Actively comparing clones inside the code editor
Ferosh Jacob, Daqing Hou, Patricia Jablonski · 2010
Tool support for code clones can improve software quality and maintainability. While significant research has been done in locating clones in existing source code, there has been less of a research focus on proactively tracking and supporting copy-paste-modify operations, even though copying and pasting is a major source of clone formation and the resulting clones are then often modified. We designed and implemented a programming editor, based on the Eclipse integrated development environment, named CSeR (Code Segment Reuse), which keeps a record of copy-and-paste-induced clones and then tracks and visualizes the changes made to a clone with distinct colors. The core of CSeR is an algorithm that actively compares two clones for detailed differences as a programmer edits either one of them. This edit-based comparison algorithm is unique to CSeR and produces more immediate, accurate, and natural results than other differencing tools.