We introduce a mixed model for the Web graph that simultaneously describes the inlink and outlink distributions by taking into account the interconnection of the two processes. We derive an expression for the steady-state distribution of indegrees (outdegrees) among vertices with fixed outdegree (indegree) in terms of sums of beta functions. Experimentation on subsets of the real Web shows that the proposed distributions well reproduce the behavior of the observed data.

We consider an edge rewiring process that is widely used to model the dynamics of scale-free weblike networks. This process uses preferential attachment and operates on sparse multigraphs with n vertices and m edges. We prove that its mixing time is optimal and develop a framework that simplifies the calculation of graph properties in the steady state. The applicability of this framework is demonstrated by calculating the degree distribution, the number of self-loops, and the threshold for the appearance of the giant component.

Random graphs with given degrees are a natural next step in complexity beyond the Erdős–Rényi model, yet the degree constraint greatly complicates simulation and estimation. We use an extension of a combinatorial characterization due to Erdős and Gallai to develop a sequential algorithm for generating a random labeled graph with a given degree sequence. The algorithm is easy to implement and allows for surprisingly efficient sequential importance sampling. The resulting probabilities are easily computed on the fly, allowing the user to reweight estimators appropriately, in contrast to some ad hoc approaches that generate graphs with the desired degrees but with completely unknown probabilities. Applications are given, including simulating an ecological network and estimating the number of graphs with a given degree sequence.