In 0.8.0 and 0.9.0 beta 15, node IDs of every node are stored in the mind map file. That is superfluous.
The users who store their mind maps in CVS, Subversion, or another version control system would be glad not to see those node IDs.
AFAIK those IDs are needed to be persisted only for the nodes that are connected by connectors (AKA arrow links).
We should investigate whether we could realistically get rid of the superfluous node IDs in the mind map files.
This issue is being discussed in the following thread:
http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/forum.php?thread_name=80387e550712101450p5e0946abiad6472217d66d49c%40mail.gmail.com&forum_name=freemind-developer
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Another issue: While some users want as few IDs as possible, I can imagine other users wanting to have IDs in every node. But having IDs in every node is not guaranteed either; when a 0.7.1 map is opened in FreeMind 0.8.0 or in FreeMind 0.9.0, modified slightly, and saved again, then the nodes that have not been touched have no ID.
So I think that the best solution is the following. Let us have a user option saying whether the node IDs should be saved in every node. If yes, then it should be guaranteed that they indeed are there in every node. If no, then only those IDs should be stored that are necessary for connectors, internal links and other cases requiring persisting of node IDs.
There is a new user preference:
Tools > Preferences > Environment: Save used Node IDs only
When the user preference is set to yes, only those IDs are stored in the XML file that are actually needed, instead of all nodes having stored IDs. When it is set to no, and the user creates a new mind maps and saves it, all the nodes have an ID stored in the XML file. I have not tested what happens when a mind map saved by FreeMind 0.7.1 is opened and then saved.
Tested in 0.9.0 RC6.
Closing.
--Dan