Aivia Software
Tags
Tags in Aivia are markers with text labels that can be placed anywhere in images with multiple z-frames. Tags can be useful for marking objects of interest, marking areas that need review, or keeping/sharing notes for certain image locations.
Interface
When you have an image with multiple z-frames, the Tags panel is available in the Analysis and Display Panels section of the Aivia window. The top section of the Tags interface (see below) has options for tag creation, and the bottom section has options for searching, editing, and otherwise managing tags.
Tags interface fully expanded
On this page: |
Tag Creation section
In the Tag Creation section, you can enable the placing of tags and specify the tag name/description, color, comment, and presets, among other options. To fully expand the Tag Creation section, click on the Show/Hide Advanced Tag Creation Options icon. The options available in the expanded Tag Creation section are described in the table below.
Name | Icon | Description |
|---|---|---|
Create Tag |  | Enables/Disables the placing of tags when the image volume is clicked on in 3D View |
Show/Hide Advanced Tag Creation Options | Shows/Hides advanced settings for tags and tag presets | |
Open Preset Menu | Opens a menu where you can manage tag presets | |
Open Advanced Tool Options | Opens a menu where you can toggle the following options:
| |
Select Tag Color | Opens a color picker where you can set the color of created tags | |
Toggle Comments | Toggles the ability to add a comment in addition to the tag name/description |
Preset Menu
To open the Preset Menu, click on the Open Preset Menu icon. The Preset Menu shows all existing presets, which you can click to restore the tag creation settings to those saved in the preset. The following tag settings are saved in a preset:
Name/Description
Comment, when applicable
Color
Along the top of the Preset Menu, there are options for managing presets; these options are described in the table below.
Name | Icon | Description |
|---|---|---|
Create New Preset | Creates a new preset with the current settings specified in the Tag Creation section | |
Delete Selected Preset | Removes the preset that is selected in the Preset Menu | |
Open Deletion Options | Opens a menu with the following deletion options for presets:
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Import Presets | Import presets from a JSON file | |
Export Presets | Export presets to a JSON file that can be loaded back into Aivia |
Some preset management options also appear when you right-click on a preset in the Preset Menu.
Preset Menu
Tag Management section
The Tag Management section has options for editing, hiding/showing, importing/exporting, searching, and navigating to tags. Double-click on the row of a tag in the tags list to automatically navigate to the tag in the displayed image. To fully expand the Tag Management options, click on the Show/Hide Advanced Tag Management Options icon. The Tag Management options are described in the table below.
Name | Icon | Description |
|---|---|---|
Tag Search | Search for tags fitting the given search term(s); after searching, only tags meeting the search criteria are shown in the tag list | |
Show/Hide Advanced Tag Management Options | Shows/Hides options for searching by presets, deleting tags, import/exporting tags, hiding/showing tags, and adjusting the size of tags in the viewer | |
Select Search Preset | Opens a list of existing presets; click on a preset to filter the tag list to only tags matching the selected preset | |
Delete Tags |
| Opens a menu where you can choose from the following options for tag deletion:
|
Import or Export Tags | Opens a menu where you can choose from the following import/export options:
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Hide/Show Tags | Toggles the visibility of tags in the Image Panel | |
Change Tag Size | Opens the Tag Radius slider and textbox, where you can specify the radius of tag markers as they are displayed on the image |
Hotkeys
Hotkey | Description |
|---|---|
| Toggles the Create Tag option |
| Loads the corresponding preset settings into the Tag Creation section; [# of preset] is the number of the preset in the order they are listed in the Preset Menu; supports up to ten (10) presets, with the tenth (10th) having the hotkey You can hover over a preset in the Preset Menu to view the hotkey for the preset. |
| Toggles the visibility of tags in the Image Panel |
Using tags
The Tags panel is one (1) of the Analysis and Display Panels that is available when an image with multiple z-planes is displayed.
