Newbie looking for a kind of "criminal profiling" application

[kanketsu]

Hello, newbie here.

Since I switched to a Mac last September, I've been looking for a certain kind of application but my findings so far hasn't been too satisfactory. I was wondering if you guys know something about it, or perhaps make some alternative suggestions.

Perhaps the best way to describe it is by watching some thriller movies. You know when the FBI agents stick everything they have about a case on the wall: receipts, notes, photographs with notes, etc, etc?

I'm looking for something that works AND looks like "that wall".

Here are some notes on apps I've tried so far, they should tell more about certain features I want:

1. 3M Digital Notes (Windows)
It has tabbed memoboards, which I liked. I hated the big toolbar icons though. But the biggest bummer is the fact that it only runs under Windows... and I don't feel like installing it.

2. Sketchbox
Works great. I can even make handdrawn sketches on the notes. Unfortunately every notes were "auto formatted" for display, therefore I can't have this note appear bigger than the others, or put it at a certain location.

3. Novamind
Well, I have the liberty to make every notes/ stickies look exactly like I want, but it requires lots of efforts. Not to metion that it somehow tax the system a bit much.

4. NoteBook
I really liked this app. Mostly because it looks like a real notebook. In fact, I'm using it now.
However, I can't make it work like a pinboard of notes since it doesn't support column layout.

5. Mori/ Yojimbo
It's ... too neat. Also, the objects are displayed "auto-formatted" as in Sketchbox. I feel like the app treats each object as mere data, instead of the real thing.

6. Apple stickies/ Stick-Em Up
Looks great. However, unlike 3M Digital Notes, the notes are sticked onto the Desktop instead of a separate window..

I hope those could give you adequate descriptions, although maybe not too accurate due to my limited English.. Sorry

Any insights? Thank you for time.

 

[j26]

Have you tried any mind mapping software. Concept Draw do an app that I use a bit for college. You can attach any document and note all the nodes, making connections between them. You have a lot of latidude in how you want it to look.

It may not look quite right for the appearance you want, but in terms of using the information, it might be a good idea.

 

[kanketsu]

Hello there, thanks for the reply.

So far I only tried Novamind in that category. From the experience, I can make the entries look like I want, but it took (relatively, compared to lighter stickies application) lots of efforts to do so. Windows dejavu all over again

But I will give this ConceptDraw a try. I'll get back to you ASAP.

Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[Aniej]

Can you try and post a screenshot of something that resembles what on earth you are talking about because I am really lost as to what you are going for here. I know a ton of applications, so if you try and get us a bit more info hopefully I or one of the other members can help.

 

[TheStu]

Can you try and post a screenshot of something that resembles what on earth you are talking about because I am really lost as to what you are going for here. I know a ton of applications, so if you try and get us a bit more info hopefully I or one of the other members can help.

My understanding is that he wants something that can simulate a magnetic whiteboard.

So, he can write/doodle on it, but also can have pictures, notes, stickies, links and everything else on there as well. That was he can have a different whiteboard for each project that he is working on.

 

[kanketsu]

My understanding is that he wants something that can simulate a magnetic whiteboard.

So, he can write/doodle on it, but also can have pictures, notes, stickies, links and everything else on there as well. That was he can have a different whiteboard for each project that he is working on.

Precisely! Thank you for bringing up a better description.

Okay, I will make some screenshots. It's gonna take a while (I'm at work now), I'll be posting some ASAP.

 

[Aniej]

ohhh it is starting to make much more sense now. so do you want a whiteboard that acts as a display and also sends the information you draw on it to your Mac?

 

[kanketsu]

ohhh it is starting to make much more sense now. so do you want a whiteboard that acts as a display and also sends the information you draw on it to your Mac?

Something like that, I guess. But I don't really follow the part about "send the information I draw on it to my Mac." But I believe that I only need the whiteboard as a kind of sandbox; not a tool to organize objects system-wide.

Well, the attached screenshot might give better description

I want something that looks like it, even better with a tab feature (I created the screenshot by overlay stick-em-up above sketchbox) but it should be light & easy enough to use; mindmapping application like ConceptDraw or Novamind can be customized to mimic what I want, but in those apps a simple task like making a new entry seems to require extra efforts. Not to mention that Novamind tax the system a lot.

 

[TheStu]

ohhh it is starting to make much more sense now. so do you want a whiteboard that acts as a display and also sends the information you draw on it to your Mac?

He wants (based on my understanding) an app that acts as a whiteboard. Essentially just a brainstorming utility with a great deal of flexibility. Ideally it would even let you add songs to your whiteboard since those have been shown to trigger memories. Adding a song to your project whiteboard would be handy, in addition to all the other things. Doodles, images, documents. All of them can be 'shrunk down' as well so that you can have as much on there as possible. Then, as you mouse over the items on the whiteboard, it would magnify the items, until you click on it, when it would achieve full size and take the center of the screen.


What you are talking about is a Smartboard, which are awesome!

 

[Aniej]

What you are talking about is a Smartboard, which are awesome!

yes yes yes, you are so right on with figuring out what the OP was looking for. I thought OP meant the smartboard and couldn't understand why op kept describing actions only within the op's computer. Oh, and smartboards are really awesome, I would love to get one in a few years when I might have the need and justification for it.

 

[kanketsu]

Hello guys, sorry for the late reply.

I think this Smartboard idea is great, although it is a bit too much for what I want initially. If I can have a blank sandboxed space in which I can put pictures, each displayed in its own respective size & position, and have the ability to attach paper-like notes to them, it would be just fine.

But guess what, after trying some apps, what I've found is something in between. Three alternatives:

1. The first one is Conjure 2.0. It lets you make several different pages and put many things inside them. The drawback is there is no easy way to put "paper-like" or "polaroid style notes to it.

2. This is what I use currently: Stick'em Up WITH Think!. This is the closest combo setup to what I want. By itself, Stickemup looks like cluttering over other windows, but Think! will put a dark background between the stickies & other application windows. Problem solved!
Limited space, though.

3. Creating a special folder in Leopard, set it so the icons won't be auto arranged by anything, select a dark color for its bacground, and then just put anything I like inside it. I can use Quick Look to zoom to each object. However, although I'm free to put each object to exactly where I'd like, I can't have this one picture appear bigger than others, etc. unlike Conjure 2.0.

So although none of the three works perfectly (Conjure is very promising, but somehow buggy e.g. put one song in one page and it can be automatically cloned into other pages. No font preference either, so you have to set the fonts everytime after you write something if you don't find the default font/ size/ color suitable), I think I can make these work to my needs.

And who knows, perhaps future updates for these apps will make it closer to what I've been looking for.

 

[jhande]

Try Scrivener, an app for writers, but oh so much more.

 

[Jason_Bryan]

Well as someone that uses the real life physical equipment you are talking about on a daily basis, have done for nearly 18 years, I have never found a good representation of it on a computer. I do however use Omnioutliner and Omnigraffle when I am out and about and not near a wall i can stick things too

http://www.omnigroup.com

http://www.jasonbryanassociates.com