Check out this link at: http://netlib.bell-labs.com/cm/cs/pearls/sortanim.html It is from the Programming Pearls site. Gives some insight into the working of the algorithm. Check the behaviour of different algorithms on different inputs. However, it would be more helpful if we also have some control over the speed; this will help the visualization better!
Let me see if I can fix that recipe (ofcourse, I will start with the SortAnim.java provided at the site).