NovaMind News

NovaMind is pleased to announce the immediate availability of the latest Mind Map Connection newsletter, which contains information about the latest developments in NovaMind, including:

Mind Manager import functions

MS Project import and export functions

Crossgrade discounts

New Mind Mapping tutorial videos and web pages about how to use Mind Mapping for various types of planning

The “back to school” site license sale starting on 3rd July with 50%+ off a limited number of site licenses. Although this was prompted by the tight funding within schools, it is also open to anyone who is feeling the pinch of tough economic times.

Here is the link to read the full newsletter:

http://www.novamind.com/mind-map-connection/mmc-2008-06-28.php

Enjoy!

Gideon

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Microsoft Project Import and Export

For some time, the Windows edition of NovaMind Platinum has had the ability to add project related information like start and finish dates, percentage complete, priorities, and assign resources to the branches on the Mind Maps.

Unlike the Mac version of NovaMind which can be imported directly into Merlin, the Windows edition did not have any way of getting the information over into a project management package.

Now that has all changed with the introduction of both import and export of Microsoft Project XML files. This means that you can carry out the project inception phases in NovaMind, brainstorming your ideas and working out the project’s scope and objectives, then export into Microsoft Project format for detailed project management.

The Microsoft Project file format has become the de facto standard for project management applications, so no matter which project management software you use, it is almost certain that you will be able to use the MS Project format.

During the project, if you need to bring someone new on to the project or brainstorm solutions to particular problems in the project, you can either import the whole project file into NovaMind, or export a portion of the project plan from your project management package and open it in NovaMind, and work with it in NovaMind. Using the Mind Map format makes it easy to see the interrelationships between objectives and requirements and tasks within the scope of the project, which makes it a powerful tool for both understanding where all the different pieces of the project fit together, and also for designing solutions to project related issues.

The Microsoft Project import and export functionality is available immediately as a free update for NovaMind Platinum for Windows users, and will be integrated into the NovaMind Platinum Mac product shortly.

Mind Manager Import

The Pro and Platinum editions of NovaMind for Windows also now have the capability of importing Mind Manager files. We have a lot of users who have a number of old Mind Maps that they want to convert to NovaMind format and work with in NovaMind, and people who receive Mind Manager files from colleagues, so we have built this capability into the Windows version of NovaMind Pro and Platinum.

Mind Manager import and export has been in the Mac version of NovaMind for several years, but the techniques we are using in the Windows product gives a better result, so we are going to be porting the new Windows import capability over to the Mac, and it will be available shortly.

To get the latest version, just do a check for updates in NovaMind and download the latest version.

NovaMind is pleased to announce the immediate availability of $50 discount coupons for people trading in their other Mind Mapping software for NovaMind.

These coupons are available for people who used to use Mind Manager or iMindMap or any other Mind Mapping software that they purchased for over $100. The coupons are valid for NovaMind Pro and NovaMind Platinum, as well as bundles of NovaMind Pro or Platinum plus Merlin project manager.

NovaMind owner Gideon King said “we have had quite a number of people requesting crossgrade discounts recently, as they have found that NovaMind fits their needs better. We have decided to make their migration to NovaMind easier by offering this discount.”

The coupons are now available at https://www.novamind.com/store/crossgrade.php.

Starting with the current Mind Map Connection newsletter that was just released today, we will be archiving the newsletters and announcing the links to them on this blog.

In this newsletter, there is a summary of the things that have been happening in the world of NovaMind over the last few months, including links to many of the mind mapping articles and videos that have been released by NovaMind in that time, and the enhanced mind mapping capabilities of the latest release of NovaMind.

Some of the new web site features such as social bookmarking, easy linking and the articles are discussed.

The new version of the NovaMind screenwriter for Mac has been released and we are looking for feedback so we can make sure it is the screenwriting tool of choice for both budding and professional screenwriters.

It was also announced that NovaMind for both Windows and Mac will be getting import and export capabilities for Mind Manager and MS Project files in about 3 weeks. The Mac version of NovaMind has had Mind Manager import and export for some time, but it was difficult to maintain, and the new version improves the handling of Mind Manager files in many respects. 

There is some preliminary information about the new web system that NovaMind is developing, and a few hints about what is coming in the future. Stay tuned for further information in due course.

Here is the link to the full newsletter:

http://www.novamind.com/mind-map-connection/mmc-2008-06-12.php