ClassSpy: Java Object Pattern Visualization Tool

TL;DR

ClassSpy is a visualization tool for Java that efficiently displays all instantiated objects during program execution, helping developers understand and optimize large codebases through an easy-to-use, scalable interface.

Contribution

It introduces a space-efficient, scalable visualization technique for Java objects that enables sorting by class, thread, and method levels, improving understanding of large programs.

Findings

Effective visualization of large object datasets

Scalable approach handles vast data efficiently

User-friendly interface for comprehensive program insight

Abstract

Modern java programs consist of large number of classes as well as vast amount of objects instantiated during program execution. Software developers are always keen to know the number of objects created for each class. This information is helpful for a developer in understanding the packages/classes of a program and optimizing their code. However, understanding such a vast amount of information is not a trivial task. Visualization helps to depict this information on a single screen and to comprehend it efficiently. This paper presents a visualization approach that depicts information about all the objects instantiated during the program execution. The proposed technique is more space efficient and scalable to handle vast datasets, at the same time helpful to identify the key program components. This easy to use interface provides user an environment to glimpse the entire objects on a single screen. The proposed approach allows sorting objects at class, thread and method levels. Effectiveness and usability of the proposed approach is shown through case studies.