Mindmap software has been in an evolution process for a great many years and all thanks to Tony Buzan for such an innovative, revolutionary and natural way of brainstorming. I say natural, as mindmapping really is brainstorming ideas in the way of thoughts behave - unordered and probably chaos based.

You see, our brains think visually, in colourful pictures so combing them with gorgeous flowing lines engage our minds to remember far far better than the traditional dot points. The mindmap, as Buzan puts it, allows both our left side brain (which deals in a linear way) and our right side brain (which deals in flowing colours and pictures) to work together in storing and recalling information as well as brainstorming new and interesting ideas.

Using mindmaps allows me to jump around on differing topics within the one subject based mindmap and add, alter and delete from all over the place. It's an extremely powerful way to work.

In my opinion, these are the Top 3 mindmap programs that are worth looking at, at the moment.

Freemind

Freemind was the very first program I tried when I became interested in mindmapping.

It's a very mature and free product written in Java so all operating systems are well catered for. Personally, I find the program a little spartan as far as graphics and 'wow' factor goes. I know myself, having a mindmap that looks visually stunning engages the viewer and promotes expanding the map more and more.

Freemind is still very much worth checking out if you're starting out in the mindmap area. Get Freemind by clicking HERE

Tony Buzan's iMindmap

This one is is trademarked by the father of the mindmap, Tony Buzan and it really is visually wonderful.

Of the 3 programs listed in this article, iMindmap is most definitely THE best when it comes to brain-like structure, images, colour and flow. It's simply beautiful.

So having said the produced maps are gorgeous, I did find the interface a bit cumbersome to navigate and use though. This is almost certainly as it's Java based to cater for as many operating systems as possible. There's a number of versions available with differing functionality and pricing ranges from a 1 user license of the basic version for $99 up to $395 for iMindmap Ultimate Plus.

If it wasn't for the cumbersome interface, I'd rate iMindmap as the pick of the crop. Get iMindmap by clicking HERE

Novamind

Having tried the majority of mindmap programs for many years, I find myself coming back to the less advertised Novamind. Versions are available for both Windows as well as Mac OSX and both versions are developed independently which takes advantage of both operating systems' strengths as opposed to the kludge of using Java - this is a huge plus for Novamind, in my opinion.

The produced maps are also visually appealing, though not as rich as iMindmap.

As is usually the case with software, Novamind is currently going through a full upgrade to version 5 which promises to provide us with an even fuller mindmapping experience. The import and export functionality of Novamind is very powerful so when I produce hand written maps during a flip chart group session, getting that information is a relatively easy produce to transfer into this software package. Novamind even caters for screenwriters as well as incorporating a number of 3rd party project management programs and Powerpoint / Keynote for both Windows and Mac OSX - and these features really pack a punch when it comes to information delivery.

Pricing ranges from Novamind Express at $49 up to Novamind Platinum for $249, all of which are very affordable for the feature set that continues to develop and evolve.

Get Novamind by clicking HERE

From my perspective, all 3 programs have a place in the mindmap arena. The Novamind company provides first rate after sales support as well as being reasonably nimble when it comes to development updates. I so wish they'd incorporate the 'Drill in / Drill out' function that the above map outlines as well as the brain-centric mapping graphic ability if iMindMap - that would make Novamind an unparalleled superior.

So check out mindmapping for yourself and greatly increase your productivity and brainstorming abilities.

Please do let us know, in the comments, any other mindmapping software which you might think is also superior to what's been spoken about here.