[PAST EVENT] Kevin P. Moran, Computer Science - Masters Defense

July 6, 2015
10am - 12pm
Location
McGlothlin-Street Hall, Room 002
251 Jamestown Rd
Williamsburg, VA 23185Map this location
Abstract:
The modern software development landscape has seen a shift in focus toward mobile applications as smartphones and tablets near ubiquitous adoption. Due to this trend, the complexity of mobile applications has been increasing, making development and maintenance challenging. One of the most important processes related to software maintenance is the prompt fixing of bugs. However, current bug tracking systems do not effectively support reporting of bug reports with actionable information that will directly lead to a bug's resolution. To address the need for an improved reporting system, we introduce a novel solution, called FUSION, that helps users auto-complete reproduction steps in bug reports for mobile apps. FUSION links information, that users provide, to program artifacts extracted through static and dynamic analysis performed beforehand. We evaluate FUSION by conducting a study that quantitatively and qualitatively measures the user experience of the system and the quality of the bug reports it produces. In a study involving 28 participants we apply FUSION to 15 real-world bugs found in 14 open source Android apps. Our results demonstrate that FUSION allows for more reliable reproduction of bugs from reports by suggesting more detailed application-specific information compared to traditional bug tracking systems such as the Google Code Issue Tracker.

Bio:
Kevin Moran has been working towards his Master's degree in computer science at the College of William & Mary since Fall 2013. He is working with Dr. Denys Poshyvanyk and his research interests include supporting software development and maintenance tasks for mobile platforms, with a focus on mobile bug and crash reporting. Kevin received his B.S. in Physics with a Minor in Computer Science from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA in the Spring of 2013. While at Holy Cross Kevin conducted research in atomic physics advised by Dr. Timothy Roach and competed as a varsity athlete in the EARC Collegiate Division 1 rowing league for four years, earning a bid to the IRA national championship regatta in Spring 2013. Kevin will continue his research under Dr. Poshyvanyk as a Ph.D. candidate at the College of William & Mary.
Contact

[[vlthompsondopp]]