When computing distances between genomes or a PCA, it is possible to give weights to the
different gene clusters, emphasizing certain aspects.
As proposed by Snipen & Ussery (2010), we have implemented two types of weighting: The default
"shell" type means gene families occuring frequently in the genomes, denoted shell-genes, are
given large weight (close to 1) while those occurring rarely are given small weight (close to 0).
The opposite is the "cloud" type of weighting. Genes observed in a minority of the genomes are
referred to as cloud-genes. Presumeably, the "shell" weighting will give distances/PCA reflecting
a more long-term evolution, since emphasis is put on genes who have just barely diverged away from the
core. The "cloud" weighting emphasizes those gene clusters seen rarely. Genomes with similar
patterns among these genes may have common recent history. A "cloud" weighting typically gives
a more erratic or ‘noisy’ picture than the "shell" weighting.