Author Archives: Matt

Spotlight PestNet Upgrade

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PestNet

PestNet is an online service that provides pest and disease identification and management advice for the South Pacific and Asia. A PestNet team of moderators set up a Yahoo group platform in December 1999 to provide supervised email communication regarding pest, disease and other queries, often with photograph attachments. Other community members can respond to these requests, providing a possible identification or diagnosis. Currently, PestNet includes other regions and has over 1500 members.

Pacific Pests and PathogensThe Lucid team was initially involved with PestNet to provide technical support to improve the PestNet database. This led to support for the development of the Lucid Mobile app, Pacific Pests & Pathogens [Android] [iOS]that provides numerous Fact sheets on pests and diseases for most of the crops grown in the South Pacific region. There are currently 350 Full Fact Sheets, 350 Mini Fact sheets (summarised for farmers and growers) and another 50 being prepared for the next update of the Android and Apple versions of the app.

The latest collaboration between PestNet and Identic has been to upgrade the PestNet platform, taking advantage of recent software and hardware developments to achieve a more efficient and effective PestNet communication system. Identic has been sub-contracted to do the technical component of this work as part of a project managed by the University of Queensland and funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). The upgrade involves a data repository and two apps: one for desktop computers and the other for Android and Apple mobile devices.

PestNet Community web application

The screen shot above shows several filtered Identification requests, as viewed online by a PestNet moderator, showing “Delete”, “Approve” and “Edit” buttons. The last submission has been expanded, showing text and three images, which were automatically thumb-nailed during the submission process. The larger size is viewed by clicking on the thumbnail.

These two screen shots (below) show two request submissions as they appear when viewed in the new PestNet app.

PestNet Community mobile application screen one PestNet Community mobile application screen two

The online version of the new PestNet platform is operational, and can be accessed here. The Android and Apple apps will be released early next year.

As well as providing more effective and flexible support for the functions that PestNet has provided in the past, features of the new online core repository provide automated data processing functionality, including non-response alerts, the potential for incorporating pest alerts and pest reports, and providing links to distribution maps and translation services.

If you would like to join PestNet visit https://app.pestnet.org/

Lucid in Korea

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Plant quarantine talk KoreaIn early November, Geoff Norton gave two seminars on Lucid based digital tools. The first seminar, at the Korean Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency (www.qia.go.kr), focussed on the increasing use of Lucid based tools in quarantine, including examples from the USA and Europe.

Plant quarantine talk Korea

The second seminar – involving staff and post-graduate students at Chungbuk National University (www.cbnu.edu/eng/) – was more concerned with the general role that Lucid based tools are playing in more general agricultural support.

Plant quarantine talk Korea

Given that taxonomic and crop diagnostic expertise has seen an almost universal decline in recent years, the seminar provided examples of how identification and crop diagnostic apps have been developed and used to provide systematic help and information to support quarantine and plant protection decisions. For more information – contact Geoff at [email protected]

Lucid keys and apps coming soon

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  • Sheep Parasites by the University of Melbourne. Undergoing testing – expected release early 2019.(Lucid Mobile)
  • Edible wild orchids of Zambia by KEW Gardens. (Lucid Mobile)
  • Wilding conifer of New Zealand, Landcare Research, New Zealand. (Lucid Mobile)
  • Adult Frogs and tadpoles, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Brazil. (Lucid Mobile)

More information will be available on these key once released.

Spider mite species of Australia (including key exotic southeast Asian pest species)

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This interactive Lucid key provides diagnostics for all the species of spider mites (Acari: Tetranychidae) previously recorded in Australia, based mostly on literature records. Several species collected in Australia, but not yet recorded in the literature, are also included (manuscript in prep). In addition, a few select exotic species from south east Asia of concern to Australia’s biosecurity have also been included.

