Simple Data visualization tools (User-generated reports)
In this section, I will explore some simple social network analysis tool like LinkedInmaps and Wolfram Alpha. They have in-built algorithms that can quickly visualize your social networks .
1. LinkedInMaps
Follow these 3 easy steps to visualize your professional network
Step 1: Go to http://inmaps.linkedinlabs.com/network and visualize your graph.
Step 2: Label the colour-coded clusters to describe your relationship with these people.
How do you know them? What do same coloured nodes have in common? I used LinkedIn for my recruiter job and I have many distinct IT contacts such as QA engineers to other IT recruiters.
Step 3: Analyze and Share your network
Which clusters are larger and which ones are quite smal? For my graph, I realized that I have a very large connected IT network with multiple clusters. I also didn't know that I have many mutual contacts with some central connections. Unfortunately, I don't have significant UBC clusters since I have many random UBC nodes that are not connected between each other. Maybe it is time for me to get back on LinkedIn and add more connections to this underrepresented area.
Step 1: Go to http://inmaps.linkedinlabs.com/network and visualize your graph.
Step 2: Label the colour-coded clusters to describe your relationship with these people.
How do you know them? What do same coloured nodes have in common? I used LinkedIn for my recruiter job and I have many distinct IT contacts such as QA engineers to other IT recruiters.
Step 3: Analyze and Share your network
Which clusters are larger and which ones are quite smal? For my graph, I realized that I have a very large connected IT network with multiple clusters. I also didn't know that I have many mutual contacts with some central connections. Unfortunately, I don't have significant UBC clusters since I have many random UBC nodes that are not connected between each other. Maybe it is time for me to get back on LinkedIn and add more connections to this underrepresented area.
2. Wofram Alpha
1. Go to Wolfram Alpha - https://www.facebook.com/OfficialWolframAlpha/app_316919218403687 and run your report
Below you can see see how my Facebook network looks like according to Wolfram Alpha. I could see some separate clusters such as my UBC friends, cousins, and friends from high school and Europe. The main advantage with Wolfram Alpha is that is visualizes your network very quick according to its own algorithm. However, I had problems with defining clusters in my UBC networks since nodes are often overlapping . Also, you can't do additional data analysis (or you have to pay for it) like in Gephi
Below you can see see how my Facebook network looks like according to Wolfram Alpha. I could see some separate clusters such as my UBC friends, cousins, and friends from high school and Europe. The main advantage with Wolfram Alpha is that is visualizes your network very quick according to its own algorithm. However, I had problems with defining clusters in my UBC networks since nodes are often overlapping . Also, you can't do additional data analysis (or you have to pay for it) like in Gephi
Social groups
Also, Wolfram Alpha showed some interesting social groups that are classified according to sociological definitions. Social insiders are people that we have many friends in common with, while with social outsiders
I have less than 2 common friends. Social connectors are bridges between clusters, or people who connect various groups of my friends and they are high in "betweenness centrality"
Social gateways are people who have many friends that I don't know, while social neighbours have a small number of friends that are out of my network.
Source: http://blog.wolframalpha.com/2013/01/23/introducing-expanded-personal-analytics-for-facebook/
I have less than 2 common friends. Social connectors are bridges between clusters, or people who connect various groups of my friends and they are high in "betweenness centrality"
Social gateways are people who have many friends that I don't know, while social neighbours have a small number of friends that are out of my network.
Source: http://blog.wolframalpha.com/2013/01/23/introducing-expanded-personal-analytics-for-facebook/
Other tools and Possibilities
Simple
Check out other cool social network graph visualization tools:
http://adherence-solutions.com/social-media/facebook-visualization-2034/
Netlytic is an example of cloud based tool where you can play around with some basic social network parameters http://netlytic.org/index.php?do_public&fid=558
More to Most Advanced
Social Network Image Animator- open source package for visualizing longitudinal social netwok data
NetworkX-free, extensive functionality, programming oriented
NodeXL- a free social network analytics program that is integrated with Excel, Windows only
Pajek- free program to analyze social networks, available for Windows only
UCINet- extensive sociology focused, but costs money and Windows onlyNetminer- exploratory analysis and visualization of network data
SNA package for R- free open sources, statistics and programming based http://sna.stanford.edu/rlabs.php
OTHER Things you can do with Social Network Analysis:
I wanted to post about other things that one can do with social network analysis
Most of these things are currently done by Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google!
Check out other cool social network graph visualization tools:
http://adherence-solutions.com/social-media/facebook-visualization-2034/
Netlytic is an example of cloud based tool where you can play around with some basic social network parameters http://netlytic.org/index.php?do_public&fid=558
More to Most Advanced
Social Network Image Animator- open source package for visualizing longitudinal social netwok data
NetworkX-free, extensive functionality, programming oriented
NodeXL- a free social network analytics program that is integrated with Excel, Windows only
Pajek- free program to analyze social networks, available for Windows only
UCINet- extensive sociology focused, but costs money and Windows onlyNetminer- exploratory analysis and visualization of network data
SNA package for R- free open sources, statistics and programming based http://sna.stanford.edu/rlabs.php
OTHER Things you can do with Social Network Analysis:
I wanted to post about other things that one can do with social network analysis
- Analyze Dynamic networks that change over time
- Link prediction: determine future links
- Content Networks Analysis (Multimedia Information Network and Text Mining)
- Information diffusion and opinion formation in social networks (shortest path algorithms)
- Strategic network formation over time
- Social tagging, page-rank process Crowdsourcing, enhancing product offerings
- Transfer learning knowledge, Privacy-preserving data mining
- Social Influence Analysis, Node classification (missing data)
Most of these things are currently done by Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google!