Project – Seamless Navigation within Source Code Files
Software developers often struggle to navigate their codebases. Previous research investigated how to support navigation between source code files, but little is known on how to improve navigation within a single file, for example when jumping back and forth between two methods in a large source code file.
In this project, we want to explore different visualizations (see pictures) to help software developers navigate more seamlessly within their code files. The project includes the following tasks:
- Literature review of existing work, approaches, and tools in the area of code navigation.
- Develop a VS Code extension to augment the Minimap (see Picture 3) with a “Youtube-like” heatmap (Picture 1) and/or an exploration map often found in games (e.g. The Settlers, Picture 2) to indicate the most visited parts of the source code.
- Evaluate the approach with a small group of users.
Please contact Roy Rutishauser in case of interest, and read our collaboration guidelines beforehand: ➡️ Working on Projects/Theses with HASEL
| Picture 1 |
Youtube heatmap showing replay activity |
| Picture 2 |
The Settlers – Map Exploration Progress |
| Picture 3 |
Source Code Minimap in VS Code |