Author: Jennifer J Beard, Queensland Museum (http://www.qm.qld.gov.au/)

Visit key

Thrips of the British Isles

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This Lucid based identification and information system includes 177 species of thrips that have been taken alive on the British Isles at least once. It provides a means of identifying species, together with an introduction to what is known of the biology and distribution of each species.

Developed by Laurence Mound (Australian National Insect Collection, CSIRO), Dom Collins (The Hunterian University of Glasgow) and Anne Hastings (Australian National Insect Collection, CSIRO)

Visit key

Fact Sheet Fusion update

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Fact Sheet Fusion v2A new update to Fact Sheet Fusion (v2.0.5.130) is now available (free to existing v2 licence holders).

This update includes:

New features and enhancements

  • Further enhanced the detection and cross-linking of scientific names.
  • Added a new option to automatically create a scientific name topic with formatted names.
  • Added a progress bar for topic deletion.
  • Added several new advanced media manager options such as automatic matching and attachment of media, reporting missing media and option to delete missing media references.
  • Image viewer now automatically detects image orientation properties.

Fixes

  • Fixed global find and replace function where it was not searching across glossary terms in some instances.
  • Fixed cross-linking ordering problem where some shorter links were being applied before longer links.
  • Fixed cross-linking issue where the text to be linked was wrapped in inverted commas.
  • Fixed entity index where it was incorrectly processing alternative name siblings as sub alternative names.
  • Corrected the image watermark generator preview in the Image Viewer.
  • Hardened the glossary term saving function and included additional logging.
  • Fixed glossary cross-linking of terms when linking on certain special characters.
  • Fixed glossary cross-link when limited to a single topic.

Click here for more information on this update.

To purchase Fact Sheet Fusion click here.

Lucid v3.6 updated

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Lucid v3.6

A new Lucid v3.6 update is now available. It adds additional features and corrects several minor bugs. Changes include:

Lucid JavaScript (Browser) Player

  • Fixed thumbnail path bug (and also maintain old thumbnail paths for existing keys).
  • Fixed html references from state gallery bug.
  • Fixed Auto best/Prune settings for Javascript Player.
  • Added export/deploy browser key in list view mode (entity and feature trees).
  • Added Ranked sort mode, entities must be in list view mode to work. Expand top level features/entity groups on key start in browser player. (These options all controlled via existing key option settings)
  • Fixed bug with numeric range comparisons (scaling, incorrect comparator)
  • Shortcut features and Why Discarded options added
  • Fixed entity list jumping in player.
  • Progress spinner shown when loading large keys.

Lucid Builder

  • Fixed dependency save bug.
  • Fixed LIF3 Import bug from really old files (where scopes where set on features not states)
  • Fixed missing ui resource in builder (Deploy Browser on media panel).
  • Fixed score analyser bug.
  • Fixed media list import bug where unsupported media types were included. Also fixed urldecoded filenames in media list
  • Changes to thumbnail generation with alpha (transparent) layers.
  • Fixed thumbnail paths for Unix path separators
  • CSV export/import fixes – including not importing ‘not scoped’ scores.
  • Media panel fixes (browse missing media, selection/focus behaviour).
  • Selections and scoring mode now reflected in status bar.
  • Item properties panels hidden on spreadsheet scoring and score analyser views.
  • Changed numeric input behaviour slightly – (fixed cancel/save bug, prevent auto fill right of scores+add warning)
  • Fixed reporting bug not outputting missing media reports. Cleaned up formatting in some of the other reports (list names, etc)
  • Removed embedded javafx web browser.
  • Further strengthen key save process to help avoid data loss. Added additional logging and exception details.
  • Fixed check for updates function.
  • Added additional key deployment check, if user trying to deploy to inside builder edition of the key folder a warning is shown.
  • Fixed edit language bug.
  • Fixed ui refresh bugs on key open/close tasks
  • Natural language template now allows alternate conjunction and score modifier text to be defined at top level.
  • Fixed progress dialog on key deployment

Click here to download the latest update

To purchase Lucid click here.