Difference between revisions of "Tools:Visualization"
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Although not strictly for forensic purposes, '''visualization tools''' such as the ones discussed here can be very useful for visualizing large data sets. As forensic practitioners need to process more and more data, it is likely that some of the techniques implemented by these tools will need to be adopted. | Although not strictly for forensic purposes, '''visualization tools''' such as the ones discussed here can be very useful for visualizing large data sets. As forensic practitioners need to process more and more data, it is likely that some of the techniques implemented by these tools will need to be adopted. | ||
| − | == | + | ==Programming Languages and Developer Toolkits== |
| − | + | If you are building forensic tools, you probably want to start with one of these: | |
| − | + | ; Java and Swing | |
| − | + | : Advantage: Portable and lots of good documentation out there. | |
| − | + | : Disadvantage: Programs are a bit verbose, and only offers about 1/2 the performance of C | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ; Python with tkinter | |
| − | + | : Advantage: Portable | |
| − | + | : Disadvantage: Python is one of the slowest modern languages around. | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ; Python with wxWidgets | |
| − | + | : Advantage: Portable and a better development environment than tkiner | |
| − | + | : Disadvantage: wxWidgets is not installed by default, so you'll need to get it installed. Not as well documented as Tkinter | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ; [http://processing.org processing.org] | |
| − | + | : Advantage: Programming language specifically developed for visualization; compiles to java byte code | |
| + | : Disadvantage: Very oddball | ||
| + | |||
| + | ; JavaFX - Java's version of Flash | ||
| − | ===Graph | + | ; Flash |
| + | |||
| + | == Applications == | ||
| + | Most of these are scriptable. | ||
| + | ===Open Source=== | ||
| + | ====Data Plotting==== | ||
| + | * http://ploticus.sourceforge.net | ||
| + | * http://www.gnuplot.info/ | ||
| + | ====Graph and Network Visualization==== | ||
* [http://www.graphviz.org/ Graphviz] - Originally developed by the [http://public.research.att.com/areas/visualization/ AT&T Information Visualization Gorup], designed for drawing connected graphs of nodes and edges. Neato is a similar system but does layout based on a spring model. Can produce output as [[PostScript]], [[PNG]], [[GIF]], or as an annotated graph file with the locations of all of the objects — ideal for drawing in a GUI. Runs from the command line on [[Unix]], [[Windows]] and [[Mac]], although there is also a [http://www.pixelglow.com/graphviz/ MacOS GUI version]. | * [http://www.graphviz.org/ Graphviz] - Originally developed by the [http://public.research.att.com/areas/visualization/ AT&T Information Visualization Gorup], designed for drawing connected graphs of nodes and edges. Neato is a similar system but does layout based on a spring model. Can produce output as [[PostScript]], [[PNG]], [[GIF]], or as an annotated graph file with the locations of all of the objects — ideal for drawing in a GUI. Runs from the command line on [[Unix]], [[Windows]] and [[Mac]], although there is also a [http://www.pixelglow.com/graphviz/ MacOS GUI version]. | ||
* [http://graphexploration.cond.org/ Guess: The Graph Exploration System] - Originally developed at HP, this is a large Jython/Java-based system that you can use for building your own applications. Distributed under GPL. | * [http://graphexploration.cond.org/ Guess: The Graph Exploration System] - Originally developed at HP, this is a large Jython/Java-based system that you can use for building your own applications. Distributed under GPL. | ||
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* [http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/krack/krackplot.shtml Krackplot] - "KrackPlot is a program for network visualization designed for social network analysts." | * [http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/krack/krackplot.shtml Krackplot] - "KrackPlot is a program for network visualization designed for social network analysts." | ||
* [http://bioinformatics.icmb.utexas.edu/lgl/ Large Graph Layout (LGL)] - A bioinformatics system from University of Texas. They really mean Large. | * [http://bioinformatics.icmb.utexas.edu/lgl/ Large Graph Layout (LGL)] - A bioinformatics system from University of Texas. They really mean Large. | ||
| − | * [http://www. | + | * [http://www.sfu.ca/~richards/Multinet/Pages/multinet.htm MultiNet] - A data analysis package for drawing conventional data and graph data. |
