How to keep a personal pixel practice log.
A total score tells you how far a set missed. A short manual log can help you decide what to change next. After five rounds, write down the total, the larger axis error, and one visible direction from the result overlay. There is no account, public ranking, or population benchmark: the useful comparison is you, on the same display, over several short sessions.
Absolute error and signed bias answer different questions
Pixactly's round score uses absolute error. If a target is 180px wide, both 170px and 190px are 10px away. Absolute error answers, “How far did I miss?” It is the right number for the score because either direction is still a miss.
In a manual log, you can give the difference a direction using
drawn size − target size. A positive width value means the
rectangle was too wide; a negative value means it was too narrow. For
height, positive means too tall and negative means too short. The
overlay shows which rectangle extends farther, while the axis error
gives you the size of the miss.
A worked five-round example
The values below are illustrative, not results from another player. They show why direction matters even when the total score looks clear.
| Round | Target | Drawn | Width bias | Height bias |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 40 × 25 | 45 × 23 | +5px | −2px |
| 2 | 80 × 65 | 78 × 72 | −2px | +7px |
| 3 | 135 × 110 | 143 × 105 | +8px | −5px |
| 4 | 210 × 165 | 218 × 160 | +8px | −5px |
| 5 | 300 × 260 | 309 × 252 | +9px | −8px |
| Average signed bias | +5.6px | −2.6px | ||
In this example, width usually overshoots by about 6px while height is about 3px short. The next useful instruction is not “try harder” or “make everything smaller.” It is narrower and more testable: reduce horizontal distance slightly while leaving the vertical guess alone.
Use a three-set calibration protocol
- Set one: establish a baseline. Draw honestly and do not correct a shape after seeing it. At the end, note the larger average miss and its signed direction.
- Set two: change one axis. If width was the larger miss, adjust width and leave height alone. If height was larger, do the opposite. A one-variable change is easier to evaluate than a general attempt to improve.
- Set three: check whether the bias moved. A lower total is welcome, but the more useful question is whether the signed bias moved toward zero without the other axis becoming worse.
Compare on the same display
A CSS pixel does not have one fixed physical size. Pixel density, browser zoom, available canvas space, and viewing distance all change how a target feels. Compare nearby sets on the same device and at the same browser zoom when you want the history to mean something.
Switching from a phone to a large monitor is still interesting, but it is a new context rather than a clean continuation of the same test. The log should treat those observations as a new context rather than a universal rating of visual ability.
What to write down
A useful manual entry can stay very small: date, device, total score, larger average axis error, visible direction, and the single change you plan to test next. Keep it in your own notes or spreadsheet if you want to compare sessions.
Pixactly itself stores only your personal best in the current browser; it does not create an account or public leaderboard. The privacy page describes analytics and consent controls separately.