Mindjet

Mindjet Free Trial - www.mindjet.com


What is Mindjet?

"Put away that whiteboard. We have a more productive way to brainstorm. Mindjet uses a free-form visual format that mirrors the way your brain processes information, so it's easy and intuitive to use. But it’s way more than just gathering and capturing ideas: Mindjet helps you turn brilliant ideas into new products, projects, campaigns and presentations. You can even email a link to your mapped ideas, post it on your blog or share it with your Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter networks." - from www.mindjet.com

I personally have always preferred lists as an organisational tool to mind-maps despite the proven benefits of mind-maps as a form of idea generation and recording. Mainly due to running out of space on whiteboards and the scribbly handwriting and erratic line formations that can come from the traditional hand-drawn mind map. So I was interested in using a program that could do this for me on my desktop whilst also eliminating the smell of white board markers.

I downloaded the Mindjet 30 day free trial to have a go. The program opened much like any Microsoft Office program and was easily navigatable for anyone familiar with these sorts of programmes. I decided to do the start up tutorial which takes you step by step through the process of a weekly status meeting for a widget factory. It introduced all of the basic applications available including:

Headings - Main title and main headings including an administative section where you can input the names of attendees at the meeting and the date of the meeting. It also has an Agenda heading which acts as the basis for the meeting.

Subheadings - Subheadings are easily added by pressing 'insert' to move on a level or 'enter' to add another subheading on the same level. These shortcut keys are great as once you get used to them it is very quick to type as the meeting goes on and get everything in the right order first time. All the bubbles snap to fit the amount of text entered which makes everything look neat, professional and easy to follow.

If you do decide to move a sub-heading or any bubble you can simply click, drag and drop to wherever on the page you want it to be. This usability is fantastic and cuts out the unecessary lines scribbled onto a hand drawn mind map when mistakes or changes are made. There is also a red 'relationship' line that can be put onto two or more tasks or points that are inherently linked.

Tasks - Tasks can be added to a subheading eg. 'Part Shortage' (see screen grab) has been delegated to Deby to sort out so you simply click on the task bar, type in the tasker(s) name and you can also set a start and due date onto the task. At the end of the meeting/mind map these tasks including any additional information can be exported to Outlook which is a brilliant tool.

Symbols and Indicators - There are a whole host of different symbols you can use which can be given their own definition eg. Green and Red flags can be used on tasks that need to be halted or continued or similarly you could use them for Positive or Negative feedback, whatever is appropriate to your style of meeting/project. There are also symbols to signify how far along a task is e.g. 1/4 or 1/2 way to completion.

This was as much as was covered in the initial tutorial which gives you enough information to get a detailed mind-map underway however there are many more features available to explore.

There are templates available for different purposes e.g simple meeting, marketing strategy, event planning etc. These are good quick start tools and are still adaptable to your exact purpose.

Below is the tutorial mindmap I produced. (Click for larger version)















I branched out on my own with mindjet and used it from a blank template in our weekly team meeting. I thought it might end up too complicated to use at the pace of the meeting and also perhaps unnecessary for a meeting of only 3 people but I was actually surprised at how useful it was. Instead of having to jot down notes we could all rely on the mind map as a minute taker and task allocator and it made us confirm all these points, for example defining a due date which may otherwise have been skimmed over to get to the next point on the agenda. I found the task allocator very useful and exported my tasks straight to outlook after the meeting. The mindmap can be saved as PDF, word document or image so is easily shareable even if you don't have the program yourself. Below is a copy of our weekly team meeting map. (Click to see large)
























As a novice i'm not sure I would be confident using mindjet in a large brainstorming meeting, but with weekly practice in team meetings and a bit more exploration I think it would be a valuable organisational tool. Obviously when hooked up to a projector it could still be used as the focal point of the meeting but without the dodgy scribbles!

