Tracing trees: endings

Marking the end of a branch

Choose the ending type you want from the dropdown menu that is displayed on the Trace ribbon when Neurolucida is in Neuron tracing mode.
Right-click and select Ending or End Tree. The type of ending that is selected in the dropdown menu is applied.
- Ending: Neurolucida takes you back to the previous node (indicated by a flashing circle) to continue tracing.
- End Tree: You can continue tracing from any node; an "N" is displayed as you hover on a node.

Ending type	Description
	Normal End (N): this is the default.
	High End (H): Ending located at the top of the current section. Depending on the orientation of the sections, the process may continue into another section. Use the Z Meter to determine the Z value of the ending.
	Low End (L): Ending located at the bottom of the current section.
	Incomplete End (I): Use to label arbitrary endings, endings that disappear for unknown reasons, endings that should be audited later.
	Origin Ending (O): Indicates the origin of the tree and is used to indicate directionality. Use this setting if you have been tracing towards the cell body and find that your "ending" is actually the beginning of the process. Directionality is used to apply branch orders. See Directionality in Editing Trees for details.
	Midpoint Ending (M): Ending of a branch that has an indeterminate length at the time the ending is placed.

Select the tree (Trace>Edit>Select objects).
Hover over the ending until the letter E is displayed near the cursor.
Right-click and select Change ending type. Select the ending that you want to apply to the branch.

Go to Neuron tracing preferences:
- Click the cog icon in the Neurons section of the Trace ribbon
- Open neuron tracing preferences from File > Preferences > Tracing > Neurons
Check the box to show Ending labels.

Ending labels are represented by a letter (same color as the branch) that indicates their type: N, H, L, I, O, M.