miles ahead of your competition when it comes to a cohesive blog content structure. However, you can take this a step further if you want. Add expected dates of completion to the individual blog posts on your mindmap to give yourself a posting schedule. This is going to help you keep putting out content on a regular schedule AND in a way that readers can really relate to. Now you’ll have a lot of content coming out just like before, but it will be organized and follow a logical flow for your readers, creating a much better user experience.
MindMaple Inc., the creators of the MindMaple Lite and Pro product line have introduced the release of a new product called MindMaple Viewer, which is intended to help users bridge the gap between their Windows based computers and their iPad tablets.
MindMaple Inc., the San Francisco based mind mapping software company has official launched their first product for the iPad community. With their previous software development focused on Windows based platforms, this product is their first go at helping iPad users manage their MindMaple creations.
MindMaple Viewer enables users to open MindMaple files they created on their Windows PC with their iPad tablet. While this first version is a view only edition, the company plans on releasing a full version in the very near future. For the time being, there is a handy Dropbox function that allows the user to upload files to their Dropbox account, then download these same files onto their iPad from anywhere with an internet connection.
In continuing with the companies quest to help spread the word about the benefits of using mind mapping software for both business and personal purposes, MindMaple Inc. has launched round two of their mind mapping contest. The contest runs until September 1st, 2012 with the winner of a $250 Amazon gift card being announced on the company blog, Facebook and Twitter account on September 3rd, 2012.
The popular business graphics and project management suite from CS Odessa is fully updated for compatibility with Apple’s newest Mac OS.
Now that Mountain Lion has been unleashed, Macintosh owners have to face the inevitable question, “How many of my favorite apps going to misbehave?” Fortunately for ConceptDraw users, the answer is, “None.” CS Odessa has worked tirelessly to ensure a seamless transition to the next generation of Mac OS X for all current ConceptDraw products, including ConceptDraw MINDMAP v7, ConceptDraw PROJECT v6, ConceptDraw PRO v9, and the ConceptDraw Office v2 suite.
ConceptDraw Office remains the premier cross-platform productivity solution. Its integrated mind mapping, project management, and business diagramming applications provide flexibility and depth of functionality unparalleled in a product of its cost. Furthermore, CS Odessa offers users of competing products the opportunity to purchase at a steeply discounted upgrade cost. Contact us at http://www.conceptdraw.com/products/contact-us for more information on pricing, licensing, and functionality of the ConceptDraw productivity line.
Video: Adding Material Resources in ConceptDraw Office v2
When it comes to the major proponents of how to mind map, there's probably nobody more active or better known in making this type of thinking popular and prominent than the author and educational consultant, Tony Buzan. It's not that he invented this technique, though he claims that he created its modern version. Making a visual map of the concepts and ideas contained in an argument or an explanation of information appears to have been used as far back as the third century of the Common Era. But there's no doubt that Tony Buzan was the driving force in bringing the technique into use in the twentieth century.
Buzan stands on the shoulders of several others who developed earlier precursors of mind map methods. Allan M. Collins and M. Ross Quillian in particular completed research on "semantic networks," exploring how learning, creativity and graphical thinking were related. But Buzan also credits the semantic theories of Alfred Korzybski as his inspiration for understanding how to create a mind map. These theories were given life by science fiction novelists such as Robert Heinlein and A.E. van Vogt, but it was Buzan who put them into popular form and made them accessible to the general public.
The Tony Buzan mind mapping technique involves taking a central word and arranging all the concepts or ideas related to that word in ways that radiate out from it. He claims that readers don't naturally absorb a page of text by scanning it left-to-right, as all English books are currently written. Rather, says Buzan, they tend to scan the page in a non-linear way. So when he teaches how to mind map, he teaches people to use their non-linear right brain to visualize related concepts on a page, as spatial ideas, and then to group them together with similar colors or by relocating them to the same place on the page. This, according to Buzan, reveals relationships and themes that the person might not initially have thought of.
In 2006, Buzan released a mindmapping software program called "iMindMap, and he has published many books on memory, speed reading, and of course on creating maps of the mind itself. He also has a website called "Buzan World," where he promotes his ideas. Over the years he has founded many organizations such as the Brain Foundation, the Brain Trust Charity, the World Memory Championships, and the World Championships of the Brain. But although he is well known for exploring all aspects of the mind, he is probably best known for his promotion and education on all aspects of how to mind map.
