Object-Oriented Metrics

Instructor: Muhammad Zeeshan Nazar

Object-Oriented Metrics
• CK Metrics
• Proposed by Chidamber and Kemerer
• Class-based metrics
• LK Metrics
• Proposed by Lorenz and Kidd
• Class-based and operation-based
• MOOD Metrics
• Proposed by Harrison, Counsell, and Nithi
• Class-based
CK Metrics
• Weighted methods per class (WMC)
• WMC = number of methods defined in class
• The sum of the complexity values for all the methods of a given class.
• They do not specify the specific complexity metric to use (e.g., cyclomatic
complexity).
• A high WMC has been found to lead to more faults. WMC should be kept low.
• Classes with many methods are likely to be more application specific, limiting
the possibility of reuse.
• WMC is a predictor of how much time and effort is required to develop and
maintain the class. The higher the value, the more effort required.
CK Metrics
• Weighted methods per class (WMC)
• A possible indication of reusability.
• A large number of methods also means a greater potential impact on derived
classes, since the derived classes inherit (some of) the methods of the base
class.
• Search for high WMC values to spot classes that could be restructured into
several smaller classes.
CK Metrics
• Depth of inheritance tree (DIT)
• DIT = maximum inheritance path from the class to the root class
• The length of the longest path from the root of the inheritance hierarchy to a
leaf class.
• As DIT increases, the lower classes in the hierarchy inherit a greater number
of data and methods, thus making their behavior more difficult to understand
and causing testing to require more effort.
• A large DIT value implies greater design complexity, but also greater reuse.
CK Metrics
• Number of children (NOC)
• NOC = number of immediate sub-classes of a class
• A count of the number of classes immediately subordinate to a given class in
the hierarchy.
• A high NOC, a large number of child classes, can indicate several things:
High reuse of base class. Inheritance is a form of reuse.
Base class may require more testing.
Improper abstraction of the parent class (too generic or too specific).
Misuse of sub-classing. In such a case, it may be necessary to group
related classes and introduce another level of inheritance.
CK Metrics
• Coupling between classes (CBO)
• CBO = number of classes to which a class is coupled
• The amount of collaboration and interaction between a given class and the
other classes in the system.
• As the CBO value increases, reusability decreases.
• The more independent a class is, the easier it is to reuse it in another
application.
• Also, a high CBO indicates potential difficulty in modifying the class and the
subsequent testing of the modifications.
• CBO should be kept low.
CK Metrics
• Response for a class (RFC)
• The number of methods that can potentially be executed in response to a
message received by an object of a given class.
• RFC = M + R
• M = number of methods in the class
• R = number of remote methods directly called by methods of the class
• As the RFC value increases, testing effort and design complexity also increase.
• RFC should be kept low.
CK Metrics
• Lack of cohesion in methods (LCOM)
• The number of methods in a given class that access one or more of the same
instance variables.
• If no methods access the same attributes, then LCOM = 0.
• To illustrate the case where LCOM ≠ 0, consider a class with six methods. Four
of the methods have one or more attributes in common (i.e., they access
common attributes). Therefore, LCOM = 4.
• If LCOM is high, methods may be coupled to one another via attributes.
• The higher the LCOM value, the lower the cohesion of methods, and greater
the coupling.
• A high LCOM value could indicate the need to break the class apart into
multiple classes.
LK Metrics
• Class size (CS)
• The total number of methods (both inherited and local) plus the total number
of attributes (both inherited and local) encapsulated by a given class.
• Inherited members should be weighted more heavily than local members.
• Large values of CS could indicate that the class is too large, that it
encapsulates too much behavior, structure, and responsibility.
• High CS values may also indicate lower reusability.
LK Metrics
• Number of operations overridden by a subclass (NOO)
• A count of the methods in subclasses that have been redefined.
• Large NOO values could indicate a design problem, since the model of the
class seems to be violated.
• Since a subclass should be a specialization of its super classes, it should
primarily extend the services [operations] of the super classes. This should
result in unique new method names.
LK Metrics
• Number of operations added by a subclass (NOA)
• A count of the new methods appearing in subclasses.
• A large NOA value could indicate a design abstraction violation.
• As CK DIT increases, NOA should decrease.
LK Metrics
• Specialization index (SI)
• The degree to which subclasses are differentiated from super classes.
• SI is computed as NOO multiplied by the level at which the class resides in the
inheritance hierarchy divided by the total number of methods defined by the
class.
SI = (NOO * depth) / (total number of class methods)
• A high SI could indicate a lack of conformance to superclass abstractions.
LK Metrics
• Average operation size (OSavg)
• Average Operation Size (OSavg) is a metric used to measure the size or
complexity of operations (methods/functions) within a class.
• It quantifies the average number of messages sent by methods within a
specific class.
• When a method within a class sends out a high number of messages, it means
that the method is interacting with various other methods, classes, or
components.
• A high OSavg value suggests that the methods within a class are doing a lot of
work by interacting with many other parts of the system.
• A high OSavg value can indicate a poor allocation of responsibility within the
class.
LK Metrics
• Operation complexity (OC)
• Operation Complexity (OC) is a metric used to evaluate the complexity of
methods or operations within a class.
• It often measures aspects like cyclomatic complexity, which assesses the
number of independent paths within a method.
• OC should be kept as low as possible.
LK Metrics
• Average number of parameters per operation (NPavg)
• The Average number of parameters per operation (NPavg) is a metric that
measures the average size of parameter lists in methods or functions within a
class or system.
• Should be kept low
Reference
• Software Engineering: Theory and Practice, Shari Lawrence Pfleeger and Joanne M. Atlee, 4th
Edition, Pearson, 2009.