FreeMind reviews

Easy way to quickly capture concepts and plan projects, activity

Opmerkingen: I use FreeMind to first brainstorm, then document and systematize various processes related to my business activities. You can be as general or as granular as you choose, linking to websites, documents etc., to implement or collaborate on them. The various graphic icons available allow you to create industry-standard flows which everyone can recognize and understand. It's also very easy to import the most common mind-mapping file types, so finding cool mindmaps and editing for your own processes is a breeze. Plus, the price is right so if you're just getting your feet wet it's the perfect solution. Highly recommend.

Pluspunten:

I love the simplicity and clean graphic style which translates into easy-to-follow conceptualizations of processes and activities.

Minpunten:

There's really nothing to dislike about FreeMind. It works exactly as advertised, the price is right and it's very easy to use.

Simple mind mapping for most purposes

Opmerkingen: Whenever I'm beginning a complex project, Freemind is my starting point. It's a way to start collecting random thoughts in a structured manner and see how all the bits fit together. I can then get a good overview of what I'm doing and turn it into something actionable. It's easy to start with some top-level concepts and then dig down to whatever level you need, then use arrows and links to see how everything interrelates.

Pluspunten:

A quick and easy way to turn complex issues into structured thoughts.

Minpunten:

Occasionally it has some odd display issues on my Mac which require the app to be restarted.

Wasted potential, now abandonware

Opmerkingen: My overall experience is quite negative. It's abandonware with little prospect of further development which means that this isn't a safe platform to rely upon for any core part of your workflow.

Pluspunten:

FreeMind is serviceable for organizing thoughts and ideas. It provides a nice free-of-charge entry into the world of mind mapping.

Minpunten:

FreeMind is a difficult program to use and understand. The interface is clunky and unintuitive, and the documentation is sparse and unhelpful. It's also slow and buggy, and I've had a lot of trouble getting it to work properly. Furthermore, it's abandonware and has been without an update for several years as of 2023. Overall, I would not recommend FreeMind to anyone. Instead, take a look at its fork, FreePlane.

It may look a bit basic, but actually it is the only thing you need for mindmapping.

Opmerkingen: I use a lot of mindmapping in my work for planning and ideation, especially when developing new projects/products with education non-profits. I used to do all my mindmaps in Freemind and also to track the progress of some projects (not on daily basis as a to-do list, but for tracking deliverables, milestones, making sure something is not forgotten or missed). Recently I have been using online mindmaps for some of these, as I usually share some of the maps with other colleagues/clients, but actually if you combine Freemind with OneDrive or Drobpox and just put the mm file in the folder that you share with the client/colleague you get the same result. And since the app is free, works on various platforms and is easy to use, with clean interface it makes it easy to do mindmapping on the same file together. Furthermore, it does not ask to open any accounts, you can have unlimited number of maps, etc. which is really an advantage over the online mindmaps.

Pluspunten:

The app is really great for making mind maps, especially if you are doing it as the planning or ideation tool, and not as a child doing a homework etc. since it looks really professional and clean, has adequate tagging options and allows you to have multiple maps. It is written in Java so it works on various platforms wherever you have the runtime which is another benefit. And the best thing is that it is not only good tool, but a free one as well, which is very important for me as I work with non-profits, educational organizations etc.

Minpunten:

Although it should run without problems on all platforms as it is written in Java, the Mac version has been a challenge to have working properly. When I changed from Windows to Mac I found the process a bit problematic and actually that was the time when I started doing my mindmapping primarily online. This has more to do with Apple than Freemind itself, but it is worth noting for mac users.

Top mind mapping SW

Opmerkingen: I've tried many mind mapping apps, also tried swithing from FreeMind to others, but each time I ended up using FreeMind. Simply the best mind mapping SW I've came accross.

Pluspunten:

It allows users create mind map, associate nodes with each other, insert links, icons, colors, images... It allows me not only to map my thoughts, but also manage complex projects and tasks. The app is also very fast! Ultra productive using keyboard short-cuts for working with nodes.

Minpunten:

It would be great if one could chose from a library of other icons or create his own icons that would better fit specific purposes, e.g. project management, thoughts mind mapping, learning, etc. Also calendar/timer/notifications need more development (not really user friendly).

Get Your Ideas Out Of Your Head

Opmerkingen: Overall it was helpful when I initially started writing books to get the ideas out of my head and into a format where I could see them coming together as 1 big idea. I used it for quite a while before using a different method that flowed easier for me while writing books.

Pluspunten:

FreeMind is incredibly simple to use, but powerful for getting ideas out of your head and into a format where you can use them. We all have a million ideas in our head, FreeMind helps you sort them by creating primary ideas and then branching other ideas off of them.

Minpunten:

In this case, the simplicity of the software means it lacks the pretty touch we've all grown accustomed to in modern software. It's a no frills experience for the most part, which is ok if you're looking at it from the functionality perspective, which it does very well.

Freemind

Pluspunten:

I love this software for brainstorming because its fast editing

Minpunten:

I prefer kanban to manage projects. The worst of this software is the no online possibility

FREEMIND - a powerful tool for displaying information graphically

Opmerkingen: Fast and easy to use, allowing one to concentrate on what needs to be done.

Pluspunten:

Simple tools - easy to learn and to become adept at using them. Printing out the files is easy and several programs have the ability to import FREEMIMD files and convert them to their own format.

