Export

The largest dialog by far in the application is dedicated to the topic of exporting. The program lets you export the data, which it first stores in a proprietary format, as pixel or vector graphics. To do this, open the appropriate dialog by selecting File | Export as Image (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Labyrinth can export mind maps in various formats for integration with other applications.

You first need to decide what you want to export; the default is Complete Map. Alternatively, you can select the current view for exporting. Besides the usual save options, such as the file name or folder, you can select from four different output formats. You can select the bitmap formats JPEG and PNG, or you can save the map as a losslessly scalable vector graphic (SVG), or even as a PDF document.

Storage Location

Not having to worry about saving and opening files and the small launch window conveniently relieve you of most of the work. On the other hand, the lack of a typical Open dialog takes some getting used to. Furthermore, you might want the option of saving mind maps in a folder of your own choice.

If you want to mail a mind map or save it somewhere else, you need to open it first and then save it to the desired folder by selecting File | Export Map. To open such a file later on, you need to import it in the Start window using the File | Import function.

Conclusions

Labyrinth is a small and simple tool for rapidly creating mind maps without any fuss. The tool comes straight to the point and is limited to the essentials: creating mind maps. However, the maps should not be too large, because the operating concept of the software occasionally feels ill-conceived and outdated.

This limitation begs the question of why the application does not bundle its few features compactly into a single window. Additionally, the app lacks a print function, leaving only the crude detour of exporting a file in a common format and printing in another application. Nevertheless, Labyrinth is still perfectly suited to gathering and mapping ideas quickly.