Create your first mind map and insert map elements

Once you have gotten familiar with the user interface and the placement of the features that you are going to use, the next step is to create your first mind map.

When you start the application you will be welcomed by iMindQ’s working space, where you will see an introduction map.

If this is the first time that you are working with the application, a beginner’s guide will start in order to help you create the map.

You can exit the tutorial at any time just by pressing the ESC button.

You can open a new map in iMindQ in several ways.

The most common practice is to use the File Menu. From the Ribbons, select the File button, located in the upper left corner and form the provided options, select the New tab.

From here, you can select to work with a Mind Map, Organic Mind Map, White Board, WBS Chart or an Organizational Chart.

Another way to open a map is from the Quick Access toolbar, by selecting the New Map button or by selecting CTRL + N from the keyboard.

Once you have opened a new map, it is time to start adding map elements.

 

1. Insert a Topic

The first step in creating a new map is to name the central topic.

To do this, you need to click on the central topic and start writing. In order to expand your map and to add main topics, you need to click on the central topic and select the INSERT keyboard button.

Note that if you continue to press the INSERT keyboard button, subtopics will be added to the main topic. You need to perform this action every time you want to add a main topic to your central one.

You can include floating topics as part of your map, just by double clicking on a place in the workspace where you want the floating topic to be inserted. Apart from the insert keyboard button, topics can be added to your maps from the Insert Ribbon, from the Map Elements Group, or from the Q menu.

To insert topics from the Q menu, hover with your mouse over the topic, and click on the button marked with a blue plus. Every topic that has been inserted in iMindQ can be formatted with the help of the dynamic Format Ribbon. When you select the topic that you want to edit, a dynamic Format Ribbon will appear.

If you click on this ribbon, you can change the Text and Color of the topic, select the shape of the topics, the tie types of the map, and the topic structure. In addition, you can change the spacing and even add numbering to the map’s topics.

 

2. Insert a Relationship

Once you have added topics to your maps, it is time to connect them with relationships.

By adding relationships between your topics, you can indicate that there is a logical connectivity between the two ideas.

The easiest way to insert a relationship is to hover with the mouse over the topic for the Q menu to open, then click on the relationship button and drag the relationship line to the topic that you want to connect.

You can add labels to the relationships. To do this, click on the relationship and start writing the name of the label. Apart from the Q menu, relationships can be added form the Insert Ribbon, by clicking on the Relationship button or by pressing CTRL + SHIFT+ R.

In addition, you can format the relationship. When you click on a relationship, a dynamic Format Ribbon will appear.

From this ribbon, you can change the color, the pattern, the width and the style of the relationship.

 

3. Insert a Callout

You can add callouts to your topics and relationships.

The callouts are descriptive topics that are used to insert additional information about your ideas.

You can add callouts by selecting the topic or relationship to which you wish to add the callout, and from the Insert Ribbon select the Callout button.

You can also add callouts by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER. Same as the relationships and topics, the callouts can be formatted from the Dynamic Format Ribbon.

The same formatting options as in for the standard map topics are also available for the callouts.

 

4. Insert a boundary

The last map element that should be inserted is the Boundary.

A Boundary is used to group several topics that have similarities.

To add a boundary, with the mouse select the topics that you want to connect, and from the Insert Ribbon, select the Boundary button.

You can change the look of the boundary, from the dynamic Format Ribbon.

Congratulations! With this, you have successfully created your first mind map.

Browse through the remaining articles in order to get familiar with more advanced mind mapping features.