← Back to home
Comparison · Analytics

arulesViz vs silx

A side-by-side editorial comparison of arulesViz and silx — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

arulesViz vs silx: at a glance

FeaturearulesVizsilx
SectorAnalyticsAnalytics
Velocity score0.05.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesassociation-rules, visualization, ggplot2, maintenance-modescientific-computing, data-visualization, synchrotron, qt
Last editorial update3d ago2h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is arulesViz?

arulesViz finished its move to ggplot2 and has been coasting on maintenance since.

arulesViz draws the association rules produced by arules — scatterplots, matrix and grouped-matrix views, rule graphs, and a Shiny explorer. The rendering foundation has been settled since 1.5.0 made ggplot2 the default engine for most plots. The two most recent releases contain no new capability: roxygen migration and deprecation catch-up in 1.5.3, and a partial-argument-match cleanup in 1.5.4 that landed the same week as the identical fix in sibling package seriation.

Read the full arulesViz trajectory →

What is silx?

silx settles into maintenance a release after its PySide6 migration

silx is in the quiet phase after a generational release. 3.1.1 is a single fix to FitWidget loading a fit function from file. The release before it, 3.1.0, was the first real feature work since the migration - asinh axis scaling, twilight colormaps, and dark-theme icons - and 3.0.1 was similarly small. The 3.0.0 cut that reset the Qt binding and Python floor still defines what the line is doing.

Read the full silx trajectory →

arulesViz vs silx: editorial side-by-side

A
arulesViz
ANALYTICS
0.0

arulesViz finished its move to ggplot2 and has been coasting on maintenance since.

◆ Current state

arulesViz draws the association rules produced by arules — scatterplots, matrix and grouped-matrix views, rule graphs, and a Shiny explorer. The rendering foundation has been settled since 1.5.0 made ggplot2 the default engine for most plots. The two most recent releases contain no new capability: roxygen migration and deprecation catch-up in 1.5.3, and a partial-argument-match cleanup in 1.5.4 that landed the same week as the identical fix in sibling package seriation.

◆ Where it's heading

The 2021 releases were a deliberate consolidation. 1.4-0 added ggplot2 engines and cut plotly_arules and the experimental iplots support out of the interface; 1.5.0 promoted ggplot2 to default and exposed the conversions to igraph and matrix so users could build their own views; 1.5-1 filled gaps in the graph and grouped-matrix methods. Since then the package tracks its dependencies rather than extending itself, which is a reasonable end state for a mature visualization layer.

◆ Prediction

Expect continued reactive releases keyed to ggplot2 and igraph deprecations, which have driven two of the last three updates. Nothing in these entries suggests new plot methods are planned.

S
silx
ANALYTICS
5.0

silx settles into maintenance a release after its PySide6 migration

◆ Current state

silx is in the quiet phase after a generational release. 3.1.1 is a single fix to FitWidget loading a fit function from file. The release before it, 3.1.0, was the first real feature work since the migration - asinh axis scaling, twilight colormaps, and dark-theme icons - and 3.0.1 was similarly small. The 3.0.0 cut that reset the Qt binding and Python floor still defines what the line is doing.

◆ Where it's heading

The cadence has slowed markedly since April, and the content has shifted from structural change to plotting and colormap refinement. That is the expected shape after a binding migration: downstream beamline code needs a stable target, so the project trades feature velocity for a quiet surface. The gap between 3.0.1 in May and 3.1.0 in August is the clearest signal of the deliberate slowdown.

◆ Prediction

Expect further point releases servicing the plotting and fitting widgets rather than another structural change, with feature work continuing to arrive in the 3.1.x minors rather than patches.

Alternatives to arulesViz and silx

Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either arulesViz or silx.

See all arulesViz alternatives → · See all silx alternatives →

Recent activity from arulesViz and silx

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 5h agosilxFitWidget fix for loading a fit function from file
  2. 9d agosilx3.1.0: asinh axis scaling, twilight colormaps, dark-theme icons
  3. 3mo agosilx3.0.1: silx view fails to disable HDF5 file locking
  4. 3mo agosilx3.0.0: PySide6 becomes the default Qt binding, Python 3.10 required
  5. 3mo agosilx3.0.0rc1: release candidate for the PySide6 migration
  6. 0y agoarulesVizarulesViz 1.5.4: partial argument matches, translucent NA color
  7. 1y agosilx2.2.2: plot axes limits, OpenGL axes and libhdf5 1.14 fixes
  8. 2y agoarulesVizarulesViz 1.5.3 moves docs to roxygen, updates deprecated calls
  9. 4y agoarulesVizarulesViz 1.5-1 extends graph and grouped-matrix plots
  10. 5y agoarulesVizarulesViz 1.5.0 makes ggplot2 the default plotting engine
  11. 5y agoarulesVizarulesViz 1.4-0 adds ggplot2 engines, drops plotly_arules and iplots
  12. 7y agoarulesVizarulesViz 1.3-3 cleans up the ruleExplorer interface

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between arulesViz and silx?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. silx is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 5.0 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is arulesViz better than silx?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. silx is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 5.0 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to arulesViz?

Top arulesViz alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "arulesViz alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/arulesviz-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to silx?

Top silx alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "silx alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/silx for the full list with editorial commentary on each.