cytoscape.js

Cytoscape.js is a JavaScript library for working with graphs and networks. In this context, a graph is not a bar chart or pie chart but a structure made of nodes (individual points or entities) connected by edges (lines representing relationships). This kind of data shows up in many fields: social networks, biological pathways, transport maps, dependency trees, and organizational charts are all examples of graphs.

The library does two main things. First, it provides a data model for representing graph structures in your application, including ways to query, filter, and analyze the connections between nodes. Second, it includes an optional rendering engine that draws those graphs as interactive visuals in a web page, where users can zoom, pan, and click on elements. The rendering part is optional, so you can also use the library purely for analysis in a server-side environment.

Cytoscape.js was created at the University of Toronto and has been cited in academic journals focused on bioinformatics, meaning it has a history of use in scientific research. It comes with more than 70 extensions that add layouts, additional algorithms, and other behaviors.

Installing the library is a standard npm command. The README points to a separate documentation website for full usage details. A demo showing Tokyo railway stations as a network is included as a visual example of what the library produces.

The intended audience is developers who need to display or analyze relational data in a web application and want a library with both visualization and analysis capabilities built in.