Late last year Mindjet released a MindManager update known as Service Pack 0b (SP0b) which addressed a few critical issues. One change fixes something that earned a few
‘s on my summary of the MindManager Pro 6 changes back to a big 
.
A bit of MindManager History;
MindManager 5 topics with task information linked to Outlook Tasks when the map was synchronised to Outlook. This allowed you to tag MindManager topics with dates, priority, progress and Categories
What was wrong with MindManager 6?
MindManager 6 transformed these Task Categories into Text Map Markers placed in a special Map Marker group named “Categories” . This was fine, in some ways more powerful, but it “broke” the link to Outlook because as there simply wasn’t one provided.
I used Categories to group and mange tasks in the Outlook Task View. With MM 6 that view became a huge endless list with no categories, no grouping. I worked around this by using Priority rather than Category to group tasks but it was nowhere near as slick. It was annoying to loose the link function and generated quite a bit of comment on the MindManager 6 User Forum
THE BIG NEWS: Service pack SP0b restores the Outlook Category link!
Text Map Markers in the Map Marker Group “Categories” are treated as Outlook Task Categories when allocated to topics and transferred when the map is synchronised using File>Synchronise Outlook Tasks (or the Export Toolbar).
You have to allocate Categories from the Map Marker Pane, rather than Task Pane, but they do get transferred. (Click the thumbnail image below for an example)
Hiding “Category none” Tasks to simplify the Outlook Task View.
If you allocate any Task related information to a topic (priority, dates, % complete etc) it will show up in your Outlook Task list. If you haven’t applied a category you can end up with lots of “Category None” items.
You just collapse this group but can also filter to hide these in any task view. I have done this in Outlook 2000 & XP but not 2003, assume it has a similar process – if not let me know!
Right click over the Calendar Task area & choosing Customise Current View. Set a Filter… to show “Category is not empty” (Click the thumbnail image below for the process dialog steps)
Be aware that you’ll never see a Category “none” task in that task view with this set-up. I find the clutter reduction is worth that trade-off. I primarily “work tasks from the map” & use the Outlook Task just to record time spent in the calendar view. (Highlight a time segment then drag the task to it)
So now I have a nicely categorised, grouped, list of tasks I guess it’s time to start doing them!
One complete, on to the next…
