Topics

31

General / Another NM Connect question

« on: October 01, 2010, 08:16:04 am »

Hi.  I thought I read yesterday in one of the update posts (cannot find now) that NM Connect for NM5 will be coming online after the beta release for Mac -- something like that.

My question is that, given that you said NM4 maps will be able to stay "as is" on Connect (perhaps in a different site, archive, etc.), will I still be able to change them and post updated links, etc.?  Will you continue to maintain NM4 Connect map posting once the NM5 Connect is launched?  Please say yes.

My goal is to transition to NM5 maps on Connect, but I will not do it until I am confident that I won't lose work, and until I see that my basic requirements will be met (things not jumping around too much, more freedom in branch placement than at present, etc.).

Thanks,
Kathy

32

General / Forum changes, Connect plans

« on: September 16, 2010, 03:25:58 am »

Hi Gideon and Patrick,

Suddenly there are changes to this forum and that is OK.  But your FAQ thread is locked and I cannot comment there.

One of your FAQ's makes the statement that one of your planned features (converting the look of NM4 to NM5 as an opening option) has been cancelled.  Because I cannot reply there, I had to start this thread.  Since I work soooooooo hard on the look of my documents because most of them are web pages, I have been working under the assumption that I will be able to choose the option of maintaining the look.  My maps are information and link dense and I cannot imagine being about to do "a little tweaking", or however you worded it, to give it the same look.

In light of all of this... what are your plans with NM Connect?  I have loved NM4 but always wished that the hyperlinks were transferable so that I could create a website independent of NM Connect.  Because that is the one compromise I was willing to make to have a mapped site instead of a text site, I have done many maps/pages while waiting for NM5 to be ready for prime time.

Now what?  You may of course say that my needs are my own and do not represent other users of your software, and that may be true.  But you have told me on several threads early in your descriptions of NM5 that your plans were to change over completely so that only NM5 maps would work on Connect but not to worry as the look of the maps could stay the same as one option.

I am assuming that with all of your rushing to complete NM5 for MAC and the reduce the stress of those disgruntled by waiting that you made an arbitrary decision to let some of your plans go.  But my site depends on the look of the maps as currently posted and I need to know what your plans are, for real.  Not timelines but plans.

Could you keep a site functional (active archives) for NM4 maps for those of us who need online access to our maps?  That would work.

Have you decided to add a feature to NM5 which allows us create documents which may be posted to a website with hyperlinks intact and not have to link back to Connect?  That would make the future easier, but doesn't help me with this problem.

If I am the only one with this need, which I truly doubt, please tell me.  Sorry for the intensity, but I am really surprised by your decision at the moment. 
Kathy

33

NovaMind Connect / NovaMind Connect and transitioning from NM4 to 5

« on: April 18, 2010, 09:51:49 am »

Hi.  As we near the date of the new releases, I want to clarify how that will effect the maps now posted on NM Connect.

How soon will you be changing Connect once the releases are completed, out, and squared away?  How soon will the site be taking posted maps in NM5 format?  Will it still take NM4 format maps?  If will transition completely out of NM4 formats, when do you think that will happen?  Will there be a default treatment of maps presently on the site if it is going to change -- i.e., keep the look of the maps unless otherwise determined?

I have mentioned before that my website depends upon these maps being available (it is pretty much a site of only maps with hyperlinked ones posted here) and so I want to know in advance about how (and when) to prepare for any changes I might have to make in my site.

Thanks,
Kathy

34

NovaMind for Mac / NM5 Preview questions

« on: April 12, 2010, 06:40:13 am »

Hi.  I have upgraded to Snow Leopard and planned to play with some of the new features of NM5.  I just watched the video and I have a question.  I appreciate that there are lots of things to come and better instructional tutorials on the way.  But whether or not I download the preview version depends on this.

There are lots of wonderful options for colors, shapes, arrangements, and patterns of topics and lines that I love.

What I didn't see was the option of building topics all around a central hub, 360 degrees or however much of that I want.  All the spacing seems automatic.

