What are mind maps and how to create them in FreeMind? Alternatives to replace FreeMind Adding new nodes to the map

FreeMind is a highly specialized product designed for specific tasks like creating mind diagrams, and does not include unnecessary functionality. Now, to edit branched diagrams and visualizations of any complexity, there is no need to install a full suite of office programs.

Visual demonstration

The capabilities of the small FreeMind program allow you to express your ideas in the form of a brainstorming graph. With the help of it, you can visually explain the goals of the company, derive an algorithm for solving the problem, draw up a task for employees and many other tasks.

All tools at hand

The functionality of the FreeMind program is wide enough, but it is not replete with rarely used tools for "one-time" work. The toolbar icons translated into Russian are located at the top and left of the window. The simple interface will immediately bring the user up to date.
Key features:
  • the outline of the branches of the diagram;
  • writing and formatting text;
  • highlighting keywords;
  • creation of hyperlinks (including online transitions);
  • combination with other file formats (peg, html, OpenDocument xhtml, png and xml).

Corporate memory cards

FreeMind is often used to create primitive and complex file directories on the server, to which the user can set hyperlinks in the form of key phrases, words, structures. The entire project becomes available to a limited number of persons via the Internet, but can be encrypted from unauthorized persons.

Modification possibility

The FreeMind application is developed in the Java language, is distributed free of charge and is open source. This contributed to the introduction of multi-platform instructions and increased optimization.

Advantages

  • simple interface in Russian;
  • import / export from third-party files;
  • the ability to create a "cloud" memory card;
  • protection of the project in the form of a cipher;
  • linking to files hard disk and Internet pages;
  • free distribution of the editor.
FreeMind can be downloaded for free at the link below.

Every person has to work with a wide variety of information. Over time, the amount of this information is steadily growing. In order not to drown in this volume and not to lose sight of something valuable, it is important to organize convenient storage of this information. If we are talking about ordinary computer files, then they are stored in a convenient hierarchical directory structure on information storage devices. But what if we are talking about such important information as ideas, thoughts, concepts, observations, notes, different concepts? Of course, they can be presented in the form of various texts. But in this case it will be difficult to navigate in their diversity. To solve this problem, such information is presented in the form mind maps- tree diagram, in which all information is located in the nodes of the tree. This representation is most consistent with how the brain perceives information. And thanks to this compliance, work efficiency is significantly increased.

There are many different programs for creating mind maps. But most of them are paid. But along with them there is a rather popular free program FreeMind, in which you can quickly and conveniently create mind maps in a simple and understandable form. Below we will tell you how to use this program.

Installing and running the FreeMind program

You can download the FreeMind program from download pages on the official site. To do this, you need to click on the "Windows Installer Max" link.

After that, you should run the downloaded executable file, starting the installation process. First, you need to confirm the selected language of the program interface.

Then confirm the start of the installation of the program.

Agree to the terms of the license.

At the next stage, the program notifies that it requires an installed virtual machine Java. And if it is not installed on the computer, then it should first be installed from the official site java.com.

And the name of the folder in the start menu.

The final step is to confirm the creation of shortcuts and file associations.

Now all that remains is to press the install button.

In the process of copying files, a window will appear with information about the authors and donors of the program. There is no special action required, except for clicking the "Next" button.

In the end, a final window will appear, in which you can check the "Run the program" checkbox.

If the program starts successfully, a window with a blank mind map will appear.

Adding new nodes to the map

As you can see, when you open the program, a map is automatically created with one single root node named "New Map". If you left-click on the node itself and press the F2 key, you can change the text inside it.

Editing is terminated by pressing the Enter key. Therefore, if it is necessary to add new lines to the text of the node, as well as for more advanced editing of the text in a separate window, press the Alt + Enter key combination.

Other nodes that will be created can be edited in the same way. And creating new nodes is quite simple - you just need to select one of the nodes with the mouse and by pressing the Insert button create a child node for it. The same can be done by right-clicking and selecting New Subordinate Node from the context menu.

