When creating mind maps (thinking maps, concept maps, webs, etc.) nothing beats Inspiration (or Kidspiration for younger students). But if you can't afford to purchase such software, there are free options available. If you are an avid user of Inspiration, the limitations of these sites will drive you crazy! Also, most of these types of tools allow for online collaboration!

For lesson ideas and sample, see the Inspired Learning Community!


myWebspiration
At last! Inspiration has released their free online mind mapping tool! And if you know Inspiration or Kidspiration, you'll recognize the look and feel of the interface immediately.

• Rapid-fire function works great!
• You can print your diagram
• You can switch between diagram and outline views
• The clip art is present but is greatly reduced
• Most of the features are retained from the full version
• You can invite others to collaborate with you on a document and control the permissions
• You can download the diagram into Inspiration 8
• You can't embed the tool as a widget
• Registration is required- email is not verified
  

Gliffy
This online diagram designer will allow you to create a variety of diagrams such as mind maps, flow charts, floor plans, computer networks, user interfaces, etc. Here are some features and limitations:

• Large delay when entering text
• Doesn't remember color selections
• Aligning objects isn't easy
• Link styles are limited and are difficult to adjust
• Basic and standard tools
• Can upload your own images (must be tagged)
• Can print to printer or save as .jpg .png .svg (Visio)
• Multiple people can collaborate on the same diagram

Mindomo

• Free registration (email verification required)
• Can make maps public or private
• Free accounts limited to 7 private maps
• Can embed or save maps as graphics or PDF, RTF, TXT (WetPaint did not allow this type of embed, but it embedded fine elsewhere)
  
• Can only add hosted images
• Many different layout options & easy to navigate (Office 2007 type interface)
  
• Students can collaborate on maps
  

Bubbl.us
A simple tool that allows for text-only mind maps. No registration is required to create and download as JPEG or PNG. Registration is required for saving the created map and embedding. Registration requires an email address but verification is not necessary. Sheets can be shared among registered users for collaboration.

















Text 2 Mind Map
This is a cool little tool that allows students to enter text in an outline format and it automatically converts it to a simple map- no bells & whistles, no graphics, just colored text bubbles. This is great for quick organization of ideas. You can't save the mind map in any other format than .jpg. No registration of any kind is required. Here's a simple sample that I created and saved.













Creately
Creately is a site that allows users to collaborate on diagrams. Creately includes many different templates for objects in common types of diagrams and flowcharts. In fact, data can be connected with different nodes and that data can be automatically interpreted in a useful way according to predefined rules. For example, a diagram of a logic circuit could display the output given each of the inputs. Creately is currently in beta and embeddable widgets are under development.