Visualizing software refactoring using radar charts

Oct 12, 2026

Uploaded by kopisore

Visualizing software refactoring using radar charts presents a Radar Chart Refactoring Visualization (RcRV) approach for analyzing how refactoring changes evolve across multiple software releases. The method generates radar charts using inputs from developers or tools such as Ref-Finder, highlighting trends over time for multiple refactorings, methods, and classes. An evaluation study indicates the tool is useful, appealing, and easy to use, helping developers and maintainers detect design violations and potential bugs while reducing development and maintenance effort.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryGeneral

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time6 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Radar Chart Refactoring Visualization (RcRV)

Data input and chart generation

Use cases and comparative axes

[www. nature.com/scientificreports](www. nature.com/scientificreports) OPEN Visualizing software refactoring using radar charts Abdel‑Rahman Al‑Ghuwairi1, DimahAl‑Fraihat2*, Yousef Sharrab3, Huda Alrashidi4, NoufAlmujally5, Ahmed Kittaneh1 & Ahmed Ali1 Refactoring tools have advanced greatly and are being used in many large projects. As a result, a great deal of information is now available about past refactoring and its effects on the source code. However, when multiple refactoring is performed at once, it becomes more difficult to analyze their impact. Refactoring visualization can help developers create more maintainable code that is easier to understand and modify over time. Although there is an increasing interest in visualizing code changes in software engineering research, there has been relatively little research on visualizing the process of refactoring. In this paper, we propose a Radar Chart Refactoring Visualization (RcRV) approach to visualize software refactoring of source code across multiple software releases. Radar charts are a form of 2D visualization that can show multiple variables on a single chart. The RcRv receives input from developers or through refactoring identification tools, such as Ref‑Finder, to generate charts. The generated charts can show the changes made during the refactoring process, highlighting areas of the trend of refactoring over evolution for multiple refactoring, multiple methods, and multiple classes. The evaluation study conducted to assess the usefulness ofthe RcRV tool has shown that the proposed tool is useful to developers, appealing, and easy to use. The proposed method of visualization can be beneficial for developers and maintainers to detect design violations and potential bugs in the code, thus saving time and effort during the development and maintenance process. Therefore, this research presents a significant contribution to the software engineering field by providing developers with an efficient tool to enhance code quality and maintainability. Software refactoring is a well-known practice that is used to improve the quality of software systems. Refactoring involves making changes to the code structure without affecting the system’s functionality1. It is essential for software engineers to refactor their code to ensure that it remains maintainable, scalable, and reusable2,3. Recently, contemporary refactoring tools have been advancing rapidly and are now being widely utilized in several large projects. Consequently, a vast amount of information is available on past refactoring activities and their effects on the source code4. However, when multiple refactoring is performed simultaneously, it becomes increasingly challenging to analyze their impact. Researchers propose the use of visualization tools for refactoring to improve code comprehension and make it easier for developers to navigate complex codebases5. Visualizations are essential tools for software engineers to understand the impact of their code changes. Visualizing the refactoring can be especially helpful for new developers who are unfamiliar with the codebase6. Refactoring visualization is vital for developers because it allows them to understand the structure of the code. Additionally, visualization can aid developers in detecting potential code issues that violate design principles, pinpointing code paths that are vulnerable to bugs, and ultimately reducing the time required during the development process6. Despite the increasing interest in visualizing code modifications in software engineering research, there has been limited research on visualizing the refactoring process. Further, several software tools have been developed to support refactoring but there is a lack of effective visualizations to aid developers in understanding the impact of these changes7. In this paper, we propose a novel approach to visualize software refactoring using radar charts. A radar chart, also known as a spider

FAQs

What problem does RcRV address in software refactoring analysis?

It addresses the difficulty of analyzing the impact when multiple refactorings are performed simultaneously, by visualizing refactoring changes across releases.

How does RcRV generate its visualizations?

RcRV produces radar charts from developer inputs or refactoring identification tools such as Ref-Finder, showing changes across multiple dimensions.

What benefits does the paper claim for developers and maintainers?

The approach helps detect design violations and potential bugs and improves code comprehensibility, saving time and effort during development and maintenance.

Oct 12, 2026

Uploaded by kopisore