Welcome to SEGV at Rowan University

WebGPS is a Real-Time interactive Web Visualization tool intended for use in conjuction with a user's default web browser. A web page is represented by a circle in the visualization with each link from that page represented as a smaller circle inside.

Launch WebGPS

Launch WebGPS Browser

There are several options for using WebGPS. The first option is to attach WebGPS to your default web browser by use of a proxy server. This requires a small amount of setup and has the disadvantage of opening each link in a new window or tab. To use this option click the "Launch WebGPS" link above, and follow the instructions below for setting up the proxy server.

The second option is to launch WebGPS with a supporting Java-based web browser. This browser gives more interaction with WebGPS, however it is a somewhat limited browser in comparison to Firefox or IE. This option requires no setup and can be launched using the "Launch WebGPS Browser" link above.

The third option uses the "Launch WebGPS" link, again. WebGPS is a very flexible application and, though its name implies it is for the Web, it is simple to implement a new application using the same visualization. By implementing only several small classes we've created a directory visualization tool. To use this tool, after launching WebGPS, go to Edit -> Options. In the Options window, you will find a dropdown menu labeled "Display". Click this menu and select the "Home" option. Restart WebGPS and your Home directory ("Documents and Settings/username" on Windows) will be displayed in the visualization. Clicking a file (designated by green nodes, by default) will open that file in its default application, while clicking a directory node will crawl deeper into that node. You can easily switch between web and directory visualization by changing the Display option and restarting WebGPS.

Lastly, by highlighting duplicate subtrees within the tree, we can use WebGPS' visualization to display a directed graph. We demonstrate this by implementing Rowan University's Computer Science degree requirements using the WebGPS visualization. Because of the way WebGPS is designed, we will also be able to add in other degrees, simply by adding new files into the path specified within the options. You can view the degree requirements visualization by again clicking the first "Launch WebGPS" link, above, going to Edit -> Options, and choosing the "Basic" option for Display. Restart WebGPS, and the Rowan University CS Degree Requirements visualization should display.


System Requirements :
Java 1.6 or above
OpenGL

Set up instructions for Proxy Server :

  1. Click the "Launch WebGPS" link above to launch WebGPS.
  2. Once it's loaded, click Edit -> Options
  3. Here you will see several settings, one of them being Proxy Port. This is the port WebGPS will use to communicate with your browser.
  4. You can change the Port if you wish, or leave it as default.
  5. Set your browser to use this port as its proxy. This process differs between browsers, but Firefox and Internet Explorer are explained below.
    NOTE : When WebGPS is not running, you must turn the proxy off in order to connect to the internet.

    Firefox
    1. In Windows : Tools->Options; Linux : Edit->Preferences
    2. Click the Advanced tab
    3. Click the Network sub-tab
    4. Click the Settings... button under Connection
    5. Choose the Manual Proxy Configuration and enter 127.0.0.1 into HTTP Proxy and the port you chose for WebGPS into it's respective Port field.
    6. Select OK and Firefox should begin to communicate with WebGPS
    7. Note : When not running WebGPS, simply switch to the option "No proxy"

    Internet Explorer
    1. Click Tools->Internet Options
    2. Navigate to the Connections Tab
    3. Click Add... to add a new Connection
    4. Choose "Connect to the network via broadband" and click Next
    5. Name the connection "WebGPS" and click Finish
    6. A window titled "WebGPS setings" should pop up
    7. Check the box that's labeled "Use a proxy server for this connection"
    8. For the Address enter 127.0.0.1, and for the Port enter the port from WebGPS
    9. Click OK
    10. Make sure WebGPS is set as Default, and make sure "Always dial my default connection" is chosen
    11. Click OK to close the window, and IE should now begin to communicate with WebGPS
    12. Note : When not running WebGPS, simply switch to the option "Never dial a connection"