Thread by @MesoSpim

The CompassLSM: an #opensource #mesoSPIM-inspired #lightsheet #Microscope excitation path that allows 3.5 um axial resolution over a 10 mm FOV using axially scanned lightsheet microscopy osapublishing.org/boe/fulltext.c…

https://twitter.com/adam_k_glaser/status/1443326268695478272

My main comment about this paper is about publication strategy and not science: I probably should not have called it #opensource: "CAD file available upon request" - it should be easier than that! Don't make it so hard for biologists to copy your work!

If you want your technology adopted, make adoption really, really easy - find a vendor for parts kits, provide the complete parts list, provide software, provide documentation - don't let users do a lot of the legwork. Lowering the barrier to entry is key.

This adds a lot of work - and full disclosure: The existing #mesoSPIM documentation could be much better. @openSPIM did a much better documentation for a less complex instrument (e.g. Video tutorials by @PetePitrone)

Of course, if you turn your technology into a product that is commercially available, that's totally fine as well - and also lowers the barrier. What I'm confused by is: Why only provide plans for 1/5 of a microscope and hope that a lot of biologists will adopt it?

There are a lot of non-engineering reasons why one might to choose to publish such a "fractional" microscope (team members moving on), but clearly, the #CompassSPIM team polished their figures etc. quite a bit - and thus might have had the time to include more

I just want to argue that the concept of "remixing" instrumentation modules is tricky: It's cool in principle but hard in practice for users - AFAIK there are no good interface standards (mechanical, optical, electrical) in microscopy

Also, the authors have an affiliation with a company called OpsiClear LLC - let's see what they come up with next
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