VUE is an interesting solution. It has a good mind mapping interface, but it can also be used to create presentations.

It isn't tree-based (no forced central point), which is sometimes nice. You can add images or hyperlinks or other things. It is more free-form, almost like a flow-charting program. You can do "Format -> Arrange -> (Circle, Tree, Ripple Out...) if it starts getting messy.

Check out example mind-maps here: http://vue.tufts.edu/gallery/index.cfm

You should try XMind - it has very powerful free version, it's in active development and has great UI.

In one of my previous assignments, we looked at mindmap software specifically for integration into a larger application. We chose VYM (View Your Mind). It's not the most polished software, but it has a couple of really good points from a development point-of-view.

1. It's GPL'ed, so you can do what you want with it within the GPL.
2. It's based on Qt, which we were already heavily-invested in.
3. This came after we made the decision--it was relatively easy to convert the software to run as a dynamic library rather than a stand-alone application.

Given all three reasons, we were able to tightly integrate our software with it, using Qt's signals-and-slots architecture.

So, if you're interested in programming and mindmaps, VYM is a great choice.

I'm using FreePlane which is a fork of FreeMind with very powerful additional features and a very active developer community.

However, if you did not like the optical result of FreeMind, I'm not sure if it will be that much different.

Anyway, it should be worth a look!

I think mindmaps are a start and usually not an end in themselves. I use two primarily but have looked at others. Those are Freemind(http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page) and iThoughtsHD (http://toketaware.com/ithoughts-new-home/).

I use both for brainstorming and taking notes from books/papers. Sometimes also for the start of new tasks/projects and this is where you need to have the end point in mind when using mindmaps. Where do you want the info to go. Some advantages/disadvantages.

Freemind

Pros:

1. Free
2. Can also include images
3. Can be imported into todolist for more serious task management

Cons:

1. Not so convenient to get it into other mindmapping applications
2. The images are not embedded so do not get copied into other programs - info lost
3. Images have to be manually resized by stating sizes.

iThoughtsHD

Pros:

1. Near flawless implementation on iPad
2. Lots of functionality, even dates, resources etc
3. Nice drop down notepad for extra information
4. Exports to zillions of other apps

Cons:

1. Can't think of any. No wait, not on Android!

A couple of other thoughts come to mind on this topic. For the original question it was mentioned that paper is the current best option. At one stage I was also a paper and pen man. However, at some point the system breaks down. You tick some tasks off, some remain and you are then endlessly copying from one list to a new one. Also, I see mindmaps are evolving to beyond a repository for a brain dump. Some of the commercial versions, like mindjet can view the information in project management type modes (Gantt chart). So, what starts off as sketching out a project can then involve entering in some dates, resources etc. and before you know it you have a project plan. I wrote some stuff about this over at (http://www.taskmanagementreview.com) . For me, still not a perfect workflow but an interesting progression of the method.

Shortcomings of most Mind Mapping Software

1. lack of non-linear associations
   • Consider the issue of shared dll's swelling to inhabit massive amounts of space in the winsxs directory. Many copies of the same files eat up space but you need certain files in multiple directories. Thus we have symbolic links. Mind maps need such capacity. Currently they tend to rely on tags, labels, priority colors etc. Each of which miss the point of the visual representation of information to some degree. I would not want to be without tags etc but on their own they are curiously insufficient for filtering data in a map.
2. unable to create weighted associations
   • The ability to assign value or importance to items in ways other than their hierarchical position is not a common trait of mind maps. Obviously you are able to style your paths and nodes in order to represent the strength or meaning of a connection but this has no backend value so to speak. I would love having behind the scenes properties applicable to elements in maps. One of which would certainly be weight.
3. impossible to make multiple associations bidirectional
   • This is somewhat the same as #1. i will make two maps in two different programs in order to demonstrate. my gripe.

As an exo-brain repository 2d mind maps are insufficient

3d mind mapping software.

The Brain

3d TopicScape

The advantage is you will be writing using the other form which language takes, because language itself is structured both as a system of relations and as well formed strings. The disadvantage Is just that most people don't know how to read structured relations--a mind map.

I enjoy CMap Tools for mind mapping. The key is whether you can make a map that doesn't look like spaghetti. CMap does a good job.