Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation

D 2024

Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation

ŠTĚPÁNEK, Adam; David KUŤÁK; Barbora KOZLÍKOVÁ a Jan BYŠKA

Základní údaje

Originální název

Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation

Autoři

ŠTĚPÁNEK, Adam ; David KUŤÁK; Barbora KOZLÍKOVÁ a Jan BYŠKA

Vydání

Flagstaff, Arizona, USA, IEEE Working Conference on Software Visualization (VISSOFT), od s. 12-23, 12 s. 2024

Nakladatel

IEEE

Další údaje

Jazyk

angličtina

Typ výsledku

Stať ve sborníku

Obor

10200 1.2 Computer and information sciences

Stát vydavatele

Spojené státy

Utajení

není předmětem státního či obchodního tajemství

Forma vydání

elektronická verze "online"

Odkazy

URL

Označené pro přenos do RIV

Ano

Kód RIV

RIV/00216224:14330/24:00136550

Organizační jednotka

Fakulta informatiky

ISBN

979-8-3315-2848-5

ISSN

Klíčová slova anglicky

software visualization;software documentation;API reference;code navigation;interactive diagram

Štítky

API reference, code navigation, core_B, firank_B, interactive diagram, software documentation, software visualization

Příznaky

Mezinárodní význam, Recenzováno

Změněno: 4. 4. 2025 11:59, RNDr. Pavel Šmerk, Ph.D.

Anotace

V originále

Getting acquainted with a large codebase can be a daunting task for software developers, both new and seasoned. The description of a codebase and its development should be the purpose of its documentation. However, software documentation, if it exists at all, is usually textual and accompanied only by simple static diagrams. It is also time-consuming to maintain manually. Even an API reference, which can be generated automatically from the codebase itself, has many drawbacks. It is limited to what it can extract from the codebase, is cumbersome to navigate, and fails to capture the interwoven nature of code. We explore an alternative approach centered around a node-link diagram representing the structure of a codebase. The diagram is interactive and filterable, providing details on demand. It is designed for automation, relying on static analysis of the codebase, and thus produces results quickly and offers a viable alternative to missing or outdated documentation. To evaluate this approach, we implemented a prototype named Helveg that is able to analyze and visualize C# code. Testing with five professional programmers provided feedback on the approach's benefits and challenges, which we discuss in detail.

Návaznosti

MUNI/A/1590/2023, interní kód MU

Název: Využití technik umělé inteligence pro zpracování dat, komplexní analýzy a vizualizaci rozsáhlých dat

Investor: Masarykova univerzita, Využití technik umělé inteligence pro zpracování dat, komplexní analýzy a vizualizaci rozsáhlých dat

Citovat

ŠTĚPÁNEK, Adam; David KUŤÁK; Barbora KOZLÍKOVÁ a Jan BYŠKA. Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation. Online. In Fabio Petrillo. IEEE Working Conference on Software Visualization (VISSOFT). Flagstaff, Arizona, USA: IEEE, 2024, s. 12-23. ISBN 979-8-3315-2848-5. Dostupné z: https://doi.org/10.1109/VISSOFT64034.2024.00012.

@inproceedings{2418877,
   author = {Štěpánek, Adam and Kuťák, David and Kozlíková, Barbora and Byška, Jan},
   address = {Flagstaff, Arizona, USA},
   booktitle = {IEEE Working Conference on Software Visualization (VISSOFT)},
   doi = {https://doi.org/10.1109/VISSOFT64034.2024.00012},
   editor = {Fabio Petrillo},
   keywords = {software visualization;software documentation;API reference;code navigation;interactive diagram},
   howpublished = {elektronická verze "online"},
   language = {eng},
   location = {Flagstaff, Arizona, USA},
   isbn = {979-8-3315-2848-5},
   pages = {12-23},
   publisher = {IEEE},
   title = {Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation},
   url = {https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10794902},
   year = {2024}
}

TY  - CONF
ID  - 2418877
AU  - Štěpánek, Adam - Kuťák, David - Kozlíková, Barbora - Byška, Jan
PY  - 2024
TI  - Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation
PB  - IEEE
CY  - Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
SN  - 9798331528485
KW  - software visualization;software documentation;API reference;code navigation;interactive diagram
UR  - https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10794902
N2  - Getting acquainted with a large codebase can be a daunting task for software developers, both new and seasoned. The description of a codebase and its development should be the purpose of its documentation. However, software documentation, if it exists at all, is usually textual and accompanied only by simple static diagrams. It is also time-consuming to maintain manually. Even an API reference, which can be generated automatically from the codebase itself, has many drawbacks. It is limited to what it can extract from the codebase, is cumbersome to navigate, and fails to capture the interwoven nature of code. We explore an alternative approach centered around a node-link diagram representing the structure of a codebase. The diagram is interactive and filterable, providing details on demand. It is designed for automation, relying on static analysis of the codebase, and thus produces results quickly and offers a viable alternative to missing or outdated documentation. To evaluate this approach, we implemented a prototype named Helveg that is able to analyze and visualize C# code. Testing with five professional programmers provided feedback on the approach's benefits and challenges, which we discuss in detail.
ER  -

ŠTĚPÁNEK, Adam; David KUŤÁK; Barbora KOZLÍKOVÁ a Jan BYŠKA. Interactive Diagrams for Software Documentation. Online. In Fabio Petrillo. \textit{IEEE Working Conference on Software Visualization (VISSOFT)}. Flagstaff, Arizona, USA: IEEE, 2024, s.~12-23. ISBN~979-8-3315-2848-5. Dostupné z: https://doi.org/10.1109/VISSOFT64034.2024.00012.

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