I have recently tried using Mindjet’s applications on a variety of devices in the hands of different people. It was a frustrating and disappointing experience. Some of this is due to my lack of knowledge of how the systems function. Some of it is due to Mindjet not meeting my expectation of a transparent and integrated collaborative working environment! Please feel free to add your tips in the comments. Here are my first ones:
- The iOS apps on iPad and iPhone are check in/check out editors. Mindjet Windows, Mac and Web do support simultaneous co-editing. The implications are that when an iOS app opens a map in Mindjet Files, all other users lose the right to edit the master map. They may continue editing local cached copies and think they are doing useful work. But actually you need to stop because your edits will be difficult to incorporate in the master map when it is checked in from the iOS device. You will be offered this latest version to overwrite your cached version. And you can do the reverse, overwrite the latest version from the iOS device with your cached version. This will annoy the guy who finished editing on the iPad because their edits will be lost.
- On the iOS app the number in the circle next to the refresh symbol indicates a change is waiting to be uploaded to the server. I have just stopped my iPhone because it was not synchronising, restarted and now the Synchronising indicator is in a wait loop. I have no idea which file has not been synchronised.
- At the moment neither of my iPad nor my iPhone can access the folder on Mindjet Files but Mindjet Windows is displaying and editing folders. I can move quickly through all the folders and files in Dropbox on the iOS devices and can load a map. Consider using Dropbox or similar if you do not need the simultaneous co-editing and you can agree a simple protocol with other collaborators for asynchronous editing of files. e.g. add their name to the file name whilst editing it and delete their name when finished.
What tips or questions do you have for collaborating with Mindjet’s portfolio of applications?
