Flowchart4C# - Features

• Integrated with VisualStudio.NET IDE.
• Flowchart to Code navigation.
• Level folding. Folds nested conditional blocks.
• Block by Block expansion.
• Highlight method exit points in flowchart diagram.
• Highlight complex conditional blocks in flowchart diagram.
• Display comments in control flow edges.
• Display conditional code in the flowchart.
• Save flowchart as image.
• Fit to size & Zoom out.
• Export diagram to Microsoft Visio

Features explained.

Integrated with VisualStudio.NET IDE.

The Flowchart  generation is linked with the C# Editor, clicking on any function or anywhere inside a function initiates the flowchart for the function.

 Modify source and "Save" to refresh flowchart view automatically.

Flowchart to Code Navigation.

Automated flowcharts helps to understand code flow instantly. Understand the relationship between flowchart and code by moving the mouse over the flowchart shapes to locate the line of code in the VisualStudio.NET editor.

Level Folding

One of the unique features of Flowchart4C#. Helps analyze complex functions. Level folding comes handy when inspecting functions which have complex nested conditionals blocks.

Visualizing a function level-by-level helps us to understand the context easily, rather than sequentially reading the code,  flowcharts display  the complete control flow of a function.  Even this could be a trap  for complex functions, as it would be difficult to decipher details in a complex flowchart. Flowchart4C# offers a method to choose the depth(level) of a flowchart, increasing the depth(level) one by one gives an opportunity to understand in stages.

Level -by- Level Expansion: Level = 1, 2 & 3

 

Block-by-Block Expansion

Block expansion complements level folding, by allowing to open a 'Folded block'  exclusively. It comes handy when inspecting complex and nested conditional constructs.  Level Folding and Block-by-Block expansion complement each other and form an effective method to understand complex structure.

Using 'Level Folding' and 'Block-by-Block' expansion for analyzing complex functions.

Highlight method exit points in flowchart diagram.

While it is a best practice to have just one return statement per function, often we find situation where its best to exit the function without further processing. Methods having more than one return statement are difficult to understand than methods with single exit point.

Flowchart4C# offers variation in the flowchart diagram with an option to highlight exit points of a function, thereby providing instant access to the location of exit points in the method. Since  it is displayed in control flow diagram,  it is easier to understand the context of exit points.

Highlight complex conditionals blocks.

Programs are about conditions, without conditional statements there wouldn't be any logic in a program. However as the number of conditional constructs in code increases, it becomes difficult it  to understand and maintain the code. The more complex a conditional statement the more difficult to predict the outcome.

Flowchart4C# provides a simple variation of flowchart diagram to highlight complex conditional constructs in a method, thereby helping to identify such constructs. The complexity of a conditional statement is decided based on the number of logical operators used in a condition.

 

Display condition code in the flowchart.

"Conditions" in a program decide the outcome of the program, displaying the actual code(conditions) in a flowchart would only catalyze understandability of a function.  By default " if,for,while,do-while,switch" are the label text for the respective conditional blocks, Flowchart4C# provides an option to display the actual condition code inside the block. 

Display comments in conditional blocks control flow edges.

Comments in code help a great deal for the developer and maintainer to understand construction algorithm. Flowchart4C# provides a variant of flowchart diagram which displays comments in conditional flow edges.

Save flowchart as image.

For documentation and presentation purposes Flowchart4C# provides an option to save the flowchart diagram as an image.

Zoom Out & Fit to Size.

Make room to visualize complex programs. 

Missing documentation  is a problem faced by many,  while flowchart helps to visualize the program structure and control flow, documenting core functionality for future will improve understandability and maintainability.  Flowchart4C# provides an option to export the control flow to Microsoft Visio, there by making the flowchart diagram editable.  The export feature comes with three variations.  

1. Export to Visio - WYSIWYG, exports the current flowchart diagram.
2. Export to Visio - Single Page, exports the complete flowchart of the function.
3. Export to Visio - Multi Page, export the complete flowchart of the function with "Level Folding"             
   

Reverse engineer the control flow using Flowchart4C# and export the diagram  to Microsoft Visio.  Edit/comment and make use of Visio features to document/publish / present.