2D Map view

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(Go to:Topicscape Pro User Guide - contents list)

In 2D, topics appear as rectangles and each topic can 'hold' as many files as you like, though for ease of use, breaking large topics into sub-topics usually turns out to be much better.

You could regard a rectangle as a folder, but then you'd miss the key difference: a single folder can be in as many places as you need.

Association lines show how topics are connected. Their parent-to-child orientation is indicated by arrow heads with the arrow pointing at the child. The color gives an indication of how close in the hierarchy the topic is to the Current Topic. Loose associations are shown as black and white dotted lines and have no arrow. For performance reasons, association lines disappear briefly while you are flying around the wall.

The Current Topic - the topic around which you choose to focus a Topicscape at any one time - is the largest rectangle in the center near the top in the above image - "Personal Topicscape". Children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren flow down from the Current Topic in 4, 5 or 6 columns. As with 3D, that choice of column numbers is up to you, and the choice you make will probably depend on the size of your screen.

Parents flow upwards, siblings flow sideways from the parents and exploring a large map is easy with the swinging wall. You'll can see much more, more easily on the 2D map than with competing products. You can select the level of detail shown (up to seven levels) with a toolbar item or function keys.

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