Generate a visual representation of a graph (graph theory)

Question

Given the following paths on a directed graph:

(A --> B --> C)

(C --> B)

(C --> A)

I want to find a way to generate a visual representation for this directed graph. Is there any available software that is capable of doing this?

Answer 1

You can use dot of the graphviz suite. Here's a simple example of the language.

digraph graphname {
     a -> b -> c;
     b -> d;
 }

Answer 2

You can do graphs like this using an Excel Scatter (XY) chart. Generally, the best way would be to:

1. Create an XY point for each node.
2. Create a series for each path.
3. Format the series with end points to indicate which direction the path represents.
4. Format everything else, so it doesn't look like an Excel chart.

The result could look something like this:

Answer 3

The R language is ideal for this, especially with large/changing datasets. Here's a simple guide.

You'll need an R development enviroment, I use revolution analytic's.