Experimenting with Aesthetics-Based Graph Layout

Abstract

Many automatic graph layout algorithms have been implemented to display relational data in a graphical (usually node-arc) manner. The success of these algorithms is typically measured by their computational efficiency and the extent to which they conform to aesthetic criteria (for example, minimising the number of crossings, maximising symmetry). Little research has been performed on the usability aspects of such algorithms: do they produce graph drawings that make the embodied information easy to use and understand? Is the computational effort expended on conforming to the assumed aesthetic criteria justifiable with espect to better usability? This paper reports on usability studies to investigate automatic graph layout algorithms with respect to human use.KeywordsClass DiagramLayout AlgorithmGraph LayoutText DirectionFont TypeThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.