Rivet is a visualization system for the study of complex computer
systems. Since computer systems analysis and visualization is an
unpredictable and iterative process, a key design goal of Rivet is to
support the rapid development of interactive visualizations capable of
visualizing large data sets. In this paper, we present Rivet's
architecture, focusing on its support for varied data sources,
interactivity, composition and user-defined data transformations. We
also describe the challenges of implementing this architecture
efficiently and flexibly. We conclude with several examples of
computer systems visualizations generated within Rivet, including
studies of parallel systems, superscalar processors, and mobile
network usage.
