Software Cloning in Extreme Programming Environment

TL;DR

This paper discusses the challenges of code cloning in software evolution, emphasizing its impact on maintainability, and highlights clone detection as a key tool for refactoring in Extreme Programming environments.

Contribution

It provides an overview of code cloning issues and advocates for clone detection techniques to improve software quality within Agile and Extreme Programming practices.

Findings

Code cloning deteriorates software maintainability.

Clone detection aids effective refactoring.

Refactoring reduces code clones and improves quality.

Abstract

Software systems are evolving by adding new functions and modifying existing functions over time. Through the evolution, the structure of software is becoming more complex and so the understandability and maintainability of software systems is deteriorating day by day. These are not only important but one of the most expensive activities in software development. Refactoring has often been applied to the software to improve them. One of the targets of refactoring is to limit Code Cloning because it hinders software maintenance and affects its quality. And in order to cope with the constant changes, refactoring is seen as an essential component of Extreme Programming. Agile Methods use refactoring as important key practice and are first choice for developing clone-free code. This paper summarizes my overview talk on software cloning analysis. It first discusses the notion of code cloning, types of clones, reasons, its consequences and analysis. It highlights Code Cloning in Extreme Programming Environment and finds Clone Detection as effective tool for Refactoring.