Sallyann Bryant

Double Trouble: Mixing Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in the Study of eXtreme Programmers

Despite sparse and sometimes contradictory evidence, eXtreme programming (XP) is currently growing in popularity as an alternative strategy for developing software. This paper proposes a methodology for observational studies of one of XPs twelve practices, pair programming, including the analysis of verbalisations, interactions and artefacts in order to improve our understanding of its cognitive implications. In addition, a protocol for analysing pair programming behaviours is included as a means of identifying the behavioural differences of those who are more expert or novice at pair programming and understanding the effect of pairing programmers of differing expertise. Initial results from a recent study using this methodology are then presented

Debugging strategies and tactics in a multi-representation software environment

This paper investigates the interplay between high level debugging strategies and low level tactics in the context of a multi-representation software development environment (SDE). It investigates three questions. 1. How do programmers integrate debugging strategies and tactics when working with SDEs? 2. What is the relationship between verbal ability, level of graphical literacy and debugging (task) performance. 3. How do modality and perspective influence debugging strategy and deployment of tactics? The paper extends the work of Katz and Anderson [1988. Debugging: an analysis of bug location strategies. Human-Computer Interaction 3, 359-399] and others in terms of identifying high level debugging strategies, in this case when working with SDEs. It also describes how programmers of different backgrounds and degrees of experience make differential use of the multiple sources of information typically available in a software debugging environment. Individual difference measures considered among the participants were their programming experience and their knowledge of external representation formalisms. The debugging environment enabled the participants, computer science students, to view the execution of a program in steps and provided them with concurrently displayed, adjacent, multiple and linked programming representations. These representations comprised the program code, two visualisations of the program and its output. The two visualisations of the program were available, in either a largely textual format or a largely graphical format so as to track interactions between experience and low level mode-specific tactics, for example. The results suggest that (i) additionally to deploying debugging strategies similar to those reported in the literature, participants also employed a strategy specific to SDEs, following execution, (ii) verbal ability was not correlated with debugging performance, (iii) knowledge of external representation formalisms was as important as programming experience to succeed in the debugging task, and (iv) participants with greater experience of both programming and external representation formalisms, unlike the less experienced, were able to modify their debugging strategies and tactics effectively when working under different format conditions (i.e. when working with either largely graphical or largely textual visualisations) in order to maintain their high debugging accuracy level.

Pair programming and the re-appropriation of individual tools for collaborative programming

Although pair programming is becoming more prevalent in software development, and a number of reports have been written about it [4] [6], few have addressed the manner in which pairing actually takes place [5]. Even fewer consider the methods employed to manage issues such as role change or the communication of complex issues. Here we contribute by highlighting the way resources designed for individuals are re-appropriated and augmented to facilitate pair collaboration.

A methodology for the capture and analysis of hybrid data: A case study of program debugging

This article describes a methodology for the capture and analysis of hybrid data. A case study in the field of reasoning with multiple representations—specifically, in computer programming—is presented to exemplify the use of the methodology. The hybrid data considered comprise computer interaction logs, audio recordings, and data about visual attention focus. The capture of the focus of visual attention data is performed with software. The software employed tracks the user’s visual attention by blurring parts of the stimuli presented on the screen and allowing the participant to see only a small region of it at any one time. These hybrid data are analyzed via a methodology that combines qualitative and quantitative approaches. The article describes the software tool employed and the analytic methodology, and also discusses data capture issues and limitations of the approach.