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Please note
this was published September, 1999 prior to the Jan 3rd, 2000 release of
Inspiration® 6
( single version now combining both education and business applications )
 Inspiration® is a powerful outliner that
lives up to its claim: to provide the "tools that let you create a picture of your ideas or
concepts in the form of a diagram." It raises the bar to a level that word processors may be unable to
meet. In Diagram Mode, the software creates thought pictures: treelike representations with idea cells, or word
balloons. Simple graphics convey ideas by position, shape, substance, number, color and other quick visual clues.
IN RE TECHNOLOGY http://www.abanet.org/journal/sept99/09techn.html
Let Inspiration Strike
Outlining software allows expression of ideas, concepts in
diagram form
BY DAVID BECKMAN and DAVID HIRSCH
We are inspired by Inspiration®, a powerful outliner that lives up to its claim to provide the "tools that let
you create a picture of your ideas or concepts in the form of a diagram."
Outlining was once an exciting specialized application, but when word processors absorbed the function
the appeal was lost. Inspiration® raises the bar to a level that word processors may be unable to meet.
Hirsch: Law practice consists of organizing information and presenting it persuasively. A computer
outliner enables easy construction of an electronic knowledge base.
Beckman: Desktop electronic outliners go back more than 15 years. ThinkTank for the Apple II was a
pioneer program. Soon, basic word processors began adding outlining functions.
So you may wonder why a specialty outliner would even be needed. After all, WordPro, WordPerfect and
Word all have powerful outliners built in at no additional cost.
H: Sometimes, just because a function is free does not mean it won't cost you--in time and energy.
You may not even use it. As powerful as outliners within word processors may be, they are optimized to
process words, not to construct outlines. They are bound by the menu choice paradigm, which can be
functionally distracting.
A dedicated outliner can run rings around a word processor. It turns the outline itself into the interface
between the user and program. Lawyers are familiar with outlines. Most should intuitively know what to
do with the mouse or keyboard in a good outliner.
Only a program dedicated to outlining is likely to provide this. Inspiration® is such a program, and it
takes only 9 megabytes of space.
B: Inspiration® is so simple it can be used instantly. Yet it is powerful enough to justify a 348-page
manual that is loaded with tips and techniques. It is rare to see programs, particularly small programs,
with substantive manuals that fat.
H: This is the first manual in many years I compulsively read cover to cover. There is the basic Outline
Mode, which performs a standard outline. The program also has a Diagram Mode, to which you can flip
from Outline.
Diagram Mode creates thought pictures: treelike representations with idea cells, or word balloons. The
diagrams make better use of white space than the Outline Mode. Simple graphics convey ideas by
position, shape, substance, number, color and other quick visual clues.
Diagram Mode is useful for briefs. It also can help construct the perfect illustration to teach--and
persuade--a jury. You can diagram facts, law--even jury instructions showing how the facts apply.
Information you add in one mode appears in the other, a valuable function because one mode is
sometimes easier to edit than the other.
B: Recent refinements enhance its simplicity. For instance, symbol libraries in Diagram Mode easily
and quickly change the shape of the idea cells. The program assists with diagram libraries and
templates, stacking selections for diagram cells, and auto-arrangement of diagram cells according to
menued selection of different tree types.
H: After what you just said, no one will believe the program is that simple, but there are plenty of
schoolchildren using it. A lawyer should be able to take this tool and elevate it to new levels.
B: Inspiration® is a mature program, more than 10 years old. It originated on the Macintosh and is now
also available on Windows. It comes in both Professional and Education versions. Other than price, $99
for Professional and $69 for Education, the only differences between the two are the symbol libraries
and templates. Both versions are useful.
H: This is a must-have program. Outline Mode is nearly perfect. Ironically, Diagram Mode, because of
its sheer power, has room for improvement. Exporting and importing files among programs works, but
it could be more versatile. You can save to html, but I would like to be able to turn individual cells in a
diagram into hot links, without having to export the cells individually. That is promised in a future
version.
B: A trial version is available free at www.inspiration.com. Winning a case can be more perspiration
than inspiration, but Inspiration® will make you think about the nature of information and the science of
its presentation.
David Beckman and David Hirsch are partners in the law firm of Beckman & Hirsch in Burlington, Iowa.
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