A COMPUTER SOFTWARE FOR THE EDUCATION OF COMPLEX NETWORK ANALYSIS

Abstract

Complex network analysis is an attractive tool for capturing the self-organizing principles underlying the social, physical or biological communities. Several software are developed for either analyzing or generating complex networks, including the visualization utilities. We developed an open source software in Microsoft .NET platform for generating networks based on the most common models as Barabasi-Albert, Erdos-Renyi, Watts-Strogatz including the analyzing utilities defining the network like average separation, degree distribution, clustering coefficient etc. In contrast with the well-known software, this software aims to contribute the understanding of the underlying mechanisms of complex networks. It also forms a basis to further developments that should provide an extensive view to network construction. As an open source software, the opportunity of editing the core functions about network dynamics offer a pedagogical approach to learn more about self-organizing networks.