February 5 - 12:25am EST   Austin-based Mindcad today unveiled Incubator 2.4, an update to its outlining and brainstorming program designed for visual thinkers. The new version brings with it Leopard compatibility, and the ability to import and export FreeMind maps. In addition to supporting the new XML-based format, users can also upload or download shared maps from MindMeister. Incubator is available in English, German, and French languages, and sells for $50 from Mindcad's website. [full story]

December 26 - 9:20pm EST   As Apple's appeal grows – thanks to the easy-to-use Mac OS X, and the versatility of the Intel processors – the large business and enterprise sectors are starting to adopt the Macintosh platform as a new office standard. Apple has a long history of support from business-minded developers such as Microsoft, Marketcircle, The Omni Group, and CS Odessa, and with them, the company has garnered a variety of productivity software. CS Odessa's ConceptDraw MindMap Professional 5 looks to provide a solid and powerful, but simple way for business professionals to capture brainstorming sessions and put them into a readable flowchart-style plan. [full story]