Using constraints to achieve stability in automatic graph layout algorithms

Abstract

Automatic layout algorithms are commonly used when displaying graphs on the screen because they provide a “nice” drawing of the graph without user intervention. There are, however, a couple of disadvantages to automatic layout. Without user intervention, an automatic layout algorithm is only capable of producing an aesthetically pleasing drawing of the graph. User- or application-specified layout constraints (often concerning the semantics of a graph) are difficult or impossible to specify. A second problem is that automatic layout algorithms seldom make use of information in the current layout when calculating the new layout. This can also be frustrating to the user because whenever a new layout is done, the user's orientation in the graph is lost.