Spatial Layouts

Learn about different types of spatial layout.

node link diagrams

characterise the topology of the network

node link diagrams why 1

show direct and indirect connections between nodes

node link diagrams why 2

finding all possible paths from one node to another

node link diagrams why 3

finding all adjacent nodes to a target node

node link diagrams why 4

finding central nodes that connect two sub-networks

node link diagrams why 5

identifying nodes that are not well connected

node link diagram design consideration 1

make good use of space

node link diagram design consideration 2

links determine proximity

node link diagram design consideration 3

avoid overlaps of nodes and edge crossings

node link diagram scale limitations

visual and computational complexity

adjacency matrix diagram

nodes are laid out along vertical and horizontal edges of a square region. links are indicated by colouring the cell at the intersection.

adjacency matrix diagram why 1

finding clusters - order of keys matters!

adjacency matrix diagram why 2

identifying symmetries

two types of adjacency matrix

undirected network (show half the matrix), directed network (show the full matrix)

hierarchical node link diagram why

clear identification of hierarchical levels showing parent child relationships

hierarchical node link diagram design considerations

general layout - readability of labels, space, emphasis of particular nodes

triangular horizontal layout

avoids overlap between nodes and edges and gives larger sub-trees more space

radial node-link diagram

can be more compact, but less implication of order and makes reading of text labels more difficult

indentation layout

clear identification of hierarchical levels and facilitates scanning of labels. more compact

dendrogram

all leaf nodes are aligned, easier identification

how can we add quantitative attributes to node link diagrams?

circle size to represent frequency or importance of nodes, line width to represent frequency or importance of edges