How to use Google Docs Drawings for medical mind maps

Google Drawings is a new collaborative drawing editor - part of the updated Google Docs. It is free to use, just like the rest of Google Docs. The new standalone drawings editor lets you collaborate in real time on flow charts, designs, diagrams and other fun or business graphics. You can copy these drawings into documents, spreadsheets and presentations using the web clipboard, or share and publish drawings just like other Google Docs.



Until now, my service of choice for medical mind maps was Bubbl.us and I have made more than 100 diagrams with it for AllergyCases.org:

Mind Map Diagrams in Allergy and Immunology

Bubbl.us works very well but I was concerned about embedding the mind maps in case the service goes down temporarily or if the company closes down in the future (mind maps can be exported in XML format for backup). None of these should be a problem with Google Docs. Drawings is obviously behind Bubbl.us in terms of features but it works for basic mind maps and I am planning to use it frequently in the future.

You can embed the minds maps as images, just like you do with YouTube videos, or provide a link to the original mind map and share it for collaboration:

Example: Accidental Injection of Epinephrine Into Finger

Every time you update the mind map in Google Docs/Drawings, the image updates too.

See a few mind maps created with Drawings below:

(click to enlarge the images)


(click to enlarge the images)

In order to publish the mind map diagram on the web, you have to click the "Share" button in the top right corner of the Google Docs menu. After the diagram is published, you will see the options to embed the image with different sizes and the link to share the original drawing with options to be edited by collaborators.

References:
Introducing Google Docs drawings
A new Google Docs

Getting started guide for Google Drawings

Updated: 07/12/2010

Google "wonder wheels" are rudimentary mind maps

Google "wonder wheel" for asthma looks like a rudimentary mind map: http://bit.ly/4tOOF (see below):


WikiMindMap provides better visual results http://bit.ly/2y4pnk (see below):



WikiMindMap is a website that organizes wiki content in a mind map format http://bit.ly/1ZV5rC and http://www.wikimindmap.org

See the "Web 2.0 and medicine" Google Wonder wheel http://bit.ly/3iHR1 - @giustini, @berci, @laikas and @DrVes make the top results:

Related:
ICU Mind Maps http://bit.ly/1VIVOi and http://bit.ly/2EnZLi

Medical profession's use of mind mapping - WikIT http://goo.gl/1Kjd

Note taking with mind maps did not improve the scores of medical students (study) http://goo.gl/8qeQ

Study claims mind maps don't help learning - "you should just take tests" - NYTimes http://goo.gl/kvdSZ and http://goo.gl/6ql7n