SONIVIS User Manual v0.9

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This article is work in progress.



The following page provides an overview of using SONIVIS:Tool. This tool allows users to load, analyze, and visualize virtual information spaces.

Contents

Concept

SONIVIS:Tool is a Java-based open source software, which is based on [Eclipse Rich Client Platform] (RCP). Eclipse was developed proprietarily by IBM and published under an open source license in 2001. RCP enables the creation of generic applications with a native graphical user interface. It offers a simple dynamic component-based model to develop plug-ins that contains the functionality of the application. The metrics are calculated by [GNU R], an open source software environment for statistical computing and graphics. SONIVIS:Tool essentially follows the model-view-controller (MVC) pattern, that means data, functionality, and user interface are separated.

To enhance the usability of SONIVIS, two different perspectives are offered: the analysis and the manipulation perspective. Each perspective contains different views, which are predefined in their position and size. Following the Eclipse approach, these views can be organized based on the user's needs.

General

How to open a perspective?

Selection of perspective

There are two perspectives in the open source version and three perspectives in the binary version available. After the first start of SONIVIS, only one perspective - the analysis perspective - is visible. The other views have to be loaded for the first time.


  1. Choose "Window" in the main menu.
  2. Choose "Open Perspective"
  3. Click on the desired perspective.
  4. You can rearrange the sequence of all perspectives using drag-and-drop.


It is also possible to define your own perspective based on your requirements. The first step is to organize the different views as you want. Then save this new defined perspective with "Save Perspective As...". This new perspective is still available after a re-start of SONIVIS.

How to open a view?

Selection of view

A view is typically used to show specific information, provide selection boxes, or display properties of another active view. The position of each view is freely definable. There are only few restrictions on changing the layout of a specific view. Therefore, the usage of predefined perspectives is not obligatory. Users can change the layout of the pane depending on their specific requirements.


  1. Choose "Window" in the main menu.
  2. Choose "Show View"
  3. Click on the desired view.
  4. After the view has opened you can define its position per drag and drop.


A view can be closed or reduced in size. If you want to do this please use the buttons on the top right of each view.

Configuration

How to open the preferences?

Open Preference Page

In the Preference Page you can configure measures, connections and the term calculation.


  1. Choose Window -> Preferences in the main menu of the SONIVIS:Tool to open the preferences


How to configure a database connection?

Configure database/connector


How to select an infospace?

Selection of an infospace


  1. Define the database connection (How to configure a database connection?)
  2. Open the view InfoSpace Navigation (How to open a view?)
  3. Click on the desired infospace
  4. Wait until the name of the infospace is shown in the text field of this view


Notice: After choosing the desired infospace you probably have to wait a short time for the initialization of this infospace.



Extract

This article is work in progress.



For you to use SONIVIS we provide you with different extractors which help you import your data into SONIVIS for analysis. You will see which extractors are available in the extract wizard and every extractor will ask you for the data it needs to perform an extract process on your data.

To streamline the extraction process and ensure a step-by-step experience we encapsulated the extraction process in a wizard dialog box. You get to this dialog by clicking the "Extract" item in the corresponding menu.

<<insert screenshot here>>

How to extract your data?

You will see the extract wizard opening after clicking on the menu item.


Important things to note for the extraction process

Network

How to load a network?

How to zoom in or out in a network?

How to (de)select a node?

Measures

Notice: Currently the view required to show and export measures is called InfoSpace Properties. This name can/will be changed after the restructuring of the GUI planed in future.

How to activate measures?


How to load/display measures?

  1. Activate measures in the preference page
  2. Define the database connection
  3. Open the view InfoSpace Navigation and choose an infospace
  4. Open the view Network and load network
  5. Open the view InfoSpace Properties
  6. Enter entity for which the measures should be shown, either take for display
    • currentInfoSpace - get all measures that can be calculated for the infospace
    • currentGraph - get all measures for the currently loaded network
    • currentGraph.nodes - get all measures that are activated for the nodes of the network
    • currentGraph.edges - get all measures that are activated for the edges of the network (currently no measures implemented for edges)


How to show node measures?

Show measures for nodes


  1. Activate measures in the preference page (How to activate measures?)
  2. Define the database connection (How to configure a database connection?)
  3. Open the view InfoSpace Navigation (How to open a view?)
  4. Choose an infospace in the view InfoSpace Navigation (How to select an infospace?)
  5. Open the view Network and load network (How to load a network?)
  6. Open the view InfoSpace Properties and type currentGraph.nodes in the text field
  7. Push the button Show
  8. Now a table with all nodes (rows) and its measures (columns) are shown beneath the text field.


Notice: If you are not familiar with the SONIVIS:Tool we suggest to follow step by step as recommended. Here you find a preferred course of action, but it is also possible to switch some steps, e.g. you could do step 1, activate measures, after step 5.


How to export measures?

Possibilities to export measures

Before you can export the measures you have to load them. For a detailed description on how to display measures have a look at previous step: How to load/display measures?

To export (table of) measures you choose the button offered right next to the table with the name Export (beneath the Show-button).

Finally you can decide which export format you want. For implementing further export formats you should read Import_and_Export#Export.



Content Analysis

Here the social information space will be analyzed based on the given terms of the content elements. Between the following term types are differentiated:

  1. Content-based Terms: These are the terms of a content element.
  2. Link-based Terms: These are the links of a content element.
  3. Semantic-based Terms: These are the semantic information of a content element.

How to see the content of content elements and actors?

The content of a content element or the content an actor had added will be shown in the Term Table View. In this view the terms an author had added to or deleted from a content element are listed. You can manipulate the table. It is possible to filter terms, actors or content elements. In this case only the defined terms, actors or content elements will be shown in the table. Furthermore it is possible to group terms, actors and content elements. In this case the selected terms, actors or content elements will be summarized and the distinct elements per terms, actors or content elements will be counted.



How to cluster infospaceitems by the content?


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