Vizcept vs mshang Syntax Tree Generator

The Syntax Tree Generator at mshang.ca is a free web app, open source on GitHub since 2011, that turns labeled bracket notation into a tree image as you type. Vizcept's syntax tree generator works from the other end: you type the sentence, a language model analyses it, and code typesets the tree.

The real difference is who writes the brackets. On mshang you do; on Vizcept the model does, and you check its analysis.

Vizcept is our product. Every mshang detail here comes from the app page, its README and wiki on GitHub, checked on 24 October 2026.

Each point was checked against mshang's app page, README, wiki and source code on 24 October 2026.

1/ Start from the sentence, not the brackets

Type The novel was written by Kafka and say what you want shown; Vizcept writes the analysis and draws it. mshang's help text says "Use labelled bracket notation": the app draws the structure you give it and does not analyse sentences. That saves the bracket writing, and it also means you must check the model's analysis: it can attach a phrase differently from your textbook.

2/ Pick a framework instead of hand-writing bar levels

The Tree Style menu switches between traditional phrase structure (S, NP, VP), classic X-bar with specifiers and X' levels, and Minimalist trees with CP, TP and DP. On mshang an X-bar noun phrase such as the famous linguist of morphology from MIT is 142 characters of brackets you type and balance yourself.

3/ Download an editable SVG

Paid plans download the tree as SVG with real text, so you can change a label in Illustrator, Inkscape or Word. mshang's source saves only a PNG of its canvas; at default settings our wh-question tree below saved as a 222 × 287-pixel image.

4/ Copy LaTeX forest code

Paid plans copy the tree as forest code (with \usepackage[linguistics]{forest}) or as a labeled bracket string. Movement arrows are not included in the forest code; add them with \draw. mshang has no LaTeX export.

5/ Revise the tree in words

In the workspace you can write "move the PP under the VP" or "use DP instead of NP"; the structure is changed and the tree is typeset again, for 2 credits when signed in. On mshang you edit the brackets, which is instant and free if you are fluent in them.

We took two trees from Vizcept's syntax tree examples, generated on 25 September 2026 from a one-line request, and typed the same structure into mshang on 24 October 2026 with its default settings. Neither image was edited.

Wh-question: "What did you see?"

On Vizcept we typed: Parse tree for the question 'What did you see?' showing wh-movement from object position to Spec-CP with indexed trace t_i and subject-auxiliary inversion to C.

Vizcept: CP, TP and DP layers, two indexed traces and two dashed movement arrows, from the request above.

On mshang we typed these 90 characters:

[CP [DP_1 [D What]] [C' [C_2 did] [TP [DP [D you]] [T' [T t<2>] [VP [V see] [DP t<1>]]]]]]

mshang, default settings: the same structure, with color on and curved movement lines (open this tree on mshang.ca).

Passive: "The novel was written by Kafka."

Vizcept, from a request naming the sentence, NP-movement and the by-phrase.

On mshang, 99 characters:

[S [NP_1 [Det The] [N novel]] [VP [Aux was] [VP [V written] [NP t<1>] [PP [P by] [NP [N Kafka]]]]]]

mshang, default settings: the same structure with one curved movement line.

The trees match because the structure is the same. What differs is the work: on mshang you decide the analysis and type every bracket; on Vizcept you describe the analysis and check what comes back.

mshang is a single-purpose bracket renderer; Vizcept is a paid figure tool whose syntax trees are one of several code-typeset figure types. The table compares 12 features as of 24 October 2026.

Take a typical problem set: 10 sentences to draw as trees.

• mshang: $0. You write and balance about 90 to 150 characters of brackets per tree, and save each image from the browser.
• Vizcept: 10 trees × 2 credits = 20 credits. Sign-up and daily check-in credits can cover that over about a week, but free downloads are watermarked. Clean PNG, SVG and LaTeX code come with a pack ($19.90 for 150 credits, valid 365 days, so about 75 trees) or a plan ($14.90 a month for 300 credits).

If you can already write the brackets and only need a picture, mshang costs nothing. If writing the analysis is the hard part, or you need SVG or LaTeX for a paper or thesis, Vizcept saves the time you would spend on brackets.

• You already have the bracket string. It draws exactly what you type, live, so there is no model analysis to check. Our own tool guide sends people with a finished bracket string to bracket tools like it.
• You are learning to write trees yourself. Typing the brackets is the exercise, and the live preview shows each mistake as you make it.
• You want it free with no account. Everything works without signing up, and downloads carry no watermark.
• You work offline or need the code. The app can be downloaded as a .zip and runs from index.html; the source is MIT-licensed on GitHub.
• You share trees as links. The Link button puts the whole tree in the URL, handy for sending a tree to a classmate or instructor.
• Your sentence is in Chinese, Japanese or Korean. mshang draws any script your browser can show; Vizcept sends these to the image model, so characters need proofreading.

• Paste your old brackets. If the whole input is one labeled bracket tree, Vizcept draws it as written, without asking the model to re-analyse it. Triangles marked with ^ carry over.
• Rewrite movement tails. mshang marks the end of a movement as t<1>; Vizcept reads coindexed traces, so change it to t_1 and keep the _1 on the moved phrase. That one change turned the wh-question string above into the tree below.

Vizcept, drawing our mshang string as written after the trace edit; no model call.

• Know the limits. Right-to-left languages are not laid out right-to-left yet, and a sketch or photo of a tree is redrawn by the image model. How Vizcept draws figures explains what the code guarantees.