Everything cool about Curio just got better

Curio, one of my long-time favorite brainstorming and project management applications, has received a massive update with version 8. If you've never seen Curio, it's a highly visual environment for collecting information, lists, mind maps, websites, PDFs, emails and much more into organized projects and "spaces." You can collect, present, share and manage all kinds of information using an organization method that works for you. Whether you prefer a spatial, visual layout or a more rigid view of your data, Curio provides an amazing set of tools.

The release notes for version 8 are rather immense, but definitely worth looking through. Here are a few highlights:

• All-new interface (fewer visible buttons, but more power)

• Improved mind-mapping tools

• Improved sharing options for projects, spaces and figures

• Repository-based group access to resources

• Split view for working in multiple spaces in a project

• Mountain Lion Reminders/iCal integration

• Bookmarks

• More robust audio/video recording

• Improved Evernote integration

The list goes on. It's honestly more than I could cover in this post. There are even features which aren't specifically called out in the release notes, but which make me a bit giddy. For example, drag an OPML file (from a mind map or outliner application) onto a project space, and Curio will ask you what to turn it into: mind map, index card, outline, etc. Brilliant.

You can purchase Curio 8 for US$99, and current users of either the Mac App Store version or a version purchased from Zengobi directly can upgrade for $49.99. There is a free 25-day trial available at Zengobi's site, and I highly recommend checking it out.