I don't usually click on the Google ads that come up on websites, but while surfing around the other day I spotted an ad for a mind-mapping/idea-synthesizing/creativity software package that looked pretty interesting. I only had a few moments to check it over, but it looked like a pretty useful program that could be used to search out and connect ideas to other ideas, search through and link notes to one another, etc. In fact, it seemed to be a bit more powerful than your average "mind map creator" program, of which there are a ton. I'm looking for something like this. See, I've got a ton of notes, both on and offline (I write offline and then transcribe later to the computer). Notes for classes, past present and future research, and for other things like fiction and poetry. A program enabling me to graphically as well as textually organize my bazillions of notes would save me a lot of time and trouble. Unfortunately, I've lost the site and haven't seen another ad for it anywhere. At the same time, I think the software package was retailing for something like $160, so I might not be able to afford it right now (poor student) anyway. Taking the chance that maybe someone out there knows of a program like this...maybe even one that's on the cheaper side (or freeware?)
Not quite academia, but Mac OS 10.4 has this cool Spotlight feature that will search through your computer like a search engine, and come up with anything (anything!) that has the search string in it-- body, subject or title.
Sounds like Inspiration! (www.inspiration.com) It's a pretty cool program. Download the free trial, and when it runs out, hit Control P. It'll restart the trial.
Thanks, Jacen. I'll have to check that one out, too. I did find the program I was looking for, eventually...and it did turn out to be Mac-only, and cost over $150. Not much use to me, then. What I have found very intriguing is The Literary Machine, freeware from a guy named Gunnar Sommestad - intriguing enough that I've begun the project of going through several hundred pages' worth of notes and inputting bits and pieces, just to see how it goes (with the end of the quarter coming, I won't get anywhere near as far along in this project as I'd like until the summertime, but that's ok). This program, as far as I can tell, is much more along the lines of what I wanted than a "mind-mapping" program would be; what I wanted, and what it is, is a program that allows me to add fragments of notes/thought/what-have-you into a database, from which I can ferret out connections (not exactly in a graphical "map" way, but that's all right by me.) It's fairly rudimentary looks-wise, but neat and functional (once you get the hang of it), though I haven't really done all that much with it yet.