MindManager 9 Issues

This page outlines some project management issues identified in MindManager 9. Feel free to edit in additional issues using the provides template lines. There is a thread on the mindjet discussion forum listing some general issues noted prior to SP1.

These issues are being worked through as part of an ActivityOwner.Com blog series:
 * Task Date Issue
 * Part 1 - Definition
 * Part 2 - Brainstorming
 * Part 3 - GyroQ Capture
 * Part 4 - Project Planning
 * Part 5 -- Task Date Issue Update

Issues that can be resolved by configuration changes have been been captured on the Mindmanager Setup Tips page.

Changing start date changes due date
If you change the start date of a task with a due date, either via that task panel or through the API, the duration of the task is assumed to either be the default "0 days" (for tasks without start dates0 or the current difference between the start and due date. The due date is moved such that the duration remains constant.
 * Impact:
 * 1) A hard deadline might get slipped until later by mistake.
 * Workarounds:
 * 1) Modified all start date setting code to save current due date before modifying the start date and then fix after the start date is adjusted.
 * Status:
 * 1) Mindreader (beta 10/31/2010) has been updated using workaround above. New code is on wiki or in beta setup156.exe.

Duration is automatically (and non-optionally) enforced as Due Date - Start Date causing predecessor to be overdue early

 * Impact
 * 1) MindManager task dates are impacted differently depending on whether duration has already been set.
 * 2) Tasks which have a duration of less than Due Date - Start Date in MM8 allow flexibility in the project plan permitting resources to be levelled or delays to be accomodated. This rule produces a plan without float where every task is critical.
 * 3) ResultsManager has a little known capability of setting predecessor tasks overdue early based on the duration of the subsequent tasks. If you have task due on 4/15 starting on 4/1, MM9 will assign it a duration of 15 days and its predecessors will be overdue on 4/1.   In MM8, the duration was not automatically set. If your have a main project or subsequent task with start and end dates, then any predecessor task will be marked as "overdue" by ResultsManager because it appears that the subsequent task will require all its available time to complete, so its predecessors must be completed before its start date.
 * Potential Workarounds:
 * 1) Avoid use of duration for capturing actual task duration, use category (e.g. 15m, 1h, 2h). Generally speaking for "GTD", many actions will tend to take less than 1 hour anyhow, which is the minimum duration in MindManager. This makes use of duration for task duration relatively useless.
 * 2) Don't use both start dates and target dates on projects or subsequent tasks.

It is important to set weekend as working days in calendar
If you don't have the weekend checked off as working days, task dates can't be set there and will be changed in existing maps. If you open a MM8 map with a task that starts and ends on Saturday, MM9 will set the due date to Friday and the start date to Monday.


 * Potential Workarounds:
 * 1) check off all 7 days in File, Options, Task Info, Calendar for new maps
 * 2) check of all 7 days in existing maps under Task info right sidebar panel

Once a task has a start date and due date, it can not go back to state of only having one or the other unless you manually remove both dates

 * Impact:
 * 1) Can not track or set a task start date without specifying a due date once both have been set once (or vice versa)
 * 2) Can not track aging tasks as easily by setting start date at point they are created.
 * 3) "nsd" and "ndd" keywords do not work for tasks with start and end date set already.
 * Potential Workarounds:
 * 1) Manually remove "all task information" and then set desired start or end date.
 * 2) Stop adding start date by default.
 * 3) Identify another means to track aging of tasks (e.g. text labels/tags).
 * 4) Adjust code to remove all task info first and then add back desired information?
 * Status:
 * 1) "nsd" and "ndd" keywords will not work.
 * 2) ResultsManager "edit activity" dialog can not remove a due date or start date if both are present.