The JSpecView Project: an Open Source Java viewer and converter for JCAMP-DX, and XML spectral data files

The JSpecView Open Source project began with the intention of providing both a teaching and research tool for the display of JCAMP-DX spectra. The development of the Java source code commenced under license in 2001 and was released as Open Source in March 2006. The scope was then broadened to take advantage of the XML initiative in Chemistry and routines to read and write AnIML and CMLspect documents were added. JSpecView has the ability to display the full range of JCAMP-DX formats and protocols and to display multiple spectra simultaneously. As an aid for the interpretation of spectra it was found useful to offer routines such that if any part of the spectral display is clicked, that region can be highlighted and the (x, y) coordinates returned. This is conveniently handled using calls from JavaScript and the feedback results can be used to initiate links to other applets like Jmol, to generate a peak table, or even to load audio clips providing helpful hints. Whilst the current user base is still small, there are a number of sites that already feature the applet. A tutorial video showing how to examine NMR spectra using JSpecView has appeared on YouTube and was formatted for replay on iPods and it has been incorporated into a chemistry search engine.