As I am building a map, it is the way I learn a topic and I have no idea how it will end up.  I like all spacing possible and I never do any design work until the project starts to fill out.  I could not start to build a map with topics and subtopics close together.  I appreciate that I can ultimately place topics where I want by dragging them, but can I avoid having to undo an automatic placement with dragging by having a 360 degree option?

While there are countless choices, how much real freedom from suggestion is there?  Did I miss something?

If it is too soon to be asking this, let me know.  Or if I should be asking this elsewhere, also let me know.  I am posting it here because others perhaps can answer my question besides you busy people at NovaMind.

Thanks,
Kathy

35

NovaMind for Mac / Getting Snow Leopard -- a question

« on: March 30, 2010, 10:01:18 am »

Hi.  Per the information you shared, Gideon, I am getting a new Mac with Snow Leopard.  (I was going to do it anyway, but thought I would learn Snow Leopard before NM5 is released so I am doing it sooner rather than later.)

Which version of NovaMind 4 should I load?  I don't have the latest one now as I have been sticking with one that works for me -- "ain't broke".  Will it be obvious what to do? 

Thanks.
Kathy

36

NovaMind for Mac / Snow Leopard and NovaMind 5

« on: March 20, 2010, 03:14:10 am »

Hi.  I am starting to think about getting a new computer.  I have Leopard now, but I believe Snow Leopard is the current OS.  I know NM4 had some early bugs with it and I assume they were ironed out a long time ago.

Is NM5 equally compatible with Leopard and Snow Leopard?  If I switch after learning NM5 in Leopard, is there another big learning curve? 

Any advice or info will help me time things.  Thanks.
Kathy

37

NovaMind for Mac / Moving a map, background didn't move with it

« on: February 07, 2010, 07:48:02 am »

Hi.

I have a second map to a document which I would like to save as a separate map and "detach" it from the first document.  The background is an important part of it as it was used to make a JPEG and I am saving it just to edit, if necessary.

So I dragged the title bar to the new map document and the map went, but not the background.  I am not deleting it from my first map until I get it right, but can you tell me if the backgrounds are supposed to drag along, and if so, how do I do it?  I tried it twice.

Thanks,
Kathy

I will send a note to Support if there is no response here, but thought others might have the answer, or want to know the answer.

38

NovaMind for Mac / Tab/title bar options

« on: October 18, 2009, 08:22:25 am »

Hi. 

I've meant to ask this before, but then I forgot when I didn't have the issue.  I am working on a map with a number of sub-maps.  When the titles of these sub-maps are long, not very many titles show up on the bar.  While developing a long map with a number of pages, I move back and forth a lot.  When the titles are long and few appear on the bar, the rest are in a drop-down menu.  It takes a while to scroll to the map I want and moving back and forth this way is cumbersome.

Are there now, or will there be, any options for shortening the number of visible characters so more tabbed titles show?  I realize I can have short working titles, but is there any other workaround?

I apologize if I am not describing my question well.  I don't know your name for the bar I am discussing, other than title tab bar.

Thanks,
Kathy

39

NovaMind for Mac / Another transition question: will old maps stay the same?

« on: July 08, 2009, 06:08:46 am »

Hi busy people. 

I would like to know how the new software will allow me/us to manage our present map archives.  Will NovaMind 5 be loaded as a separate software so that we can save the look/content of maps that are currently serving their purposes?  This is not necessarily a NovaMind Connect question as it applies to all of our maps.  Having once had a problem when an upgrade changed my former maps (a bug which was quickly fixed), I want to do what I can now to prevent that happening with this major upcoming change.

Thanks.
Kathy

40

NovaMind Connect / Question about transition to NM 5

« on: June 21, 2009, 03:28:11 am »

Hi Gideon and staff,

I am about to start a very large project and want to know if I should wait until NM 5 is released.  It will not be completed by then and so I look forward anyway to improving and polishing it with new features.

My question is:  will there be a sufficiently smooth transition that a large, complex map or series will be readable with the new software?  Will it look the same, more or less, and be "ready" for continued work? 

