Simple Web-based interactive key development software (WEBiKEY) and an example key for Kuruna (Poaceae: Bambusoideae)

Area of Science:

• Botany
• Computer Science
• Bioinformatics

Background:

• User-friendly and free software for creating Web-based interactive keys is limited.
• Existing structured applications for key development are often expensive.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a user-friendly and freely available software tool for creating Web-based interactive keys.
• To enable researchers to develop their own interactive keys with minimal resources.

Main Methods:

• Developed WEBiKEY, a Web-based multiaccess identification tool.
• Utilized Microsoft ASP.NET technologies and an SQL Server database for Windows hosting.
• Tested WEBiKEY with a dataset of the bamboo genus Kuruna (Poaceae).

Main Results:

• WEBiKEY is a functional Web-based identification tool.
• The software is built on accessible technologies (ASP.NET, SQL Server).
• Usability was confirmed with the Kuruna genus dataset.

Conclusions:

• WEBiKEY is publicly available for developing interactive keys for any species.
• The tool facilitates species identification through visual inspection of characteristics.
• An interactive key for Kuruna was successfully created, enabling identification of seven species.