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# Welcome to graph-tool's documentation!
`graph-tool` is an efficient Python module for manipulation and statistical
analysis of [graphs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graph#Mathematics) (a.k.a.
[networks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_theory)).
The {mod}`graph_tool` module provides a {class}`~graph_tool.Graph` class and
several algorithms that operate on it. The internals of this class, and of most
algorithms, are written in C++ for performance, using [template
metaprogramming](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template_metaprogramming) for
code specialization, and the [Boost Graph Library](http://www.boost.org).
`graph-tool` can be [orders of magnitude
faster](https://graph-tool.skewed.de/performance.html) than Python-only
alternatives, and therefore it is specially suited for large-scale network
analysis.
Besides superior performance, `graph-tool` contains the following set of
functionalities which are currently not available in most other comparable
packages:
1. Comprehensive framework for {ref}`inferential community detection
<inference-howto>`, build upon statistically principled approaches that avoid
overfitting and are interpretable. (See
[here](https://skewed.de/tiago/blog/modularity-harmful) and
{cite}`index-peixoto_descriptive_2023` for why you should avoid off-the-shelf
methods available in other software packages.)
2. Support for [OpenMP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenMP) shared memory
parallelism for several algorithms. See the {ref}`parallel algorithms
<parallel_algorithms>` section fore more information.
3. High-quality {ref}`network visualization <draw>`, both static and
interactive, supporting {ref}`animations <animation>` and {ref}`matplotlib
integration <matplotlib_sec>`.
4. {ref}`Filtered graphs <sec_graph_filtering>`, i.e. graphs where nodes and
edges are temporarily masked. These are first class citizens in the library,
and are accepted by every function. Due to the use of C++ template
metaprogramming, this functionality comes at no performance cost when
filtering is not being used.
5. Efficient and fully documented {ref}`binary format <sec_gt_format>` for
network files.
6. Integration with the [Netzschleuder](https://networks.skewed.de) network data
repository, enabling {data}`easy loading <graph_tool.collection.ns>` of
network data.
7. Support for writing custom {ref}`C++ extensions <cppextensions>`.
## Installing graph-tool
Detailed installation instructions for various platforms are available
[here](https://graph-tool.skewed.de/installation.html).
The easiest option is to use [conda](https://docs.conda.io):
```bash
conda create --name gt -c conda-forge graph-tool
conda activate gt
```
For HPC systems it is also straightforward to use {mod}`graph_tool` with
[Apptainer/Singularity](https://graph-tool.skewed.de/installation.html#installing-using-apptainer-n%C3%A9e-singularity).
## Getting started
Yous should read first the {ref}`quick start guide <quickstart>`, followed by
the various {ref}`cookbooks <demos>` and explore all the examples in various
{ref}`submodules <submodules>`. For commonly asked questions, read the {ref}`FAQ
<sec_faq>`.
## Asking questions and reporting bugs
If you have questions about using `graph-tool`, you are welcome to visit the
[discussion forum](https://forum.skewed.de/c/graph-tool/5).
If you encounter a problem, open an issue in the [git
repository](https://git.skewed.de/count0/graph-tool/-/issues).
Please don't forget to check if your question has been asked before, or if a
similar issue is open. When asking questions or reporting problems, it is
important to include:
1. Your exact `graph-tool` version.
2. Your operating system.
3. A **minimal working example** that shows the problem.
Item **3** above is **very important**! If you provide us only the part of the
code that you believe causes the problem, then it is not possible to understand
the context that may have contributed to it.
## How to use the documentation
Documentation is available in two forms: docstrings provided
with the code, and the full documentation available in
[the graph-tool homepage](http://graph-tool.skewed.de/doc).
We recommend exploring the docstrings using [IPython](http://ipython.scipy.org),
an advanced Python shell with TAB-completion and introspection capabilities.
The docstring examples assume that `graph_tool.all` has been imported as
`gt`:
```
>>> import graph_tool.all as gt
```
Code snippets are indicated by three greater-than signs:
```
>>> x = x + 1
```
Use the built-in `help` function to view a function's docstring:
```
>>> help(gt.Graph)
```
## Contents
```{toctree}
:maxdepth: 3
quickstart
parallel
demos/index
modules
gt_format
faq
```
## References
```{bibliography}
:keyprefix: index-
```
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