Key Database Manager is a tool developed to help build and maintain a database of character states (dubbed the key database) intended to be used with the Not a Key project. Not a Key is an identification tool, similar to a dichotomous key, but dynamic. This tool is being developed to aid with mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) identification by non-specialists.
There exists both a graphical application, made with Qt, and a terminal application, made using the python curses module. Both do the same thing: provide a user friendly environment to manually update the key database, which will be used by the Not a Key identification tool.
The applications use PyMySQL to connect to a MySQL server's key database. All credentials given are stored in the system's keyring, using the keyring module.
Releases are built with PyInstaller.
Both applications serve the same purpose, to update character states for each species regarding each couplet present in the database.
You must provide login credentials to access the database of character states you want to update. The fields you must provide are: user, host, password and database.
Multiple logins: in the login screen you can add new login information or change your currently selected login information. This allows for access to multiple databases with the same user, as well as multiple user access in the same device.
Password change: in the 'actions' menu, you may change your database access password, this will affect the database user credentials directly and it will subsequently update your configuration files. New passwords must be at least 8 characters long; you will be prompted to type your new password twice to avoid typing errors.
Bulk updates: in the 'actions' menu, you can perform bulk updates of characters using a .csv file. The provided .csv file must be in one the following configurations:
a)
| Unique Species Name A | Unique Species Name B | Unique Species Name C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unique Couplet Name 1 | 0 | 1 | 01 |
| Unique Couplet Name 2 | 10 | NA | NULL |
b)
| Unique Couplet Name 1 | Unique Couplet Name 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Unique Species Name A | 0 | 10 |
| Unique Species Name B | 1 | NA |
| Unique Species Name C | 01 | NULL |
Accepted values are: 0, 1, 01, 10, NA and NULL
- Attention: if typing 01 in a spreadsheet software, make sure it does not turn into a 1 (due to automatic number formatting); alternatively, you may type 10 instead, as the Not a Key id tool will not differentiate between the two formats.
Click on releases and you will find a set of compressed files (.zip and .tar.xz) under 'assets'. Download the compressed file corresponding to your system (Linux.tar.xz, macOS.tar.xz or Windows.zip), uncompress it and run the executable of choice (key_database_manager for the graphical application, ta_key_database_manager for the terminal application).
Install the requirements:
python3 -m pip install -r requirements.txt
- if you are on windows you'll also need to install
windows-cursesfor the terminal application to work, andpywin32if you wish to use PyInstaller.
To run the GUI Application:
python3 key_database_manager.py
To run the Terminal Application:
python3 ta_key_database_manager.py
Special thanks to Lyric Bartholomay, Chris Stone, Andrew Mackay and Corrado Cara for supporting the project and providing feedback.
Thanks to the Midwest Center of Excellence for Vector-Borne Disease for providing financial support for the Not a Key project.