EDraw Mind Map

Edraw Mind Map can help you create visual representations of ideas. The program has a very nice interface, which looks as it were just another application in the Microsoft Office suite.

Fortunately, it is also compatible with Visio so you can import documents without any complication.

Its greatest advantage is that you do not need to start from scratch; instead, you can use any template from a rather comprehensive collection. It is good that these templates have very descriptive names so it is not hard to find the one that best suits your needs. However, should you want to create a completely new mind map, you can always use blank templates, which are also predefined as mind map, concept map and bubble diagram. Then, populating your mind map is as easy as dragging objects. Luckily, there is a huge libraries covering such areas as animals, backgrounds, finance, symbols, shapes, business, people and many others. Similarly, there are connectors to relate your ideas one another. In addition, you should be aware of the contextual menu, which you can open by right-clicking on the desired object. It is also a good idea to use the shortcuts in the ribbon to automatize some operations.

The results of your work can easily be shared with others because the application supports saving in various formats, including PowerPoint and PDF. Likewise, they can be sent by email or uploaded to an FTP site. It is a pity, though, that, unlike many modern tools, this one does not support storing the files on a cloud-storage service.

In general, EDraw Mind Map is a feature-rich application, which means that it may take some time before you can exploit all its potential. However, it certainly deserves a try. After all, it is free for home, non-profit and educational use, so there is nothing to lose. In this respect, its paid version, with exactly the same features, is intended for commercial, military and governmental use.