You have already mentioned floating topics and other really neat options, and I look forward to re-working the map project with the features you have already introduced.  But is there anything else you can share about things we are doing now and how they may be impacted by the new software?

There are always bugs and that is not what I am asking.  The NovaMind staff is great with bug-fixes -- better than any other software writers I have worked with.

Thanks in advance for the new goodies!
Kathy

41

NovaMind Connect / One fix for Creative Commons Attribution license

« on: June 21, 2009, 03:19:06 am »

Hi all,

You may know this, but I just tried it and wanted to share it.  Because I like to mix graphics in my maps, and I also want to err on the side of caution when it comes to re-use, I tend to stick with public domain, purchased, or NM library images.  But on my last map, there was an image I really wanted to use.  It is licensed for re-use if attribution is made, or a link made to the author.  I cannot easily link an image without putting in on a branch (do-able, but awkward for me in this map).  And if I put the attribution (not on the original image) as a separate text box (easily do-able), it would not be appropriate as anyone with NovaMind could separate the boxes and re-use the image without attribution.

So now that I am playing with exporting maps to GIF format, I can take the image and put it over my map title (so only the image is displayed), add the separate text box with attribution and export the entire map to GIF.  Then I can use the GIF in my map to post and anyone who re-uses the image will automatically get the attribution along with it.

There are many other ways to re-use maps once exported as GIF.  I hope NM 5 retains (and expands?) this feature.

Kathy

42

NovaMind for Mac / Plug-in extensions in NM5?

« on: May 09, 2009, 06:56:52 am »

Hi.  This new feature sounds great, but -- excuse my ignorance -- what is it?  I could guess, but I would rather have a little explanation.  Thanks.

Kathy

43

NovaMind for Mac / Text box hyperlink

« on: February 17, 2009, 07:46:18 am »

Hi all,

Now that Karen graciously instructed me how to create a hyperlink in a text box using my Mac (right click substitute of control-click), I can do that.  However, even when I attempt to get to the linked site with my personal NovaMind software, a simple click on the link doesn't do it.  The URL shows up when I hold the cursor there a moment and following the URL there is an instruction to do option-click, which I do.  That brings up the site just fine.

So I wanted to see how it works on Connect and I test-loaded my current map with some of the text boxes hyperlinked to sites.  There was no way I could even tell there was a hyperlink (other than the characteristic blue font color with underscore), and so there was no way I could figure out how to get to a linked site.

For now, I will use the usual hyperlink option for maps I intend to post on Connect, but am I missing something?

Thanks for helping.
Kathy

44

NovaMind for Mac / Constrain text width

« on: January 25, 2009, 11:56:04 am »

Hi.  I cannot find this option (listed on your survey notes) on my Mac version of Platinum.  Do I have it and am I just missing it?  I can do it manually, but would be nice to have a way to set it.  Thanks.

Kathy

45

NovaMind for Mac / Questions about graphics and hyperlinks

« on: January 18, 2009, 08:41:52 am »

Hi.  I have 2 questions, unrelated to each other, but wanted to economize by putting them in a single note.  I am not sure if you prefer separate topics.

1.  In your message after the survey you had an item on your list of goodies that I didn't understand.  You said that we could add hyperlinks to notes by highlighting the text, right clicking and choosing the option to create a hyperlink.  I have a Mac and no right click.  Is this only available for Windows or is there a different way for Mac to do it?  I would love to add hyperlinks to non-branch text boxes.

2. If I am using a number of images and clip-arts, something happens suddenly which hides images behind other images or boxes.  Because of my "artsy" maps I have posted at times, I learned that there is a limit to the number and complexity of images on a given page, and that was a good learning process.  But today I made a map without very many images and at some point if I added something -- a box, another image -- the ones I had placed on the map suddenly moved behind other things (peeking out from the overlap).  They didn't move on the map side to side, just front to back.  I could "fix" it by copying the image and the new one would go in front where I wanted it and I would delete the original.  My question is:  is there a rule in the programming that I am violating?  This is not a big deal, but I have wanted to ask it for awhile.

Thanks,
Kathy