Formatting Text Across Multiple Topics

[WindyCity]

Does anybody know of a way to change text settings for multiple topics at the same hierarchical level? IIt's easy to select sibling subtopics in the same branch and change the text for all the siblings with a single click. What I'm talking about is illustrated below:



I would to change select all the subtopics for all three branches (A, B, C) with a single command and then be able to change the text simultaneously for all the subtopics.

Does anybody know how to do this?

[Gideon]

There are two possibilities:

1. If you want to change all your first level fonts (just the font face), and you are using Pro or Platinum, go to the font sets panel, select the font set you are currently using (it will have an arrow beside it) - just a single click, then use the + to create a new font set based on that font set.

Click the Set... button beside the 1st topic font and choose the font you want. Give the font set a name and save it. Double click on the newly created font set to use it. Your first level topics will be updated, and all other topics you create at the first level will use that font by default, and now you have a font set that you can use for other Mind Maps.

--or--

2. To select that topic and its siblings, right click it and choose the option to select "this topic and its siblings", then use the font panel to change the font to meet your requirements. This will affect the selected topics, and not change what happens when you create other topics.

[WindyCity]

Thanks, Gideon. I will play around with it. Not quite sure how the levels work, but I'll get a handle on it.

[Peter Button]

Is it possible to set a default maximum topic length for all topics so that text wraps at a set line length?

I would like to do this in order to compress the width of the map.

Thanks

[Gideon]

Sorry, this is not a user configurable option - if you haven't set the topic width manually it wraps at 450 pixels when at 100% zoom.

[Peter Button]

Thanks for the quick reply Gideon. Presumably I could force a shorter line with Cntrl Returns within the text of the topic?

May I raise the ability to set the default topic line length as a feature request?

I used Novamind 5 for Mac for the first time yesterday having watched development through your blog posts.

Overall observation is of an excellent product with great depth of features and usability.

I've used MindManager for years. I'm particularly impressed with the way that Novamind uses screen space so efficiently with adjoining topics.

Thanks again

[Gideon]

Thanks Peter - yes, people who have used any other Mind Mapping software will pretty quickly notice how compact the layout of NovaMind Mind Maps are - and nobody else can catch up in this regard without pretty much completely rewriting their programs (a huge task). And thanks for the comment about usability - this is important to us.

Yes, you can use control+return to put line breaks in.

I have made a note of your request, but for future reference, please make feature requests through the feedback option in NovaMind - that makes sure that it gets to the right people and into the right systems for consideration at our design and development meetings.

[WindyCity]

I've been reading Tony Buzan's "The Mind Map Book" and admiring many of the colorful and whimsical maps he created to demonstrate the power and effectiveness of mind mapping. Hand-drawn maps have many attractive qualities:  they reflect a person's unique personality and style; they have a rough, spontaneous feeling to them; and they can squeeze information into as tight a pattern as the artist can imagine (or be able to squint at and still read!).

But think about how much time went into creating them. Each of them must have taken many drafts before Buzan came up with a polished final version, and each of these would have to be redrawn from scratch. Also, many of his maps attempt to fit too much information into a single page; they're over-complicated. This may be because of the inconvenience of creating multiple maps to cover a single topic. (In NovaMind 5, that's no problem.) I have drawn mind maps by hand, and I am blessed with a modicum of artistic ability, but I believe that NovaMind 5 trumps hand-drawn maps hands down.

Using the program makes the job of creating a map so much easier. It allows for instant redaction and for changes of ornamentation, formatting, coloring, etc., etc., with a minimum of effort. If a mind mapper wanted to incorporate hand-drawn graphics, no problem! He or she could scan them and paste them into the map with minimal effort. I've done this myself.

There's really no significant advantage in creating maps by hand over using the program. The only possible leg up that a hand-drawn map might bestow on its creator is that his or her intimate involvement in visualizing topic placement, creating graphics, choosing colors for branches, redoing the map multiple times, and so on, would help him or her in memorizing a map's content. But of course a NovaMind 5 user could simply spend more time studying his or her application-drawn map to gain the same level of retention.

The more adept a user becomes with the program, the more personal and idiosyncratic his or her maps will become. A user has to climb a learning curve to exploit fully the design possibilities of NovaMind 5. It takes experience to become fluid and proficient with the program's tools. I've been using it for awhile and I just discovered how to format text in a way I'd never explored previously, and I know that the program still has a wealth of functionality, short-cuts, and tricks that I've never learned yet.

NovaMind 5 really is a giant leap forward in mind mapping software, and I can't wait to see all the add-ons and extensions that Gideon & Co., and third-party developers, will come up with in the months and years ahead.

[Gideon]

Thank you so much for your kind comments. After a very frustrating morning (and half the afternoon) working on some NovaMind issues, it's really nice to know that the effort is appreciated. You really made my day.