This plugin mirrors the default "Import > Network from Table (Text/MS Excel)" functionality, but with some important extensions. The most important extension is the ability to save the settings used to import a given data table for future reuse with either the same or similar data tables. This greatly reduces the time spent to import similar data files, while still retaining the ease and flexibility of making changes through a graphical user interface. Another important distinction is the increased control over the Edge interaction composition, with better feedback when a poorly chosen Edge interaction value would lead to attribute values being overwritten. This plugin also allows you to assign source node and target node attributes separately from the same dialog (and also save these as part of the settings), further reducing the number of manual steps involved in importing networks from data tables.
Benefits over the standard table import functionality include:
* Savable configuration templates to reuse the same settings in future imports.
* Assign separate Source & Target Node attributes directly from the same dialog
* Better control over Edge interaction to prevent data loss
- Warns when a poorly chosen Edge interaction led to data loss in import.
- Option to use generated unique incremental values as Edge interaction to prevent data loss.
- Option to compose Edge interaction from all selected Edge attributes to prevent data loss, while retaining externally reconstructable Edge interactions to facilitate external lookup.
* Selected options are not lost when table headers change.
* No need to manually refresh the table preview.
* Ability to directly apply a selected layout
* API to support automated/batchwise generation of network figures given the import settings template, the network csv file and a VizMapper stylesheet.
This plugin uses the Jackson (<http://jackson.codehaus.org/>) library for JSON (de-)serialization and OpenCSV (<http://opencsv.sourceforge.net/>) for parsing delimited files.
