Extend mindmap syntax to allow multiline nodes

Question

The current syntax:

* <&flag>Debian
** <&globe>Ubuntu
*** Linux Mint
*** Kubuntu
*** Lubuntu
*** KDE Neon

Could be extended to be similar as activity diagram, allowing multiline nodes:

* <&flag>Debian
** <&globe>Ubuntu
***:

Linux Mint

Open Source;

*** Kubuntu
*** Lubuntu
*** KDE Neon

So, by using : and ; we denote begin and end. I think this is great with activity diagram and I think it would be a nice addition to mindmap syntax. I would like to include tables in nodes, and eventually even images.

Last thing: would it be possible to change direction of mindmap layout? Specifically, an option like this:

top to bottom

With this option I could (ab)use mindmap as a family tree.

Thanks!

Answer 1

Good idea!

So with last beta http://beta.plantuml.net/plantuml.jar you can now have:

@startmindmap
* <&flag>Debian
** <&globe>Ubuntu
***:Linux Mint
Open Source;
*** Kubuntu
*** Lubuntu
*** KDE Neon
@endmindmap

Is this what you are expecting ?

Comments

Looks exactly what I expected. I'll try it out next week, thanks for the super quick update!

Have a nice weekend!

Answer 2

No need to extend the syntax since you can use \n in a label to make a newline. See this diagram

Comments

That's a very interesting thought, valexiev. Are you a developer who prefers to write all your code in one line? I am kidding. But how do you explain the fact that activity diagram has this very same multiline syntax? Or that notes can be multiline (in addition to single line with \n) in sequence diagrams? It seems PlantUML is thinking not only of functionality but also of usability.

Sure, I can use \n to get the desired effect. That syntax has its limits, though, and I specifically pointed to a use case of including tables in mindmap nodes, which quickly gets tool complex in single lines. I am not a human compiler, and I guess you are not as well...

Thanks for your input.