Animated highlights in a graph representing an application

• US 9,734,040 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2013
• Issued: 08/15/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Gounares, Alexander G.
• Primary Examiner(s): JEON, JAE UK
• Application Number:
  US13/899,504
• Publication Number:
  US 20140189651A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,547 Days
• Field of Search: 717124, 717125, 717128, 717129, 717130, 717131, 717132, 717134, 717126, 717127
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3636 by tracing the execution of the program
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3664 Environments for testing or debugging software

Abstract

Highlighted objects may traverse a graph representing an application'"'"'s code elements and relationships between those code elements. The highlighted objects may be animated to represent how the objects are processed in an application. The graph may represent code elements and relationships between the code elements, and the highlighting may be generated by tracing the application to determine the flow of the object through code elements and across relationships. A user may control the highlighted graph with a set of playback controls for playing through the sequence of highlights on the graph. The playback controls may include pause, rewind, forward, fast forward, and other controls. The controls may also include a step control which may step through small time increments.

Claims

1. A method for animating traversal of an object through a graph that visually illustrates an execution of an application, the method being implemented by one or more processor of a computer system, said method comprising:

receiving a selection of the object, the object being related to the application;

examining trace data for said application to identify said object interacting with

     1) a first code element in said application and

     2) a second code element in said application, said first code element and said second code element being connected by a relationship in said application;

generating graph data for rendering the graph, said graph comprising

     1) nodes representing code elements of the application and

     2) edges representing relationships between said code elements of the application, wherein the first code element has associated therewith a first node and a first edge and the second code element has associated therewith a second node and a second edge, and wherein a size of each node in the graph is based on an amount of processing time consumed by each node'"'"'s corresponding code element such that the first node is displayed as being of a first size and the second node is displayed as being of a second size;

displaying the graph;

generating a first highlight at a first location on the graph where the object is interacting with the first code element;

at a first time, displaying the first highlight on said graph, the first highlight corresponding to the first location of the object at a first time period in a plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph, the first highlight comprising a highlighting of the first node or the first edge;

generating a second highlight at a second location on the graph where the object is interacting with the second code element;

at a second time, displaying the second highlight on said graph, the second highlight corresponding to the second location of the object at a second time period in the plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph, the second highlight comprising a highlighting of the second node or the second edge; and

reducing or removing the first highlight of the first node or the first edge during a display of the second highlight of the second node or the second edge,

whereby traversal of the object from the first code element to the second code element during the execution of the application is reflected by displaying a transitioning of the first highlight to the second highlight on the graph.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

generating a third highlight for a third time period in the plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph and execution of a third code element of the application, the third highlight comprising a highlighting of a third node or a third edge; and

reducing the second highlight of the second node or the second edge.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first highlight or the second highlight includes a visual indication of directionality.

4. The method of claim 3, said visual indication of directionality comprising an arrowhead.

5. The method of claim 3, said visual indication of directionality comprising an animation.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the method includes transitioning from the first time to the second time and from the first highlight to the second highlight automatically.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the method includes pausing between the transitioning from the first time to the second time and from the first highlight to the second highlight for a predetermined period of time.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the method includes pausing between the transitioning from the first time to the second time and from the first highlight to the second highlight until user input is received after a pause is initiated.

9. A computing system comprising:

a processor; and

one or more storage device having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that are executable by the processor to cause the computing system to animate traversal of an object through a graph that visually illustrates an execution of an application by causing the computing system to;

receive a selection of the object, the object being related to the application;

examine trace data for said application to identify said object interacting with

     1) a first code element in said application and

     2) a second code element in said application, said first code element and said second code element being connected by a relationship in said application;

generate graph data for rendering the graph, said graph comprising

     1) nodes representing code elements of the application and

     2) edges representing relationships between said code elements of the application, wherein the first code element has associated therewith a first node and a first edge and the second code element has associated therewith a second node and a second edge, and wherein a size of each node in the graph is based on an amount of processing time consumed by each node'"'"'s corresponding code element such that the first node is displayed as being of a first size and the second node is displayed as being of a second size;

display the graph;

generate a first highlight at a first location on the graph where the object is interacting with the first code element;

at a first time, display the first highlight on said graph, the first highlight corresponding to the first location of the object at a first time period in a plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph, the first highlight comprising a highlighting of the first node or the first edge;

generate a second highlight at a second location on the graph where the object is interacting with the second code element;

at a second time, display the second highlight on said graph, the second highlight corresponding to the second location of the object at a second time period in the plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph, the second highlight comprising a highlighting of the second node or the second edge; and

reduce or remove the first highlight of the first node or the first edge during a display of the second highlight of the second node or the second edge,

whereby traversal of the object from the first code element to the second code element during the execution of the application is reflected by displaying a transitioning of the first highlight to the second highlight on the graph.