* [http://www.analytictech.com/netdraw.htm NetDraw] - "a free program written by Steve Borgatti for visualizing both 1-mode and 2-mode social network data." | * [http://www.analytictech.com/netdraw.htm NetDraw] - "a free program written by Steve Borgatti for visualizing both 1-mode and 2-mode social network data." | ||
* [http://web.mit.edu/bshi/Public/nv2d/ NetVis 2D] - Another graph visualization and layout tool written in Java. | * [http://web.mit.edu/bshi/Public/nv2d/ NetVis 2D] - Another graph visualization and layout tool written in Java. | ||
| + | * [http://www.opendx.org/ OpenDX] - Based on [[IBM]]'s Visualization Data Explorer, runs on [[Unix]]/X11/Motif. | ||
* [http://vlado.fmf.uni-lj.si/pub/networks/pajek/ Pajek] - Windows program for drawing large networks. | * [http://vlado.fmf.uni-lj.si/pub/networks/pajek/ Pajek] - Windows program for drawing large networks. | ||
* [http://sourceforge.net/projects/sonia/ Social Network Image Animator (SoNIA)] - Originally developed at Stanford. Written in Java. Makes movies. | * [http://sourceforge.net/projects/sonia/ Social Network Image Animator (SoNIA)] - Originally developed at Stanford. Written in Java. Makes movies. | ||
* [http://www.informatik.uni-bremen.de/uDrawGraph/en/uDrawGraph/uDrawGraph.html uDrawGraph] | * [http://www.informatik.uni-bremen.de/uDrawGraph/en/uDrawGraph/uDrawGraph.html uDrawGraph] | ||
| − | * [http:// | + | * [http://wilma.sourceforge.net/ WilmaScope] - Real-time animations of dynamic graph structures. Written in Java. Sophisticated force model with strings and attraction. |
* [http://www.caida.org/tools/visualization/walrus/ Walrus] - A 3-d graph network exploration tool. Employs 3D hyperbolic displays and layout based on a user-supplied spanning tree. | * [http://www.caida.org/tools/visualization/walrus/ Walrus] - A 3-d graph network exploration tool. Employs 3D hyperbolic displays and layout based on a user-supplied spanning tree. | ||
| − | = | + | === Commercial Graphic Applications and Tools=== |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | == Commercial Tools == | + | |
* [http://www.aisee.com/ aiSee Graph Layout Software] - Supports 15 layout algorithms, recursive graph nesting, and easy printing. Runs on [[Windows]], [[Linux]], [[Solaris]], [[NetBSD]], and [[MacOS]]. 30-day trial and free registered versions available. Academic pricing available. | * [http://www.aisee.com/ aiSee Graph Layout Software] - Supports 15 layout algorithms, recursive graph nesting, and easy printing. Runs on [[Windows]], [[Linux]], [[Solaris]], [[NetBSD]], and [[MacOS]]. 30-day trial and free registered versions available. Academic pricing available. | ||
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* [http://www.openviz.com/ OpenViz] and [http://www.powerviz.com/ PowerViz] - Both from Advanced Visual Systems, super high-end visualization toolkits. $$$$ | * [http://www.openviz.com/ OpenViz] and [http://www.powerviz.com/ PowerViz] - Both from Advanced Visual Systems, super high-end visualization toolkits. $$$$ | ||
* [http://www.tomsawyer.com/ Tom Sawyer Software] Analysis, Visualizaiton, and Layout programs. - Heavy support for drawing graphs. Beautiful gallery. ActiveX, Java, C++ and .NET editions. | * [http://www.tomsawyer.com/ Tom Sawyer Software] Analysis, Visualizaiton, and Layout programs. - Heavy support for drawing graphs. Beautiful gallery. ActiveX, Java, C++ and .NET editions. | ||
| − | * [http://www.netminer.com/ NetMiner] - | + | * [http://www.netminer.com/ NetMiner] - A comprehensive tool for Social Network Analysis. Runs on Windows, with a Linux version under development. $35 for "Express" student version, $250 for "Professional" student version, $950 for "Normal" "Professional" version. |
* [http://www.analytictech.com/ucinet.htm UCINET] - A comprehensive package for the analysis of social network data as well as other 1-mode and 2-mode data. | * [http://www.analytictech.com/ucinet.htm UCINET] - A comprehensive package for the analysis of social network data as well as other 1-mode and 2-mode data. | ||
| + | * [http://www.clarifiednetworks.com/logster Logster] - an ultra-easy software tool to visualize Apache-style logs on a world map. | ||
| + | * [http://www.clarifiednetworks.com/Clarified%20Analyzer Clarified Analyzer] - Visualizes Network Traffic and allows to drill down from visualizations to the packet level. | ||
| − | = | + | == Visualization Toolkits and Libraries == |
| + | ===C/C++=== | ||
| + | * [http://public.kitware.com/VTK/ The Visualization Toolkit] - C++ multi-platform with interfaces available for Tcl/Tk, Java and Python. Professional support provided by [http://www.kitware.com/ Kitware]. | ||
