Graph layout adjustment strategies

Abstract

When adjusting a graph layout, it is often desirable to preserve various properties of the original graph in the adjusted view. Pertinent properties may include straightness of lines, graph topology, orthogonalities and proximities. A layout adjustment algorithm which can be used to create fisheye views of nested graphs is introduced. The SHriMP (SimpleHierarchicalMultiPerspective) visualization technique uses this algorithm to create fisheye views of nested graphs. This algorithm preserves straightness of lines and uniformly resizes nodes when requests for more screen space are made. In contrast to other layout adjustment algorithms, this algorithm has several variants to preserve additional selected properties of the original graph. These variants use different layout strategies to reposition nodes when the graph is distorted. The SHriMP visualization technique is demonstrated through its application to visualizing structures in large software systems.