Treesheets: the coolest thing for hierarchical data organization

I decided last night to reclaim some space on my (Linux beta-enabled) Chromebook by uninstalling some never-used packages I grabbed from the Debian repositories.

Oops, I wound up uninstalling most of the software somehow.

So I'm re-installing software I really did not want removed.  Including this little gem:  TreeSheets.

Although I rarely use TreeSheets because I almost exclusively deal with non-linear information that does not fit hierarchical organization, I cannot stand not having TreeSheets readily available to me for any moment I might need it, and I can't help but play with it once in a while because it amazes me how well the product works.

To me, TreeSheets is just one of the coolest things I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing.  Hence my plug for the tool via this blog entry.

And, to me, it seems impossible to easily explain.

From the product web site, TreeSheets is:

• an open source free form data organizer (a hierarchical spreadsheet.) 

• a great replacement for spreadsheets, mind mappers, outliners, PIMs, text editors and small databases. 

• suitable for any kind of data organization, such as todo lists, calendars, project management, brainstorming, organizing ideas, planning, requirements gathering, presentation of information, etc. 

• like a spreadsheet, immediately familiar, but much more suitable for complex data because it's hierarchical. 

• like a mind mapper, but more organized and compact.

• like an outliner, but in more than one dimension. 

• like a text editor, but with structure.

Check out some screenshots here.

Please, you really must give it a spin and experience it for yourself.  TreeSheets, authored by Wouter van Oortmerssen, can be downloaded for Windows, Mac, and Linux from the TreeSheets website.