When adding a node, you can immediately enter the necessary text into it. In our case, for example, we will create a map in which we will designate topics and questions on these topics with a list of answers to these questions. So now we will name the first node "Topic 1".

In addition to creating child nodes, you can also create adjacent nodes - i.e. nodes that will have a common parent with the selected one. To do this, you can use the "Enter" key or the context menu item "New adjacent node". At this stage, simply by pressing the Enter key and entering text, you can quickly add several nodes without even using the mouse for this.

With these two addition operations, we can create the branched structure we need.

Editing the mind map

As a matter of fact, you can edit the elements of the constructed tree using the methods standard for most text editors. Namely, you can do the following:

Select several elements at once using the mouse while holding down the Shift or Ctrl keys. With the Alt key pressed, you can select all child nodes for the selected node. Selection using keyboard arrows and holding down the Shift key also works.

Delete selected nodes by pressing the Delete key or via the context menu.

Copy the selected nodes to the clipboard and then paste them from the clipboard, attaching them to another place on the map.

Move nodes with the mouse. When the Ctrl key is pressed, the nodes will not be moved, but copied.

Move nodes using the keyboard arrows and holding down the Ctrl key. In this case, you can change the order of adjacent nodes (up / down arrows), and also change the nesting depth of a node in the hierarchy (left / right arrows)

The program also provides for a number of other operations, of which there are quite a few. But when editing maps, you can mostly do without them.

Map overview

If the map turned out to be quite voluminous, then it makes sense to take advantage of the main advantage of computer mind maps over paper ones: in electronic format branches of the tree structure can be collapsed and expanded. Thanks to this, huge mind maps can be reduced to a compact form, and access to the necessary information can be obtained by selectively expanding certain branches. For these purposes, the FreeMind program provides a number of operations on nodes, which can be performed both using the appropriate key combinations and through the menu items located in the "Node" section of the main program menu.

Using the operations of folding nodes, we can bring our mental map to a fairly compact form. At the same time, you can see that the ends of the branches contain small circles, which mean that the nodes have child nodes that are currently collapsed.

If we are interested in information from some section, then we can expand the corresponding branch of the tree and see the necessary nodes.

Since in our case the selected node was not the lowest level, then its expanded child nodes were outside the window boundaries. To see them, you can either go to them (using the mouse or keyboard arrows), or move the entire map canvas by holding the left mouse button in an empty area and moving the pointer in the desired direction.

Card design

The added information can be styled by changing the size of fonts, colors, adding icons, etc. When creating simple maps, it is often helpful to use the automatic formatting feature. You can use it through the "Format / Automatic formatting" menu item.

Immediately after choosing this menu item, the program will automatically change the appearance for the nodes of the first, second and third levels.

Using the other menu items in the "Format" section, you can customize the appearance of each node or a whole group of selected nodes. And by clicking the icon icon in the left panel of the program, you can attach this icon to all selected nodes.

You can delete an icon from a node using the menu item "Insert / Icons / Delete last pictogram". Thanks to formatting, you can bring the created maps to a rather attractive and visual form.

conclusions

With the free software FreeMind, you can create and edit deeply nested mind maps. The electronic format of the tree structure allows you to collapse and expand its branches, thanks to which you can quickly and conveniently access the necessary nodes, even on maps with a large number of elements. The key is to maintain a balance and not create too many direct child nodes from one parent. The program also includes the ability to format map elements, thanks to which you can significantly increase the attractiveness and visibility of the intelligence of the maps. There are also many others in the program. additional opportunities, which can be useful in individual cases. But since you can usually do without them when creating mind maps, you do not need to study them deeply.

XMind is a brainstorming and mapping application. It provides a rich set of different visualization styles and allows you to share the generated mind maps via a website.

