Linking to a visualization
A visualization of a network in VOSviewer Online can be shared by linking to the visualization.
Creating a link
Consider the network stored in the following VOSviewer JSON file:
https://app.vosviewer.com/data/QSS_SM_2020-2021_co-authorship_network.json
This is a link to a visualization of this network in VOSviewer Online:
https://app.vosviewer.com/?json=https://app.vosviewer.com/data/QSS_SM_2020-2021_co-authorship_network.json&scale=1.5&curved_links=false
Using this link, VOSviewer Online is launched, the above network is opened, and a visualization of the network is presented. In addition, the Scale slider on the View tab in the control panel is set to 1.5. The Curved links switch is set to false.
Instead of a VOSviewer JSON file, it is also possible to use a VOSviewer map and network file. Consider the network stored in the following map and network files:
https://app.vosviewer.com/data/QSS_SM_2020-2021_co-authorship_map.txt
https://app.vosviewer.com/data/QSS_SM_2020-2021_co-authorship_network.txt
The following link can be used to launch VOSviewer Online and to open and visualize this network:
https://app.vosviewer.com/?map=https://app.vosviewer.com/data/QSS_SM_2020-2021_co-authorship_map.txt&network=https://app.vosviewer.com/data/QSS_SM_2020-2021_co-authorship_network.txt&scale=1.5&curved_links=false
Using this link, the Scale slider is again set to 1.5 and the Curved links switch is again set to false.
The above links include the parameters json, map, network, scale, and curved_links. The full list of parameters supported by VOSviewer Online can be found below.
To simplify a link, a URL shortening service, such as Bitly or TinyURL, can be used.
Using Google Drive
It is often convenient to use a cloud storage service to create a link to a visualization. We consider the use of Google Drive, although alternatives such as Microsoft OneDrive and Dropbox can be used as well. The use of Google Drive requires a Google account. We focus on the use of a VOSviewer JSON file, but the use of a VOSviewer map and network file is possible as well.
The first step is to upload a JSON file to Google Drive and to get a link for sharing the file. To obtain a suitable link, select the Anyone with the link option, not the Restricted option. Also, select the Viewer option, not the Commenter or Editor option. The following link may for instance be obtained:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16rdPZ3Md3b3mbsIftRZRjEUM6kkFX2zy/view?usp=sharing
This is a link for viewing the JSON file in a web browser.
The second step is to convert this into a link for downloading the JSON file. In the case of the above link, the corresponding link for downloading the JSON file is:
https://drive.google.com/uc?id=16rdPZ3Md3b3mbsIftRZRjEUM6kkFX2zy
Hence, the link https://drive.google.com/file/d/XXX/view?usp=sharing is converted into the link https://drive.google.com/uc?id=XXX, where XXX denotes the identifier of the JSON file on Google Drive.
The final step is to create a link for launching VOSviewer Online and for opening and visualizing the network stored in the JSON file:
https://app.vosviewer.com/?json=https://drive.google.com/uc?id=16rdPZ3Md3b3mbsIftRZRjEUM6kkFX2zy
The above link includes only the parameter json. Additional parameters may be added. The full list of parameters supported by VOSviewer Online is presented below.
Instead of taking the above steps, it is also possible to use the share feature in the stand-alone version of VOSviewer. In addition to Google Drive, this feature also supports Microsoft OneDrive and Dropbox.
Parameters for opening a network
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| json | VOSviewer JSON file that is provided as input to VOSviewer Online. |
| map | VOSviewer map file that is provided as input to VOSviewer Online. |
| network | VOSviewer network file that is provided as input to VOSviewer Online. |
Parameters for creating or updating the layout and clustering of a network
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| attraction | Value of the Attraction parameter on the Update tab in the control panel. |
| repulsion | Value of the Repulsion parameter on the Update tab in the control panel. |
| largest_component | A network may consist of multiple components. When the layout of a network is created or updated, the network can be reduced to its largest component ('true') or the full network can be kept ('false'). |
| resolution | Value of the Resolution parameter on the Update tab in the control panel. |
| min_cluster_size | Value of the Minimum cluster size parameter on the Update tab in the control panel. |
| merge_small_clusters | Value of the Merge small clusters switch on the Update tab in the control panel ('true' or 'false'). |
Parameters for adjusting the visualization of a network
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| scale | Value of the Scale slider on the View tab in the control panel. |
| item_size | Value of the Size drop down list on the View tab in the control panel (1 for the first option, 2 for the second option, etc.). |
| item_color | Value of the Color drop down list on the View tab in the control panel (1 for the first option, 2 for the second option, etc.). |
| item_size_variation | Value of the Size variation slider for items on the View tab in the control panel. |
| max_label_length | Value of the Maximum label length parameter on the View tab in the control panel. |
| link_size_variation | Value of the Size variation slider for links on the View tab in the control panel. |
| min_link_strength | Value of the Minimum strength parameter on the View tab in the control panel. |
| max_n_links | Value of the Maximum links parameter on the View tab in the control panel. |
| curved_links | Value of the Curved links switch on the View tab in the control panel ('true' or 'false'). |
| score_colors | Value of the Score colors drop down list on the View tab in the control panel ('Viridis', 'Plasma', 'Rainbow', 'White-blue-purple', 'White-yellow-green-blue', 'White-yellow-orange-red', 'Coolwarm', or 'Spectral'). |
| min_score | Value of the Min. score parameter in the legend. |
| max_score | Value of the Max. score parameter in the legend. |
| zoom_level | Initial zoom level of the visualization in the main panel. The zoom level has a value of at least 1. |
| show_item | Item on which the visualization in the main panel will be zoomed in. The item is designated by its label. |
Miscellaneous parameters
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| show_info | When opening a network, show ('true') or do not show ('false') information about the visualization of the network. |
| simple_ui | Simple or normal user interface ('true' or 'false'). The use of the simple user interface is recommended when embedding a visualization in a webpage. |
| dark_ui | Dark or light user interface ('true' or 'false'). |