| + | * [http://kdirstat.sourceforge.net/ KDirStat], an open source implementation of [http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/treemap-history/index.shtml Treemaps] written in C. (Treemaps are a visualization technique developed at the University of Maryland for visualizing large amounts of multi-dimensional data.) You can find a copy of it in [http://www.derlien.com/ Disk Inventory X] and | ||
| + | ===Java=== | ||
| + | * [http://csbi.sourceforge.net/index.html Graph Interface Library (GINY)] - Java | ||
| + | * [http://hypergraph.sourceforge.net/ HyperGraph] - Hyperbolic trees, in Java. Check out the home page. Try clicking on the logo... | ||
| + | * [http://ivtk.sourceforge.net/ InfoViz Toolkit] - Java, originally developed at [[INRA]]. | ||
| + | * [https://jdigraph.dev.java.net/ Jdigrah] - Java Directed Graphs. | ||
| + | * [http://jgrapht.sourceforge.net/ JGraphT] - A Java visualization kit designed to be simple and extensible. | ||
| + | * [http://prefuse.sourceforge.net/ Perfuse] - A Java-based toolkit for building interactive information visualization applications | ||
| + | * [http://www.ssec.wisc.edu/~billh/visad.html#intro VisAD] - A Java component library for interactive and collaborative visualization. | ||
| + | * [http://www.softwaresecretweapons.com/jspwiki/Wiki.jsp?page=LinguineMaps Linguine Maps] - An open-source Java-based system for visualizing software call maps. | ||
| + | * [http://zvtm.sourceforge.net/index.html Zoomable Visual Transformation Machine] - Java. Originally started at Xerox Research Europe. | ||
| + | * [http://openmap.bbn.com/ OpenMap] A Java-based Geographical Information System framework, from [[BBN]]. | ||
| − | + | ===Unclassified=== | |
| − | + | * [http://gravisto.fim.uni-passau.de/ Gravisto: Graph Visualization Toolkit] - An editor and toolkit for developing graph visualization algorithms. | |
| − | + | * [http://www.gnu.frb.br:8080/rox Rox Graph Theory Framework] - An open-source plug-in framework for graph theory visualization. | |
| − | + | * [http://touchgraph.sourceforge.net/ TouchGraph] - Library for building graph-based interfaces. | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
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| − | + | ||
| − | + | ==Journals and Conferences== | |
| + | * [http://www.palgrave-journals.com/ivs/index.html Information Visualization Journal] | ||
| + | * [http://rw4.cs.uni-sb.de/~diehl/softvis/seminar/index.php?goto=seminar ACM Symposium on Software Visualization] | ||
| + | ==Research Groups== | ||
| + | ===Berkeley=== | ||
| + | * [http://bailando.sims.berkeley.edu/infovis.html Bailando Visualization] | ||
| + | * [http://vis.berkeley.edu/ Berkeley Visualization Lab] | ||
| + | ===Brown=== | ||
| + | * [http://www.cs.brown.edu/people/rt/gd.html Roberto Tamassia's resources on Graph Drawing] | ||
| + | ===Stanford=== | ||
| + | * [http://window.stanford.edu/projects/rivet/ Rivet Project] (Visualization complex systems) | ||
| + | ===UNM=== | ||
| + | * [http://www.msi.umn.edu/user_support/scivis/scivis-list.html Scientific Visualization at the Supercomputing Institute] | ||
| + | ===Wattenberg=== | ||
| + | * [http://www.bewitched.com/ Bewitched], a one-man research group. | ||
| + | ==See Also== | ||
| + | * [http://www-static.cc.gatech.edu/gvu/ii/resources/infovis.html GVU's Information Visualization Resources link farm] | ||
| + | * [http://directory.google.com/Top/Science/Math/Combinatorics/Software/Graph_Drawing/ Google Directory of Graph Drawing Software] | ||
| + | * [http://directory.fsf.org/science/visual/ GNU Free Software directory of scientific visualization software] | ||
| + | * [http://www.manageability.org/blog/stuff/open-source-graph-network-visualization-in-java/view Open Source Graph Network Visualization in Java] | ||
| + | * [http://www.insna.org/INSNA/soft_inf.html INSNA's web page of Computer Programs for Social Network Analysis] | ||
Revision as of 21:56, 3 September 2009
Although not strictly for forensic purposes, visualization tools such as the ones discussed here can be very useful for visualizing large data sets. As forensic practitioners need to process more and more data, it is likely that some of the techniques implemented by these tools will need to be adopted.
Contents |
Programming Languages and Developer Toolkits
If you are building forensic tools, you probably want to start with one of these:
- Java and Swing
- Advantage: Portable and lots of good documentation out there.
- Disadvantage: Programs are a bit verbose, and only offers about 1/2 the performance of C
- Python with tkinter
- Advantage: Portable
- Disadvantage: Python is one of the slowest modern languages around.
