Two New Software Finds (and an update)

Last Week, I indulged my shareware fetish, downloading and testing programs for organization, writing, etc.

Here’s the coolest of the batch:

GoalEnforcer
GoalSetting via MindMapping
$9.99, $29.99, and $67

I love the idea of mind-mapping software for organization, but I get tangled up in all the options. When software is *too* flexible, I get lost in the options and lose focus.

GoalEnforcer isn’t all that flexible. It isn’t intended to be a catch-all mindmapping solution. It’s meant for one thing… setting and tracking goals and tasks. The idea is to have no more than 6 or 7 tasks visible at anyone time, so your working memory isn’t overwhelmed. You can set up multiple levels of goals and sub-goals, track progress, and generate reports. The Pro-version allows you to enter what they call “HyperFocus” mode - which works well as a daily or immediate to-do list.

There is a demo version available, but sadly, it’s save-crippled (I truly wish they wouldn’t do that) and I’d like the option to set progress on goals even if they have subtasks… Still, it was promising enough that I coughed up the cash to register one of the versions, and so far it’s working out rather well.

So check it out: GoalEnforcer

WriteItNow
Novel Writing Software
$39.99

For years, I’ve searched for the perfect writerly software fit for fiction. Nothing seemed right. It was all too complex, too ugly, too alien in workflow. I’d finally worked out a system in Wordpress to keep research, notes and characters straight - but still, it was bulky, and required really staying on top of categories and tags to make it work, so I wasn’t writing anything. (Staying on top of things is something I’m not good at, if you haven’t noticed.)

But since I’m participating in NaNoWriMo this month, I thought I’d try a new search, and.. tada! Up popped WriteItNow from Ravenshead.

Easy on the eyes, relatively affordable, fairly customizable, the focus is on writing, not fussing with setting up the project. You can just dive right into the business of churning out words, or pause to make notes on characters, events, locations and any random ideas you may have. There are tools to help with character development , timeline and relationship charts, and the entries can all be linked, interconnected, or not.

I’ve only found three shortcomings: there’s no way to include images, no means of linking to outside documents/webpages for reference, and the demo is crippled. I hate crippled demos; I don’t just want to see the program in practice with someone else’s projects, I want at least two weeks to try the program with MY projects. Still, I could tell this would fit my needs, so I coughed up the cash and so far, I’m very pleased with the purchase. And so you don’t have to scroll back up, here’s the link again:

WriteItNow
Novel Writing Software, $40

Windows Live Writer Beta 3
Cross-Platform Blog Authoring Software
Freeware!

This is the final Beta before the release of Windows Live Writer as a full fledged grown up program. Supposedly, it fixes many of the conflicts and image problems folks were having, as well as adding an insert video option, justifyied text, and a few other almost invisible changes. Download it, put it through its paces, and see what bugs you can turn up!

Windows Live Writer Beta 3
Cross-Platform Blog Authoring Software
Freeware!

What Didn’t Make The Cut?

Novel Writing:

yWriter: has some useful features, but it didn’t feel friendly enough to me. I need friendly software, dammit!

NewNovelist: looks like it could be really helpful and friendly, but there is no demo version, just some frustrating flash screens that move too fast to read. So.. sadly it’s a “no”, until they release a working demo version or offer me a review copy.

LiquidStoryBinder: Hugely flexible. Hugely complex. I could spend the whole month of NaNo setting up the project, without ever actually writing a word!

MindMapping:

I felt a little silly buying what amounted to a limited mind-mapping program, so I also tested these:

FreeMind: Open source mind-mapping program. A lot of people love it, but the resulting documents were visually confusing to me.

MindManager: Professional (and pricey) mind-mapping - I tested the Pro version, which was hugely powerful and could keep me busy for months learning all its features.

Topicscape: A strange 3D mind-map program that allows you to fly through your document as though it was a landscape in a video game. It gave me motion sickness.

Bubbl.us: A very pretty online mind-map service. Free.

Have fun, and let me know if any of this turns out to be useful for you!

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MindTWEAK: It’s all about the tools, baby, The TOOLS!!
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