Adding Node Groups

Multiple nodes can be visually grouped with a node group. The group is visualized by drawing a colorized background with an alpha channel for only those nodes that are a part of the group. The color of the background is the same color of the main node within the group. Multiple node groups can be drawn and can overlap each other as each node can be a part of more than one group concurrently.

Node groups can also contain notes which can help document why the node group exists or other relevant information.

Creating a Node Group for a Subtree

If you would like a particular subtree to visually standout from the rest of the tree, select the primary node of the subtree and use the ‘g’ keyboard shortcut to create the group (alternatively, you can right click to bring up the contextual menu and select the Add Group menu option). The group will be drawn and will automatically encompass the subtree, even if new nodes are added or removed from the subtree.

Create a Node Group for Multiple Selected Nodes

Sometimes it is desirable to create node groups from a specific set of nodes. To accomplish this, select a node to include in the group, hold the Shift key and select the other nodes to include in the group. Once all nodes are selected, use the ‘g’ keyboard shortcut (alternatively, right click to display the contextual menu and select the Add Group menu option). It is important to note that if this type of grouping is used, it will help to have all of the selected nodes in close proximity to each other to help make the group easier to identify which nodes are a part of it and which are not.

Changing a Node Group’s Color

A node group gets its color from either the subtree ancestor node color or from the first clicked node’s color in a node group created from multiple node selection. Changing the node’s color to something different will effectively change the color of the node group.

Removing a Node Group

Once a node group has been created, you can remove the grouping by left-clicking anywhere inside the node group that is not a node. This will select the node group. Hit the Delete button (alternatively, right click to bring up the contextual menu and select the “Remove Group” menu option) to remove the node grouping from the mind map.