[aargh_aargh]

A random idea. Yesterday I opened The Gyllenhaal Experimet article on HN and noticed the chart that displays the tree of options and the number of people who took each path. It's the first chart here:

https://pudding.cool/2019/02/gyllenhaal/

(Does anyone know what this type of chart is called?)

In relation to this article, it could be useful to watch how many people take paths across the states. Tracking that doesn't necessitate a formal specification, but it helps. Then you could optimize common paths or eliminate unused states or transitions.

[ves]

It’s often called a sankey chart.

[aaronharnly]

Yes, what ves said. Read the Wikipedia article to see the first known Sankey chart (which actually predated Sankey), Minard’s famous diagram of Napoleon’s campaign in Russia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sankey_diagram