Split Panels & Previews

Sciorex supports a split-panel layout that displays a secondary viewer alongside the chat or editor. Open PDFs, previews, molecular structures, diagrams, and more — without leaving your workspace.

View Modes

Eleven view modes are available, each tailored to a specific file type or workflow.

Mode	Description	File Types / Input
Editor	Monaco code editor in the side panel	Any text file
PDF	PDF viewer with annotations, search, and thumbnails	.pdf
Markdown	Rendered Markdown preview with live updates	.md
HTML	Sandboxed HTML preview	.html
Image	Image viewer with zoom and pan	.png, .jpg, .gif, .svg, .webp
BibTeX	Formatted citation viewer	.bib
Molecule	3D molecular structure viewer	.pdb, .sdf, .mol, .xyz
Excalidraw	Whiteboard and drawing editor	.excalidraw, .excalidraw.json
Preview	Live browser preview with URL navigation	http(s):// URLs
Agentic	Multi-file diff review panel	Git diffs from AI changes
Normal	Close the split panel, return to standard chat view	—

INFO

When no file URL is provided, file-based modes open a file picker so you can select the file to display. The preview mode requires an HTTP(S) URL.

3D Molecular Viewer

View molecular structures in an interactive 3D panel.

Feature	Description
Supported formats	PDB, SDF, MOL, XYZ
Rendering styles	Ball-and-stick, space-filling, wireframe, cartoon (for proteins)
Controls	Rotate, zoom, pan with mouse; reset view button
Atom labels	Toggle element labels and residue names
Measurement	Distance, angle, and dihedral measurements between selected atoms

TIP

Researchers in chemistry, biology, and materials science can view crystal structures, protein conformations, and small molecules directly alongside their analysis code.

Excalidraw

A built-in whiteboard for freeform diagrams, sketches, and visual thinking.

• Drawing tools — Shapes, arrows, text, freehand drawing
• Collaboration-ready — Diagrams saved as .excalidraw files in your project
• Export — Export to PNG or SVG for inclusion in papers and presentations
• Library — Reusable component library for common diagram elements (flowcharts, architecture diagrams, UML)

Browser Preview

Live-preview web applications and HTML content directly in the split panel.

Feature	Description
URL navigation	Enter any URL or local dev server address
Playwright CDP sync	Synchronized browser session via Chrome DevTools Protocol
Auto-refresh	Reloads on file save for local dev servers
DevTools	Inspect elements and view console output inline

Dev Server Detection

Sciorex automatically detects running development servers on common ports.

Port	Typical Framework
3000	Next.js, Create React App, Express
4200	Angular CLI
5173	Vite
8080	Vue CLI, generic HTTP servers

TIP

When you start a dev server, Sciorex detects it and offers to open the preview panel automatically. No manual URL entry required.

Multi-File Diff

Review AI-generated code changes across multiple files in a structured diff view.

• File-by-file navigation — Step through changed files with a sidebar index
• Inline diff — Additions and deletions highlighted line-by-line
• Accept / Reject individual changes — Approve or discard changes per file or per hunk
• Full context — View surrounding unchanged code for each modification

WARNING

The agentic diff view is designed for reviewing changes proposed by AI agents. It appears automatically when an agent modifies multiple files and is not intended for general Git diff browsing.

Media Playback

Play video and audio files directly in the split panel.

Video

Format	Extension
MP4	.mp4
WebM	.webm
MKV	.mkv
MOV	.mov

Audio

Format	Extension
MP3	.mp3
WAV	.wav
FLAC	.flac

INFO

Media playback supports standard controls: play, pause, seek, volume, and playback speed adjustment. Useful for reviewing recorded presentations, data sonification, or multimedia datasets.

Markdown

The Markdown preview mode renders full GitHub-flavored Markdown with two additional capabilities.

Feature	Description
Mermaid diagrams	Render flowcharts, sequence diagrams, Gantt charts, and more from fenced mermaid code blocks
KaTeX math equations	Render inline ($...$) and display ($$...$$) math equations using KaTeX

TIP

Combine Mermaid and KaTeX in a single Markdown file to create rich technical documents with both diagrams and equations, previewed live as you type.

AI Integration

The sciorex_set_view_mode MCP tool allows AI agents to open and control split panels programmatically.

{
  "tool": "sciorex_set_view_mode",
  "parameters": {
    "viewMode": "pdf",
    "url": "file:///path/to/paper.pdf"
  }
}

Parameter	Type	Description
viewMode	string	One of the 11 view modes listed above
url	string (optional)	File path (file:///...) or HTTP URL. Omit to open a file picker.

INFO

AI agents use this tool to show you relevant files during a conversation. For example, when discussing a paper, the agent can open the PDF in the side panel so you can read along.

Related

• Chat Interface — Primary interaction panel alongside split views
• File Editor — The main code editor that shares the split layout
• LaTeX Editor — LaTeX editing with live PDF preview in the split panel
• PDF Viewer — Full PDF viewer with annotation support