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ConceptDraw Mindmap 4 released

CS Odessa on Friday released ConceptDraw Mindmap 4, a mind-mapping software for Mac OS X and Windows. ConceptDraw Mindmap 4 costs US$99 for the Personal version and $199 for the Professional version. Upgrades from older releases are available. System requirements call for Mac OS 9.2 or later, G3 or better, 128MB RAM, 40MB hard disk space and CD-ROM drive. A free trial version is available for download.

ConceptDraw Mindmap is a brainstorming application that lets you work out ideas by visually mapping them on the page using drawing tools. The software includes a collection of pre-drawn shapes, and includes a “map assistant” to help you get started. You can share mindmaps you create as Web pages, graphic files and more. A more expensive Professional version lets you embed several maps within a single document, import and export PowerPoint slides, edit and create your own object libraries and more.

New features in this release include freehand “Branch Drawing” tools that you can use to create branches by mouse-clicking over the map. A new Task Info dialogue lets you set due date, duration, completion and assign resources to topics — helpful if you’re using ConceptDraw Mindmap for project management. You can export that data to Microsoft Project or ConceptDraw Project to quickly make Gantt charts. You can now export to Microsoft Word as well.