Showing and annotating data with an iPad

Using WEBKNOSSOS on an iPad offers two key advantages: seamless data visualization on the go and intuitive annotation with the Apple Pencil.

Data Visualization on an iPad

Accessing your WEBKNOSSOS data from any device, including an iPad, allows you to conveniently showcase or explore large datasets anywhere. Whether you want to share your findings with scientists post-conference or analyze data during your train commute, all you need is a browser. No installation of any additional software is required. The user-friendly interface supports intuitive finger gestures and complementary buttons for smooth navigation.

In a brief workflow example, we demonstrate the ease of data visualization on an iPad. Using simple finger gestures, we navigate along the x and y axes and perform zoom operations with intuitive two-finger gestures.

Moving through you data and zooming in and out.

Additional functions, such as z-axis movement, toggling the right sidebar, and activating the four viewports, are easily accessible with the touch of a button. Selecting segments and loading their meshes is as simple as tapping the corresponding locations on the screen.

Toggling the right sidebar, turning on the 4 viewports, loading a mesh.

Finally, we maximize the 3D viewport and effortlessly explore the mesh geometry by swiping with three fingers.

Exploring the 3D mesh.

And that’s not all! You still retain the full WEBKNOSSOS capabilities at your fingertips, such as toggling color and segmentation layers, adjusting histograms and opacity, and quickly accessing skeleton nodes, segments, comments, and more.

Intuitive Annotation with your iPad

Take advantage of the iPad and Apple Pencil for seamless and precise annotation. Enhance your manual annotations with direct drawing on the screen, offering increased accuracy and efficiency compared to traditional mouse-based annotation.

In this example, we demonstrate the annotation workflow using the iPad and Apple Pencil. Starting with the quick-select tool, we segment a cell, refining its edges with the pixel-perfect precision of the lasso tool.

Quick-selecting a cell and refining the edges with the lasso tool.

Next, we create a new segment and annotate it from scratch using the lasso tool.

Annotating a new segment from scratch with the lasso and then the brush tool.

Finally, we create an additional segment and use the brush tool to annotate.

Annotating a segment with the brush.

We hope this short article gave you valuable insights. Open your iPad’s browser and give it a try now at webknossos.org! Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Mastodon to learn about the continuous improvements of WEBKNOSSOS.