Which to use: Mind mapping or concept mapping
A reader contacted me recently with an interesting question about whether she should use PersonalBrain or MindManager to layout her book.
Please share your opinion regarding best choice of software for writers wanting to organize accumulated electronic folders & files of notes/ideas to construct and work on writing project/novel/etc. I am currently testing Personal Brain. It seems terrific so far. ... [I] can already see how this software could help me build my novel. But, I'm wondering whether my time would be better spent doing all this work in MindManager right away. I get the sense most authors who use mind mapping software prefer MindManager.
My response wasn't so much a recommendation of one or the other but to ask a little about her process and thinking behind the book. The reason is that these two software packages operate in different "mapping" spaces. At least in my mind. Part of my response:
How would you organize things if you only had paper (lots of paper or maybe a giant white board)? Would the drawing look like something that has a "center" with lots of ideas / storylines shooting out from the center? Is it more like a "line" that has loops and jumps? Is it more like an interconnected web of ideas and information?
Of course, I asked these questions because there is a difference in how MindManager (mind maps) and PersonalBrain (concept maps) allow you to represent your thoughts.
Mind maps, which MindManager helps you create, are centered on a single topic with all sub-topics branching from it. They are great for organizing thinking around a central idea or problem. My mind maps end up being notes from a seminar or thoughts about a class I might teach. Or even notes for a paper I want to write. I know people have used mind maps to outline book chapters and books. This works great for writing (or presentations) that are linear and build upon themselves.
Concept maps, which I think of Personal Brain facilitating, let me draw connections between a wide variety of ideas, when there is no "central" idea in the mapping activity. Concept maps are great when you wish to show the interconnectedness of the ideas being mapped. A good tool should let me jump from one topic to another in many different directions or along specific types of paths. Of course, this power makes for difficulty in visualizing a very complex map, as there is no clear "starting point."
After replying along these lines to my reader, she came back with the realization that PersonalBrain probably is the right tool for her, as she needs a concept map:
After 25 years of entering bits and pieces of thoughts and ideas into my pc, I am now able to see relationships between these ideas, be they Character , Conflict, Setting, Dialog, etc. By linking together similarities, I can start to see actual multi-dimensional characters develop, and see how they relate to the other elements.
Given her initial question to me, I am not surprised that PersonalBrain makes more sense. Not only does she have ideas about her book, but she's collected a wide variety of tidbits (files) associated with the story and characters. Having a concept map to tie these all together makes a lot of sense to me.
But her next question is also interesting. Now that she has all of these things in place, is there a useful tool / process for writing from a concept map? Is this where a mind map could become more helpful, where she could generate a specific outline that takes components of her concept map and lays them out in a linear fashion? Or do you just start writing, with the concept map as a reference tool?
Note: The Wikipedia entries for Concept map and Mind map seem to be good enough for general introductions. The Concept map entry leans more heavily to the semantics that can be built into the map, whereas I tend to stay away from that aspect of the maps.
12 Comment(s)
Nice analysis - clear and useful. Bookmarked!! Thanks, Jack
said:
Thanks, Bill. And I just heard on the Rule the Web in Sixty Seconds podcast (http://www.ruletheweb.net/) about http://www.gliffy.com/ which lets you create and share any kind of diagrams online.
Jack, that's a very good way to look at the differences between mind maps and concept maps. Putting it into a context like that is very helpful. Great job. Thanks.
Jack,
Reminds me of a conversation you and I had some months back in which you gave me pretty much the same advice. I had been using, and continue to use, MindManager, but since our chat I've come to depend on The Brain. I work on large systems integration projects and the concept maps of Personal Brain are invaluable in keeping track of all the connections within, and external to, the programs.
Jack,
Excellent article that both differentiates between concept and mind maps and also gives a useful example of how one might determine which to use.
It's always been a bit on an enigma to me that people who are aware of concept maps are very aware of mind mapping as well, yet those who promite mind mapping are not always so savvy about concept mapping.
Bit of concept mapping to MindManager 8, anyone?
And God knows I tried in the VSS templates: http://mcfarlin.typepad.com/the_underlying_blog/2007/05/the_mind_map_li.html
PersonalBrain is amazing. But when it comes time to actually write, it seems better to move to something else. I recommend Story Weaver and Dramatica Pro, both by Melanie Anne Phillips:
http://www.writersstore.com/product.php?products_id=2042
http://www.writersstore.com/product.php?products_id=47
Free demos for both programs are available.
Story Weaver, at $30, is quite straightforward and, I think, would be extremely useful to your reader. She already has the basic background work and many ideas. Story Weaver could help her pull out the essentials needed to craft them into a good story.
Dramatica Pro is as much a theory of story as it is story planning software. It's considerably more complex and considerably more expensive ($230), but well-worth it for the dedicated writer who wants to master the story crafting process and keep control of complex relationships while at the same time allowing for spontaneity. The learning curve is a bit steep, but many professional writers swear by it.
Dear Jack,
Thank you for the article on Mindmapping or Conceptmapping.
I was reading your article and thought: why not use both mapping techniques in the same map? I created a technique called SumMapping (short for Summary Mapping). This technique helps people in visualising information in a wide
variety of styles. You can use a central mindmap, next to that you use some linear text, an image, a concept map, a table, etc.
The goal of the SumMap is to give an overview, or the proverbial big picture, on a topic and closely related topics.
Perhaps this is something you can share with your client/friend as well. While writing a book, you may want to use mindmaps for characters, plots in concept maps, etc. Still, creating 2 or more separate maps can give you not
the big picture of the book. That is why the technique advices people to put them together. At a later time, you can zoom in on for example main characters and develop them more.
The great thing is that MindManager (and MindMapper for instance) can create concept maps as well, next to the mindmaps.
I hope to hear your thoughts on this.
Again, many thanks for the information!
Best regards,
Arjen
One warning:
Stan mentioned Dramatica Pro as an alternative, and noted it has a free Demo version.
However, the Demo version is NOT upgradeable (despite what it says on their website)! Any work you do in the Demo version is lost. When you buy the full retail version ($269 if you want a CD), you are directed to download an entirely different piece of software and start from scratch.
Their Tech Support people told me they really intend for you to just LOOK at the screens in the Demo version, not to actually do any work on them (despite the fact that it is promoted as a "Fully Functioning" demo).
Ask me how I know this. :-(
I use Tinderbox to map out my novels, and I find it infinitely versatile.
said:
A colleague from Northwestern just referred me to the "Cmap Tools" from the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in Florida (http://cmap.ihmc.us/). Presumably, you can do both concept and mind mapping with the tool, though its focus seems to be concept mapping.
I have spent the whole afternoon trying to find a good concept mapping application. I have tried many. I tried every program I could find listed at www.mind-mapping.org
I am looking for:
1. an interface dedicated to making a concept map (i.e., not an interface primarily dedicated to mind mapping, i.e., the ability to quickly add nodes and labeled relationship lines betwen them)
2. an interface that allows for detailed notes to be added to a node in rich text (styles and bullets), with the notes preferrably in a separate pane so that they can easily be viewable.
cmap fits #1 but not #2. That is, cmap's notes are plain text and you have to click a little icon thing to be able to see the note.
Basically, a nice, smooth, rich-featured UI but for concept maps, not for mind maps. A Mindmanager for concept maps, if you will.
Nathan,
I think Cayra matches your search request. It's a free mind/concept mapping software.
Hope that was helpful,
Regards,
Julia.
And now you can create TOC Trees and Clouds (http://eclecticbill.blogspot.com/2007/10/software-to-create-toc-diagrams.html).