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I've mentioned in past articles about developing a coding system for your mind maps. Implementing a coding system can seem like an arduous effort. But Freeplane allows you to create styles in your maps. Using styles, you create the style once and use it as often as needed. You can take a few minutes to think about and create the styles you need for your coding system of colors and icons. Once you make the styles, you select them from a dropdown list to apply them to the nodes.
The Style Editor The style editor is where you create the styles. It looks like a scaled-down version of the main window. To open the editor through the menus, select Format > Manage styles > Edit styles. You can also use the keyboard shortcut CTRL + F11.
Default Styles The default template comes with a set of default styles in 3 categories.
Predefined Styles The predefined styles are the system styles. You can't add to or delete any of the styles in this list. You can change the appearance of the styles: • Default is the style assigned to new nodes when not using an automatic layout. • Details is the styling for the node details. • Attributes are user-defined tags. I'll explain attributes in a future article. • Note is the style for the note pop-up that shows when you hover over a node with notes. • Floating node is the style for any floating nodes.
User Defined Styles The user defined styles are where you would add your own styles. You can add and remove styles from this list. The default template has a few styles defined for you. You can change these or remove them. The trick is to add new ones that work in your coding system.
Apply Level Styles The level styles are a special group. You can automate the level styles by selecting one of the automatic layouts. The first level style is Root. You can change the Root style, but you cannot remove it. The Root is the center node of all maps. By default, you have 11 levels. You can add and remove levels as fits your needs. You can change the nodes to fit your coding system.
Modifying Styles To change a style, select the style and use the tool panel on the right-hand side of the window. This panel is the same as the panel in the main program. You can set the colors, edge style, and even create a style with a cloud. The default floating node has a rectangular cloud around it. You can add icons to the styles as well. Open the icon toolbar by clicking on the sidebar arrow on the left side of the window. Or you can open it through the menus View > Controls > Icon toolbar. Click an icon to add it to the selected style. The display of the styles is a map itself, but you can't create any children. You can add and remove siblings to the user styles and the level styles. The siblings are not added in the same way as in the main window – as detailed below.
Adding Styles When adding a new user defined style, the style starts as a copy of an existing style. You can create a new user defined style from any of the styles, including the predefined and the levels. After selecting the style you want as your start point, use the menus Format > Manage styles > New style from selection. You can also right-click the style and select New style from selection. A dialog prompts you for a name for the new style. Enter the name and click the OK button. The new style will display in the User defined styles group. The level styles work a little differently. When you add a level, it adds to the end of the levels list. To add a new level, right-click any style and select Add level style. You can add levels through the menus at Format > Manage styles > Add level style. When you add a level by right-clicking, the format of the right-clicked style is not copied to the new level. New levels get the formatting of the default style.
Remove Styles You can remove a user defined style that is no longer needed. Any nodes the style is applied to will have the formatting of the style removed. To remove a user defined style, right-click the style and select Remove user defined style. You can also remove a style by selecting it and using the menus Format > Manage styles > Remove user defined style. When you remove a level style, Freeplane removes the highest numbered level. As with the user defined styles, any nodes the style is applied to will have the style formatting removed. To remove a level style, use the menus Format > Manage styles > Remove level style. Or you can right-click any style and select Remove level style. Once you have finished changing the styles, click on the checkmark button to save your settings. If you want to exit the edit without saving your changes, click the X button.
Applying Styles to Nodes The easiest way to apply a style is using the drop-down list on the main toolbar. The styles display in the same order as in the style editor. You can get the same list using the menus Format > Apply styles. After selecting the style, Freeplane applies the style to all selected nodes. If you select another style, you remove the current style and apply the selected style. It is possible to apply more than one style through conditional styles. I will cover conditional styles in my next article. Using level styles works a little differently. Level styles are applied by the node's position on the branch. To apply level styles, use the menu Format > Automatic layout. You can apply the levels to all nodes by selecting for all nodes. Apply the levels to all nodes but the ones at the end by selecting for all non-leaf nodes. By default, disabled is selected. Disabled removes all level style formatting.
Other Style Options Sometimes, you will change a node that has a style applied to it, and you want to apply those changes to the style. Use the menus Format > Manage styles > Redefine style. This adds the changes to the style and updates all nodes with the style. You can also use the keyboard shortcut ALT + R. At other times, you change a node and decide you want to revert back to the formatting of the style. Use the menus Format > Manage styles > Remove format to remove the changes. Did you create the best set of styles ever and want to use it in a new map? In the new map, use Format > Manage styles > Copy map style from… to import the style from another map. You can do this with the keyboard shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + O as well.
Style Example When I create a map for brainstorming a writing project, I end up with list or outline. Sometimes, I get started but can't get back to it for days or weeks. To keep track of where I'm at in the project, I create a TODO and Done style. The TODO style has a light red background and an empty checkbox icon. I apply this style to any sections that are not done. For the Done style, I apply a light green background and a checked checkbox icon. When a section is complete, I switch the style from TODO to Done. Styles allow you to design your coding system by creating a style once and using it many times. Through the use of styles, you can develop and change your coding system. Next time, I will show you how to create conditional styles that allow you to apply more than one style to a node. I will also show you how to save a template with all your styles, so you can use them over and over again.