Mining Software Repositories - A Comparative Analysis

Despite of many Mining Software Repositories (MSR) tools in use, it is a relatively new research domain, which forms the basis of classifying various tools and comparing them. In this paper we present a comparative analysis of different tools for MSR, based on some existing and new criteria proposed in this paper. This will assist in determining an appropriate tool that performs the best for a given type of application and to use it directly, instead of relying on the usual trial-and-error approach. This work has several purposes; it acts as a formative evaluation mechanism for tool designers (by quickly understanding and comparing different tools), as an assessment tool for potential tool users (by simply going through the comparative analysis chart to know at a glance, the essential components needed to be incorporated into the intended tool) and as a comparative milestone so that MSR tool researchers can easily differentiate amongst a pool of tools, thereby identifying other new research avenues. The tabular presentation furthers the work by providing a quick index to the reader and a means for quick analysis of the desired tool. Key word: Mining, Software, Repositories