aNETmation
aNETmation is a Java Applet exploring the use of animation to view the structure of large or highly-connected networks. The applet utilizes the Java Universal Network/Graph Framework (JUNG) libraries. It is a work in progress.
To get started, choose a type of random network generator. There are three types of generators used by aNETmation. They are as follows: the Barabasi Albert, Eppstein Power Law, and Erdos Renyi Generator. The appropriate parameters will be enabled when you select different generators. (Please use caution, there is still some parameter bounds checking which needs to be implemented.) When you are ready, click "Generate Network" to begin.
You can also select different graph layouts for the network at any time in this process. There are currently five types of layouts supported. They are as follows: the Circle, Fruchterman-Reingold, Self-Organizing Map, Kamada-Kawai, and Spring Layout.
If you want to zoom in or out, use the mouse wheel. Clicking and dragging on the network will also move it around in the viewer.
There are three simple visualization methods implemented currently in aNETmation. They are as follows: Random Edge, Random Walk, and Random Spider. Each visualization type takes a seed parameter. This indicates how many random network elements should be selected at the start of the visualization. For smaller graphs, one seed is sufficient. For larger graphs, you may want to increase the number of seeds.
The Random Edge visualization randomly selects several edges in the graph for highlighted display. Over time, these edges fade away are replaced by newly selected random edges. This gives a chance for edges buried in the network to become clearly visible for a period of time.
The Random Walk visualization randomly selects several nodes, and follows a random walk on those nodes. Over time, these paths fade away and are replaced by walks from newly selected random nodes. This allows gives a chance for paths obscured by the number of edges in the network to become clearly visible for a period of time.
The Random Spider visualization is similar to the random walk, except that it follows all paths from a selected set of nodes. This highlights some of the hidden network structure, especially if there are hubs present.
Once you have selected a visualization type, click "Begin Visualization" to trigger animation. It may be interesting to change the graph layout during the animation, as some animations work better with different layouts. Click "Pause Visualization" if you want to change the visualization method or parameters.