Minpunten:

There isn't much choice in how to display the units of information. There is no option for coloring the outline and fill of the nodes and connecting lines

Freemind

Pluspunten:

I used this app because is free and open. Really easy to use and useful

Minpunten:

I don't know how can I sync my mind maps between devices

Good for free software but dated

Opmerkingen: It's great for free but worth paying more for paid mindmap software

Pluspunten:

For a free tool it does the basic mind map making task very well with standard functionality included

Minpunten:

It has a dated UI and some of the features are hard to find and hidden away

Super Brainstorming Tool

Opmerkingen: Ich habe es sehr oft genutzt, um Brainstorming-Gedanken festzuhalten - sowohl im Team, als auch in Einzel-Projekten

Pluspunten:

Die einfache Handhabung und dass es kostenlos ist

Minpunten:

Wenn man noch nie damit (oder ähnlichen Tools) gearbeitet hat, ist das Handling gewöhnungsbedürftig

FREEMIND - un outil puissant pour afficher des informations sous forme graphique

Opmerkingen: J'utilise ce logiciel depuis plusieurs années et il m'a toujours parfaitement servi pour faire des mind maps.

Pluspunten:

FreeMind est incroyablement simple à utiliser, mais puissant pour cartographier les idées. Il permet aux utilisateurs de créer des mind maps, d'associer des nœuds les uns aux autres, d'insérer des liens, des icônes, des couleurs, des images... Il me permet non seulement de cartographier mes idées, mais aussi de gérer des projets et des tâches complexes. Et le mieux, c'est que ce n'est pas seulement un bon outil, mais aussi un outil gratuit, ce qui est très important pour moi qui travaille avec des organisations éducatives et des étudiants.

Minpunten:

L'interface utilisateur est un peu ancienne et certaines fonctions sont difficiles à trouver et sont cachées.

The standard Open Source mind mapping tool

Pluspunten:

Freemind has all the basic functionality that you can ask from a tool like this. It has one of the easiest and most logic key shortcuts to create and navigate through the maps. It’s great to take notes or brainstorming, as it shows the relations visually. It’s built on java, which means that it is multi-platform. And it’s free in all ways. This has become the standard Open Source tool for mind maps. If you find any application out there that exports to any mind map specific format (outside OPML, that it’s not mind mapping specific) it will be Freemind.

Minpunten:

The simplicity in this case translates to simple graphical results. It’s not bad by itself, it lets you do the work without distraction. But if you want to impress your audience making an screenshot and putting it in a slideshow, you may want to try other tools, more oriented to the visual and graphic result.

Great tool to make mind maps

Pluspunten:

Easy to use, free of charge, easy to export documents

Minpunten:

I cannot think about any negative feature

FreeMind, uma mão na roda!

Opmerkingen: Eu utilizo o FreeMind para a elaboração de Mapas Mentais e estou muito satisfeito com os resultados obtidos. É um software leve, fácil de se operar, os arquivos salvos também ficam bem pequenos. Adoro a praticidade do software.

Pluspunten:

O FreeMind é uma feramenta leve, fácil de se operar e apresenta resultados incríveis, principalmente na elaboração de mapas mentais.

Minpunten:

O visual dos mapas mentais não possui muitas opções gráficas. Os esquemas elaborados acabam ficando um pouco simples.

Freemind Best Value for Brainstorming and Mind Mapping

Opmerkingen: Excellent. I use it both personally and for work groups. It allows the team to focus and fosters creativity. Huge fan.

Pluspunten:

I have been an avid mind mapping software user for decades. I use mind mapping and brainstorming for almost every project and strategy I work on. I have used a variety of software tools but by far the best value is Freemind. It has all the functionality you need, simple and easy to use and best of all its free.

Minpunten:

The only think I do not like is a slight inconsistency in use of insert vs return at the first nodes of a map.

Bringing order to chaotic thinking

Opmerkingen: I use it to plan marketing actions that require the coordination of many disciplines. By mapping the whole thing in FreeMind, I'm able to see the entirety of a complex plan with all it's branches at one quick glance, and better understand the relationship between all the factors at play. By mapping, I am able to resolve information classification and hierarchy, data flow channels, attributions and responsibilities of each employee or department involved, main end channels for a particular campaign, etc...

Pluspunten:

It is very easy and intuitive to use, with very few commands to learn. The branching structure allows the organization of a lot of information in a directly accessible format. Very useful for planning complex processes and actions.

Minpunten:

I think it lacks flexibility to allow for more than one root node or tools that allow non-branching planning as in sequential flowcharts (If, then & else operations).

Excellent free software

Opmerkingen: I have been using this software for several years and always served me perfectly in the free version

Pluspunten:

I used it in the free version. I use it on the computer and it is very simple to use. It is very good in the way of exporting the files and allowing to transform maps into text documents.

Minpunten:

I see no problems, as the free version already serves me in everything I need. I never needed support.

Good free mindmap tool

Opmerkingen: Since its a freeware, it basically give me the capability to cretae a quick mind map, and this was what I was looking for. So it works for me.

Pluspunten:

It's free, gives the basic capability to quickly create mind maps. Looks that all the capabilities to create a mind map are available

Minpunten:

UI is outdated. Looks to have all the functionality but it's complex to operate. It has strange and non-standard icons, so it's hard to understand how to operate the application