Visualizing Analysis Results for SPL Models - A User Study

Analyses of a software product line (SPL) model typically report variable results annotated with logical expressions to indicate the set of products for which each result holds. These expressions can be complicated and difficult to reason about when the SPL has lots of features and derivable products. In previous work, we introduced Neo4j Browser, a visualizer for graphical analysis results that highlights the results that apply to specific products. In this paper, we report on a controlled user study that evaluates the visualizer's effectiveness in helping the user (1) understand variable analysis results and (2) compare the analysis results of multiple products. Our findings suggest significant improvements in efficiency (30%), and correctness (22%), and significant reductions in cognitive load (42%).