BigHairyGoal — mindmap tasks 4+

On the path to be THE best

I've tried a bunch of mindmapping apps, from all the big ones to all the smaller open source ones, and this app knocks most of them out of the park. It's got a huge host of aesthetically-pleasing colors, the UI is clean, the subscription is super affordable and if you decide you like it you have a lifetime option! I decided to do a yearly subscription to try it out long-term. I'm REALLY hoping there's continued support for this app.

I believe the only thing the app truly suffers from is its logo and name. I personally find the logo cute, it reminds me of the soots in Totoro, but I wouldn't be surprised if that's an issue for many, who may find it looks childish. The title is also something not many are familiar with, so the title alone does not tell prospective users what the app is about without looking into it.

It's close

I like dedicated Mac apps that look like dedicated mac apps; beautiful, thoughtful, and minimal -- and in that department, this app definitely succeeds.

However, it lacks the speed and polish of many free web-based mind mapping and whiteboard apps (perhaps it's because this app is actually quite old). While this app does everything I want it to do, most things require a right click; I can't do something as as simple as drag a card from one kanban board to another. And while the cards are beautiful and have multiple styling options, there's nothing "within" them -- everything you want to put on a card is visible on its face and so a card can get quite large compared to its siblings (and it can throw an entire kanban board out of whack as it grows to accommodate the card).

If the developer ever adds a way to write on the "back" of a card and makes it easier to drag things around, I'd be happy to return.

UPDATE: Thanks to the developer's response, I see now that I can indeed move cards between kanban boards, and attachments make it possible to have more to cards than what's immediately visible. I thnk this is a great option for people who prefer an open-ended visual workspace.

Developer Response ,

Hi Chris! Thanks for your feedback, it helps me making Big Hairy Goal better and more useful — and there's always room for improvement.
What you already can do and what you might not have discovered yet is that you can easily drag cards between groups by holding own the command key when you drop — still your feedback signals me that this could be more intuitive.
When your cards become too lengthly, try attachments. It's the right pane that becomes visible when you choose Display > Show Attachments.
And if you have any further feedback and suggestions … I am here to listen. Most vivid when you contact me directly via application feedback.
cheers!
シ berbie

Awesome Tool for Creative Thinking

I've used Big Hairy Goal for a while when I need to get ideas down for an effort or project.

One of the things I love about it is the ability to drop in individual thoughts and arrange them in any way that makes sense to you, as well as make connections between items as you want. This is so much more free than traditional mind-mapping software that locks you into a purely hierarchical paradigm, although you can mimic that if you want. Bottom line - you get to arrange things however makes sense to you, and then rearrange it if you need.

The developer is super responsive to questions & requests, which is very cool.