10. The computing system of claim 9, wherein execution of the stored computer-executable instructions further cause the computer system to:

generate a third highlight for a third time period in the plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph and execution of a third code element of the application, the third highlight comprising a highlighting of a third node or a third edge; and

reduce the second highlight of the second node or the second edge.

11. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the first highlight further includes displaying an arrow showing a direction of processing, the arrow being displayed next to a highlighted edge from a first set of one or more edges.

12. The computing system of claim 11, wherein the arrow is removed when the first highlight is removed.

13. The computing system of claim 12, wherein the first highlight comprises coloring or intensity of light applied to the first set of the one or more edges.

14. The computing system of claim 9, wherein the first highlight or the second highlight includes a visual indication of directionality.

15. The computing system of claim 14, said visual indication of directionality comprising an arrowhead.

16. The computing system of claim 14, said visual indication of directionality comprising an animation.

17. The computing system of claim 9, wherein the transitioning from the first time to the second time and from the first highlight to the second highlight occurs automatically.

18. The computing system of claim 17, wherein the transitioning includes temporarily pausing during the transitioning from the first time to the second time and from the first highlight to the second highlight.

19. The computing system of claim 9, wherein execution of the stored computer-executable instructions further cause the computer processor to pause between the transitioning from the first time to the second time and from the first highlight to the second highlight until user input is received after a particular pause is initiated.

20. The computer system of claim 9, wherein execution of the computer-executable instructions further cause the computer system to:

receive a selection of the first node;

simultaneously display a code editing window with at least a portion of the graph, the code editing window including source code that represents a portion of the application represented by the first node; and

cause a first line of the displayed source code to be highlighted, the highlighting occurring in response to the first node being selected.

21. One or more hardware storage device having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that are executable by a processor of a computer system to cause the computer system to animate a traversal of an object through a graph that visually illustrates an execution of an application by causing the computer system to:

receive a selection of the object, the object being related to the application;

examine trace data for said application to identify said object interacting with

     1) a first code element in said application and

     2) a second code element in said application, said first code element and said second code element being connected by a relationship in said application;

generate graph data for rendering the graph, said graph comprising

     1) nodes representing code elements of the application and

     2) edges representing relationships between said code elements of the application, wherein the first code element has associated therewith a first node and a first edge and the second code element has associated therewith a second node and a second edge, and wherein a size of each of each node in the graph is based on an amount of processing time consumed by each node'"'"'s corresponding code element such that the first node is displayed as being of a first size and the second node is displayed as being of a second size;

display the graph;

generate a first highlight at a first location on the graph where the object is interacting with the first code element;

at a first time, display the first highlight on said graph, the first highlight corresponding to the first location of the object at a first time period in a plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph, the first highlight comprising a highlighting of the first node or the first edge;

generate a second highlight at a second location on the graph where the object is interacting with the second code element;

at a second time, display the second highlight on said graph, the second highlight corresponding to the second location of the object at a second time period in the plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph, the second highlight comprising a highlighting of the second node or the second edge; and

reduce or remove the first highlight of the first node or the first edge during a display of the second highlight of the second node or the second edge,

whereby traversal of the object from the first code element to the second code element during the execution of the application is reflected by displaying a transitioning of the first highlight to the second highlight on the graph.

22. The one or more hardware storage device of claim 21, wherein execution of stored computer-executable instructions further cause the computer system to:

generate a third highlight for a third time period in the plurality of sequential time periods of the object traversing through the graph and execution of a third code element of the application, the third highlight comprising a highlighting of a third node or a third edge; and

reduce the second highlight of the second node or the second edge.

23. The one or more hardware storage device of claim 21, wherein the first highlight or the second highlight includes a visual indication of directionality comprising at least an arrowhead.