Analysis of Open Source Software Evolution Using Evolution Curve Method
Dama scaron evi ccaron ius Robertas · Frontiers in artificial intelligence and applications · 2009
Design and evolution of modern information systems is influenced by many factors: technical, organizational, social, and psychological. This is especially true for open source software systems (OSSS), when many developers from different backgrounds interact, share their ideas and contribute towards the development and improvement of a software product. The evolution of an OSSS is a continuous process of source code development, adaptation, improvement and maintenance. Studying changes to the various characteristics of source code can help us understand the evolution of a software system. In this paper, the software evolution process is analyzed using a proposed Evolution curve (E-curve) method, which is based on information theoretic metrics of source code. The method allows identifying major evolution stages and transition points of an analyzed software system. The application of the E-curves is demonstrated for the eMule system.