Computers optimize scholarly activities in many ways. They speed up tasks and guarantee the production of better structured and more sustainable data. However, using computer-based methods adds complexity and requires more advanced knowledge. The AnonymClassic team decided to develop tools specifically for the project’s needs with easy interfaces operable with minimal instruction. The software spares project members extensive technical training, allowing them to focus on their already complex areas of investigation.

Each activity within the project has its own set of dedicated tools. First, two interfaces handle the collection and display of manuscripts' descriptive codicological, bibliographical, and literary data. The data collection interface guides the user through the entry of multiple features of each manuscript. Based on a schema designed by the project's principal investigator, the interface indicates which values apply to each feature. The descriptive data display interface helps survey and filter the entered data. Second, transcribing is subdivided into three steps: layout analysis, line detection, and text entry, each supported by a dedicated tool. The layout analysis tool serves to determine the elements of each page: images and text. The line detection tool divides each page’s facsimile into separate boxes, each defining a line. With the text entry tool, an editor types in the respective text. Third, two tools handle text analysis, namely text segmentation, which assists in dissecting the transcribed text into narrative units and cross-analysis of transcribed pages from different manuscripts to visualize similarities and variations.