A hybrid approach to object library classification and retrieval

A hybrid approach, which combines a faceted scheme and free test analysis, is proposed for classifying and retrieving reusable software components. In our approach, the facet scheme is extended by associating a set of index words, instead of just one, with each facet. The index words are extracted using free test analysis and are ranked by their significance. We also conducted two simple experiments to evaluate the effectiveness of our approach and to determine the factors that contribute to the effectiveness of retrieval. We also found that, free test analysis may still introduce noise, even after two cutoffs are used to remove irrelevant index words. Thus, it may be necessary that, after free test analysis, a filtering phase should be performed for improving retrieval effectiveness