Network Science with Python and NetworkX Quick Start Guide

Visualizing networks

Networks are often visualized by drawing a dot or circle for each node and a line for each edge, as in the following diagram:

Example network with five nodes

Looking at the network in this diagram, you might as yourself where to draw the nodes. The answer is wherever you want! (Although technically possible, it might be advisable to avoid hot surfaces, the mouths of large predatory animals, and/or important historical documents.) Because networks are meant to focus on structure and connectivity, there are many ways to draw the same network. Nodes can be drawn anywhere. Edges can be straight or squiggly, long or short. ...