Once you know where all the features are and what the shortcuts are it is very simple to use. It's clear and colourful with good icon indicators and is adaptable to any sort of meeting or project. The share-ability of the finished mind-map is great and the printed copies are very clear.

I recommend this program, it may not be to everyone or every organisation but I think it definately has a place on my desktop and I'm looking forward to exploring the features in more depth and using it at a larger scale meeting or brain storming session.
Try the 30 day free trial at www.mindjet.com

Video Arts - New Distribution Methods

Video Arts - New Distribution Methods
http://www.videoarts.com/
Many people will already be aware of Video Arts and their light hearted approach to training videos.
For those who aren’t so familiar here is their history taken from their website.
‘Video Arts was established in 1972 by a small group of television professionals, including John Cleese, who pioneered the use of humour in training. We continue to make our own programmes, as well as distributing the best of the rest. Our reputation for innovation continues to grow as we bring new technologies to the learning market.’
‘We produce and distribute high quality digital learning to help you put across your learning messages in an entertaining and memorable way. We’ve been famous for intelligent, entertaining and straight-talking training for over 30 years. We’ve gone from 16mm films to video, DVD, CDROM and now online streaming video.
We’ve delivered learning content to customers in over 50 countries since 1972.’

Video Arts have recently set up new ways of distributing their films via online streaming so that trainers can get instant access to relevant learning materials. This digitized format allows trainers to integrate them with Word or PowerPoint presentations.
Businesses can either use a ‘pay as you go’ model:
How it works
We provide over 1,000 video clips on a ‘little magic box’ (that’s a small roaming drive about the size of an iPhone). You can unlock any of these clips as you need them, using ‘credits’ bought in advance – exactly like a pay-as-you-go mobile phone.
You can preview the videos online any time (using a special preview version). Which means you can show it to external or internal clients in advance, and use it to present your business case.
Just £10 unlocks a video clip for 24 hours
When you’re ready, use your credits to unlock the high-quality versions for your sessions. Your roaming drive plugs straight into your PC or laptop, so you won’t need an internet connection. And you can drop clips into PowerPoint, Word or Excel as easily as clip art.

The full package:
For an annual subscription of £350, you can rent the external drive, pre-loaded with all 1,000 video clips, and get much more besides:
A simple toolkit to help you find the perfect video clips for your trainingOver 350 files of training materials, including a course leader’s guide, presentation slides, workbooks and certificatesOur expert help and advice on which resources will best meet your needsTechnical support£10 unlocks an individual chapter for 24 hours. When you subscribe you buy a minimum of £300 of credit (that's 30 clips). Then you simply buy as much or as little credit as you want to use, whenever you want to use it.
Or a digital library licence scheme:
Digital rentals are a low-cost way to get your hands on a relevant piece of video for a specific learning opportunity: whether that’s a management meeting, an email message or a formal training event.
Want more than one title?
Then an Enterprise Licence for our Digital Library is probably the best solution for you. Search, preview, customise and deliver as much video learning as you need from the most extensive library of its kind in the world. Click here for more information.Rent online for £199 a week
Browse our A-Z list of video. Programmes available as digital rentals have a icon next to them.Click on the title you want and select the digital rental option.Select the date you want your rental to start and complete your order.Your digital rental will be available from the date you specified at My Video Arts You can access the rental as many times as you like during the rental period simple by logging on to My Video Arts
There are some free sample clips available on the website to take a look at featuring well known British actors. The films are light-hearted and engaging but also informative and I think that they are the perfect way to brighten up a training session. Although not especially cheap, for a company with such a long and consistent history in the training sector the content is probably worth the price if used effectively. The different payment options they have set up means that the films are accessible to even the smallest business with prices from as low as £10 for a 24 hr package.

I think the new digitized distribution format is a fantastic idea and makes these high quality films available to a wider audience and makes them easier to use in different formats such as group emails and PowerPoint presentations. I highly recommend checking their website even if it’s just to watch Mark Heap shout at a board room as only he can!