Mastering MindNode – Mac Shortcuts

Every platform has a different way of interacting with its devices. On iOS, you tap the touch screen to navigate your content. The iPad works similarly but is opening up to new ways of working with it. This chapter of Mastering MindNode will focus on a few shortcuts that rely on the traditional keyboard and mouse/trackpad interaction, available on the Mac.

Create Connections

Cross connections are a great way to link ideas that are on different mind maps. You can create them with a keyboard shortcut (⌘ + L), or by selecting the option in the Node menu. Another way is holding down Shift ⇧ and clicking & dragging between two nodes. Hold down Shift ⇧ + Option ⌥ to create an inverted connection.

Move the Canvas

On iOS, you use your fingers to swipe around on the screen to navigate your canvas. On the Mac, you can do the same with a trackpad and a 2-finger gesture. If you're using a mouse, simply hold down the spacebar and click and drag the canvas.

Create New Nodes

The trackpad lets us interact with the Mac through a variety of gestures. Most of them are based around swiping, pinching, and using multiple fingers, however, one of the more subtle gestures is force touch. You can use force touch in MindNode to instantly create a new main node anywhere on your canvas.

That's it for this entry. The next Mastering MindNode will explore how we use iOS gestures as shortcuts in MindNode.