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Prepare netify data for network visualization

Source: R/net_plot_data.R
net_plot_data.Rd

net_plot_data processes a netify object and generates all necessary components for network visualization. This function handles layout computation, aesthetic parameter organization, and data structuring for subsequent plotting with ggplot2 or other visualization tools.

Usage

net_plot_data(netlet, plot_args = list())

Arguments

netlet

A netify object (class "netify") containing the network to be visualized. Must be a single-layer network (multilayer networks not currently supported).

plot_args

A list of plotting arguments controlling visualization appearance and behavior. Can include:

Layout parameters:

  • point_layout: Pre-computed node positions as a data.frame or list of data.frames (for longitudinal networks). If provided, overrides layout algorithm selection

  • layout: Character string specifying the igraph layout algorithm. Options: "nicely" (default), "fr" (Fruchterman-Reingold), "kk" (Kamada-Kawai), "circle", "star", "grid", "tree", "bipartite", and others. See get_node_layout for full list

  • static_actor_positions: Logical. If TRUE, maintains consistent node positions across time periods in longitudinal networks

  • which_static: Integer specifying which time period to use as the template for static positions

  • seed: Integer for reproducible random layouts

Display options:

  • remove_isolates: Logical. Remove unconnected nodes (default: TRUE)

  • add_edges: Logical. Include edges in visualization (default: TRUE)

  • curve_edges: Logical. Use curved edges instead of straight (default: FALSE)

  • add_points: Logical. Display nodes as points (default: TRUE)

  • add_text: Logical. Add text labels to nodes (default: FALSE)

  • add_label: Logical. Add boxed labels to nodes (default: FALSE)

Selective labeling:

  • select_text: Character vector of node names to label with text

  • select_label: Character vector of node names to label with boxes

Additional aesthetic parameters are processed by adjust_plot_args and gg_params.

Value

A list with three components for creating network visualizations:

  • plot_args: Processed plotting arguments with defaults applied and parameters validated. Includes all layout and display settings

  • ggnet_params: Organized aesthetic parameters for ggplot2 mapping. Contains separate specifications for nodes, edges, text, and labels with both static and dynamic (data-mapped) aesthetics

  • net_dfs: Data frames ready for plotting:

    • nodal_data: Node information including positions (x, y), attributes, and any additional variables

    • edge_data: Edge information including endpoint coordinates (x1, y1, x2, y2) and edge attributes

Details

This function serves as the data preparation layer for netify visualization, performing several operations:

Data validation:

  • Ensures the input is a valid netify object

  • Checks for single-layer networks (multilayer not supported)

  • Validates ego networks contain only one ego

Layout computation:

  • Generates node positions using specified algorithm if not provided

  • Calculates edge endpoint coordinates based on node positions

  • Handles both cross-sectional and longitudinal layouts

Data organization:

  • Merges layout information with network attributes

  • Processes plotting arguments and applies defaults

  • Organizes aesthetic parameters for ggplot2 compatibility

  • Removes isolates if requested

Output structure:

The returned data is structured for direct use with ggplot2 or can be further customized. The separation of layout, aesthetics, and data allows for flexible visualization workflows.

Note

This function is primarily designed for use with netify's plot method but can be called directly for custom visualization workflows.

For multilayer networks, use subset_netify to extract individual layers before visualization.

For ego networks with multiple egos, create separate visualizations and combine them using packages like patchwork.

Author

Cassy Dorff, Shahryar Minhas