Managing Business tasks with MindNode for the iPad
March 3, 2011 
1 Comment
Taking control of business taske with MindNode.
If you’re in business development, technology oversight or sales, MindNode (available for iPad and iPhone) is your essential tool for staying organized while attending trade shows or events. A visual mind mapping application, MindNode allows users to create a map of all the companies, people and products on their agenda, then strategize their day and constantly update the app to reflect new objectives as they occur. If you’re new to mind mapping, or you’ve seen other mind mapping apps with complicated user interfaces, have no fear. MindNode’s learning curve takes no time to get over, yet it’s packed with features that increase your productivity like it’s had a bit too much caffeine.
Getting started is as simple as entering objectives you’d like to accomplish as nodes in the application. Under each node, you can add subnodes that list the people or products you need to see to complete that objective. Then just color code the most important nodes to maximize your productivity. As you complete each goal, tap the node to re-color and mark it as completed. If you’ve found something new to add to your map during the day, that’s no problem for MindNode. Simply add nodes for each new product, company or person and the map will fluidly include all the new tasks you’d like to accomplish. You can even drag and drop nodes if associations change or you put something in the wrong place.
As a checklist, MindNode is a dream; but the app offers much more than that. If you need to take notes as you speak with prospects, potential partners or customers, you can easily add that information to their node on the mind map. To avoid speaking to anyone twice (or worse, missing someone), just change the node color of contacts to whom you’ve already spoken. It’s even possible to map these relationships by business or product groupings, meaning you’ll always associate contacts with the right company. Additionally, you can map your business development plans and associate people or products with each stage. The portability (and export ability for PDF and other formats) inherent in MindNode means you’ll always have those plans at hand when you need them. Plus, the no frills interface means you won’t easily be confused or waste time tracking down information on the go.
But, as you’ll see from the list below, those are just a few of MindNode’s offerings.
MindNode Pro
- iPhone, iPad and Mac OS X support
- Features full keyboard support
- Supports improved printing dialog
- Canvas automatically expands
- Allows users to:
- Create multiple new nodes and node wells
- Create multiple mind maps all on one canvas
- Customize node widths
- Export maps to PNG, PDF, HTML, RTF, OPML, and FreeMind formats
- Import FreeMind and OPML files
- Import MindNode (touch) files
- Drag and drop to reconnect nodes
- Image nodes
- Create visual file links
- Create cross connections
- Enable WiFi sharing with MindNode (touch)
- Enter full screen mode
- Fold and unfold nodes
- Embed hyperlinks
- Customize node creation shortcuts
- Customize default node color, stroke, font and more
- Change a node’s title alignment
- Reorganize nodes
- Fill any node
- Copy mind maps to the clipboard as a TIFF or PDF
The simple user interface combined with so many useful features makes MindNode essential in terms of productivity. Plus, the portability means the app is both flexible and practical for attending trade shows and events. So if you’re new to the mind mapping concept, you’ll be an old pro in no time with MindNode. And if you’re an old pro, you just might pick up some new productivity tricks.