Free (limited) Mac Windows Linux Web iPhone iPad

  • Freeplane

    Freeplane is a powerful and free smart map building software. This is a reworked version of the well-known FreeMind, created by one of the key FreeMind developers. Software written in Java and supports any platform capable of running current versions of Java.

    Free Open Source Mac Windows Linux BSD

  • Mindomo

    Mindomo is the simplest online software for creating mind maps, concept maps, outlines, and various other types of charts.

    Free (limited) Mac Windows Linux Web Android Android Tablet iPad Chrome Safari Firefox

  • MindMeister

    MindMeister is the market leader in online mapping. Unlike traditional intelligence mapping tools, MindMeister allows real-time brainstorming between an unlimited number of users and only requires a standard web browser.

    Free (limited) Internet Android iPhone

  • TheBrain

    TheBrain helps you organize all your webpages, contacts, documents, emails and files in a visualized semantic web.

    Free (limited) Mac Windows Linux Web Android iPhone Android Tablet iPad

  • MindManager

    MindManager's flexible mind maps encourage free thinking and quick organization of ideas, so creativity and productivity can coexist in harmony. Save ideas. Manage your appointments. Create strategic plans. Organize whatever you want.
    Watch the video to see how you can do more with MindManager

    Paid Mac Windows Web Android iPhone iPad

  • Spekfy

    Spekfy offers an overview of the project from a global perspective to details. By using a mind map, you break down complex tasks into smaller pieces and better understand the requirements and objectives of the project.

    Free (limited) Mac Windows Linux Internet

    • FreeMind is an application designed to create so-called mind maps. With its help, the user can conveniently structure his thoughts in a tree-like format. The program itself performs the task of an editor, within which a system of thoughts is organized. She is responsible for visualizing the connection of ideas, pans among themselves, forming stages and demonstrating sequence.

    The software solution is used in individual and collective project development. Each site can be supplemented with a link to any source, be it detailed mental map, web page or specific file. In addition, it supports the addition of lists, flexible customization of fragments, providing an accurate presentation of the concept. The result is available for export as a graphic file, HTML page, data tree (as XHTML).

    Download for free the full Russian version of FreeMind from the official website without registration and SMS.

    System requirements

    • Supported OS: Windows 10, 8, Vista, 7, XP, 8.1
    • Bit depth: 64 bit, x86, 32 bit

    Installing FreeMind

    FreeMind is written in Java, so it will run on almost any system with a Java runtime environment.

    In order to make things easier for you, we "ve prepared installers for the most common desktop environments: Windows, Linux and Macintosh OS X. You may choose a minimum install that gives you only the basic FreeMind package or a maximum install, which includes plugins for Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), Portable Document Format (PDF), reminders and help files.

    System requirements

    Java Runtime Environment 1.6 or later. You can find a FreeMind installer including java or download Sun "s Java from.

    Step-by-step overview

    1. Install Java Runtime Environment if you do not have it.
    2. Choose a FreeMind installation file by operating system.
    3. Download the chosen installation file.
    4. Install FreeMind.

    Download

    Choose among the following binaries of the current FreeMind 1.0.1, depending on your operating system:

    OSDownloadSize (MB)Note
    MS Windows 29
    MS Windows 38 All-inclusive version
    Mac OS X 92 All-inclusive version. Information for Mac Maverick (10.9) and Mountain Lion (10.8) Users: After the download, the operating system reports the application to be broken. Please see for the solution.
    Mac OS X 10.6.8 150 All-inclusive version, still version 1.0.0. Users of version 10.6.8, please take this link; a different java version is included there.
    Linux Ubuntu Linux ??
    Linux Debian Linux (currently still for the 0.9.0 version) 2.6 Please consider first checking the.
    Linux and other RPM-based distros like Fedora and Mandriva 2.8 See also.
    Any 29 A smaller version without SVG export and PDF export.
    Any 38 All-inclusive version
    eComStation
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