Mindjet aims MindManager 2012 at collaborative workspace management

Project planning specialist Mindjet today launched the 2012 version of its popular project mapping and visualisation package MindManager, aiming to boost its presence in the collaborative workspace management (CWM) market.

The update will bring together information visualisation, collaboration and sharing, project and document management as well as online storage, according to Northern Europe, Middle East, and Africa VP Chris Harman.

To cement its entry into the CWM market, Mindjet is also launching an upgraded version of its Connect software, formerly called Catalyst, and has allowed MindManager 2012 to integrate with Microsoft's SharePoint web portal.

Mindjet Connect allows users to store mind maps and other related project information such as .PDFs, Excel spreadsheets and Word documents in the cloud.

"In version 9 of MindManager, users need to purchase a separate standalone program for integrating SharePoint data into their mind maps, however, MindManager 2012 has this feature built-in," said Harman.

MindManager allows users to create mind maps, which are visual diagrams incorporating all the information associated with a particular project, which can be saved into a single file.

"Mind mapping" is a technique pioneered by Tony Buzan, whereby users map their ideas and any other associated information visually, creating a tree-like structure linking related topics that eventually build into a so-called mind map [see picture].

Other new features include "directed brainstorming", a free version of Mindjet Connect (less comprehensive than the business paid-for version), an enhanced "marker index", and better task management.

Directed brainstorming allows users to refine their ideas by defining project challenges, assisting with idea generation and categorising and refining those ideas [see picture].

The marker index gives users the ability to prioritise various tasks in the project's mind map by tagging these tasks with an easily updateable marker icon, as well as tagging the progress of the project tasks, and assigning people resources to complete the tasks – also tagged with updateable marker icons [see picture].

Pricing
Pricing for the new version, which is available for Mac and Windows OSes, is £190 + VAT, and £299 + VAT respectively. Mindjet's Connect service is available for £12.50 + VAT per user per month.