Creating tags
Before placing a tag, specify the tag name/description in the corresponding text field in the Tag Creation section of the Tags interface. If you would like to use tag settings that are saved into a preset, specify the tag color, or add a tag comment, first click on the Show/Hide Advanced Tag Creation Options icon to expand the advanced options, and then click on the desired option and edit the the settings accordingly.
Once the desired tag settings are specified in the Tag Creation section, enable Create Tag by clicking the button or by pressing T and then T again on your keyboard. While the image is shown in 3D View, click on the location where you would like to place the tag on the displayed image; a marker will then appear on the image, and the tag will be added to the tag list in the Tags panel.
Click on the Open Advanced Tool Options icon to display a menu where you can change hotkey options to speed up your tag-creation workflow.
Using tag presets
Tag presets allow you to quickly switch between custom tag settings when you are creating tags. A tag preset includes the tag name/description, comment (when applicable), and color.
To create a tag preset, first specify the desired tag name/description and color in the Tag Creation section of the Tags panel. If you would like, you can also add a tag comment in the text field that is toggled with the Toggle Comments icon. Then, click on the Open Preset Menu icon and on the Create New Preset icon in the Preset Menu.
Loading a preset adjusts the settings for tag creation. When you create a tag just after loading a preset, the tag has the name/description, comment (if applicable), and color stored in the preset. To load a preset, click on the preset in the Preset Menu or press the hotkey for the preset. Preset hotkeys are T followed by the number of the preset in the preset list; for example, press T on your keyboard and then 2 to load the second (2nd) preset. You can also hover over a preset in the Preset Menu to view the preset’s hotkey.
There are options to extend the functionality of preset hotkeys in the Advanced Tool Options menu: you can allow preset hotkeys to also toggle the Create Tag option by clicking on the Open Advanced Tool Options menu and enabling the Preset Hotkey Creates option. If the Preset Hotkey Creates option and the Immediately Create Tag option are both enabled, preset hotkeys can create tags with the associated preset settings where the mouse is located in the image volume without requiring a mouse click.
In the Preset Menu, you can change the color of a preset using the associated color picker. If the Preset Updates Color option is enabled in the Advanced Tool Options menu, changing the color of a preset in the Preset Menu also changes the color of all existing tags matching the preset.
Your custom tag presets persist between Aivia sessions, but you can also import and export presets using the Import Presets and Export Presets buttons in the Preset Menu. Presets are stored in easily readable JSON files that can be loaded back into Aivia.
Navigating to tags
Clicking on a tag’s row in the Tag Management section zooms to the marker location in 3D View.
The Tags Management section also has options for searching through your existing tags: you can type into the search textbox and then press Enter or the Tag Search button to narrow the tag list to those fitting the search terms, or you can click on the Select Search Preset icon and then on a preset in the menu that opens to narrow the tag list to only tags matching the specified preset.
Editing tags
You can edit a tag name/description, comment, and/or color from the tag list in the Tag Management section. Double-click on a tag’s name/description or comment to enable editing of the corresponding items. You can open a color picker from a tag’s row of the tag list where you can change the color of the tag as it is displayed on the image.
To change the color of all tags matching a certain preset, first click on the Open Advanced Tool Options icon and make sure the Preset Updates Colors option is enabled in the menu that opens. Then, change the color for the preset in the Preset Menu; the colors of all tags matching the preset will then update.
Saving and sharing tags
Tags are saved with images in Aivia, but they can also be imported from and exported to easily readable JSON files.
To import tags, click on the Import or Export Tags icon, choose the Import Tags option from the menu that opens, specify the tags file in the dialog, and then click Open. The imported tags are then added to the tags list, and the associated markers can be seen on the displayed image. If you have existing tags when importing, you are prompted with whether to replace the existing tags with the imported tags or merge the imported tags with the existing tags.
To export tags, click on the Import or Export Tags icon, choose the Export Listed Tags option to export only the tags in the tags list that has been narrowed through searching or the Export All Tags option, specify where to save the exported tags, and then click Save. The exported tags are saved to a JSON file that can be imported back into Aivia.
The tag import/export options are also available in the right-click menu for tags in the tag list.