- Python with wxWidgets
- Advantage: Portable and a better development environment than tkiner
- Disadvantage: wxWidgets is not installed by default, so you'll need to get it installed. Not as well documented as Tkinter
- processing.org
- Advantage: Programming language specifically developed for visualization; compiles to java byte code
- Disadvantage: Very oddball
- JavaFX - Java's version of Flash
- Flash
Applications
Most of these are scriptable.
Open Source
Data Plotting
Graph and Network Visualization
- Graphviz - Originally developed by the AT&T Information Visualization Gorup, designed for drawing connected graphs of nodes and edges. Neato is a similar system but does layout based on a spring model. Can produce output as PostScript, PNG, GIF, or as an annotated graph file with the locations of all of the objects — ideal for drawing in a GUI. Runs from the command line on Unix, Windows and Mac, although there is also a MacOS GUI version.
- Guess: The Graph Exploration System - Originally developed at HP, this is a large Jython/Java-based system that you can use for building your own applications. Distributed under GPL.
- InfoVis Cyberinfrastructure - Another graph drawing system written in Java.
- Java Universal Network/Graph Framework (JUNG) - Graphing, data mining, social network analysis, and other stuff.
- Krackplot - "KrackPlot is a program for network visualization designed for social network analysts."
- Large Graph Layout (LGL) - A bioinformatics system from University of Texas. They really mean Large.
- MultiNet - A data analysis package for drawing conventional data and graph data.
- NetDraw - "a free program written by Steve Borgatti for visualizing both 1-mode and 2-mode social network data."
- NetVis 2D - Another graph visualization and layout tool written in Java.
- OpenDX - Based on IBM's Visualization Data Explorer, runs on Unix/X11/Motif.
- Pajek - Windows program for drawing large networks.
- Social Network Image Animator (SoNIA) - Originally developed at Stanford. Written in Java. Makes movies.
- uDrawGraph
- WilmaScope - Real-time animations of dynamic graph structures. Written in Java. Sophisticated force model with strings and attraction.
- Walrus - A 3-d graph network exploration tool. Employs 3D hyperbolic displays and layout based on a user-supplied spanning tree.
Commercial Graphic Applications and Tools
- aiSee Graph Layout Software - Supports 15 layout algorithms, recursive graph nesting, and easy printing. Runs on Windows, Linux, Solaris, NetBSD, and MacOS. 30-day trial and free registered versions available. Academic pricing available.
- Geomantics - Geographical, Visualization and Graphics software. Runs on Windows.
- Graphis 2D and 3D graphing software - Runs on Windows. Free 30-day evaluation copy available.
- OpenViz and PowerViz - Both from Advanced Visual Systems, super high-end visualization toolkits. $$$$
- Tom Sawyer Software Analysis, Visualizaiton, and Layout programs. - Heavy support for drawing graphs. Beautiful gallery. ActiveX, Java, C++ and .NET editions.
- NetMiner - A comprehensive tool for Social Network Analysis. Runs on Windows, with a Linux version under development. $35 for "Express" student version, $250 for "Professional" student version, $950 for "Normal" "Professional" version.
- UCINET - A comprehensive package for the analysis of social network data as well as other 1-mode and 2-mode data.
- Logster - an ultra-easy software tool to visualize Apache-style logs on a world map.
- Clarified Analyzer - Visualizes Network Traffic and allows to drill down from visualizations to the packet level.
Visualization Toolkits and Libraries
C/C++
- The Visualization Toolkit - C++ multi-platform with interfaces available for Tcl/Tk, Java and Python. Professional support provided by Kitware.
- KDirStat, an open source implementation of Treemaps written in C. (Treemaps are a visualization technique developed at the University of Maryland for visualizing large amounts of multi-dimensional data.) You can find a copy of it in Disk Inventory X and
Java
- Graph Interface Library (GINY) - Java
- HyperGraph - Hyperbolic trees, in Java. Check out the home page. Try clicking on the logo...
- InfoViz Toolkit - Java, originally developed at INRA.
- Jdigrah - Java Directed Graphs.
- JGraphT - A Java visualization kit designed to be simple and extensible.
- Perfuse - A Java-based toolkit for building interactive information visualization applications
- VisAD - A Java component library for interactive and collaborative visualization.
- Linguine Maps - An open-source Java-based system for visualizing software call maps.
- Zoomable Visual Transformation Machine - Java. Originally started at Xerox Research Europe.
- OpenMap A Java-based Geographical Information System framework, from BBN.
Unclassified
- Gravisto: Graph Visualization Toolkit - An editor and toolkit for developing graph visualization algorithms.
- Rox Graph Theory Framework - An open-source plug-in framework for graph theory visualization.
- TouchGraph - Library for building graph-based interfaces.
Journals and Conferences
Research Groups
Berkeley
Brown
Stanford
- Rivet Project (Visualization complex systems)
UNM
Wattenberg
- Bewitched, a one-man research group.
