Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin
Ask HN: Do you use mind maps in your coding practice?
9 points by kentich 77 days ago | hide | past | favorite | 5 comments
I've always used mind maps in my coding practice. When I dive into a new project with an unfamiliar codebase, I analyze it by putting pieces of code directly into a mind map as nodes. Is anyone else here doing the same?

I used to copy and paste code into a separate mind-mapping app, but I eventually developed a Visual Studio / VS Code extension to do this natively. It lets you jump to the linked code with a click on the node. This feature was a game changer in code navigation for me. For reference, the extension is called Code Mind Map (https://codemindmap.com/).



Maybe it is just me, but 'mindmaps' to just always feels more like 'oilspills'.

A way of representing mostly hierarchical data in a very inefficient and convoluted way.


It doen't have to represent only hierarchical data. I like the flexibility of mind maps, as the connection between nodes are not constrained by a hierarchy. They can represent very loose relation between different parts of the code. Essentially, they reflect your understanding of the code.


To answer your question, no I don't use mindmaps with coding. Your extension looks neat though!

One issue: The "video" demo[1] is rendered too small and very blurry on my Mac.

1. https://codemindmap.com/CodeMindMapAnimatedGif_High_Quality....


Thanks!


you have less of a need if you don't use Java




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: