[igraph] smooth interaction between igraph/R and networkx/python

[Bob Pap]

Dear all,

I have been exclusively working with igraph on R, where I have used a number of supplementary libraries (packages) for manipulating and presenting information processed by igraph.  I have come across the need to use code on python based on the networkx module.  I have successfully used write.graph and read.graph with an intermediate graph in graphML for going back and forth (incidentally, igraph is not able to read the gml and pajek graphs exported from networkx). 

However, a bit ahead I am going to have to do the back-and-forth between igraph/R and networkx/python for many graphs. Is anybody familiar with tricks to implement this in code?  Essentially igraph/R 'gives' a graphML to networkx/python, which then 'returns' a graphML to igraph/R.  I suppose some sort of wrapper is needed which I sense is available to work with C in basic datatypes. Maybe something creatively using - from igraph/R - the tricks within python to use both igraph/python and networkx/python alluded to by Tamás in a september exchange with Raphael Clifford?

Any ideas would be welcome.

Kind regards,

Bob