Big Code Emerges

October 27, 2020

Sourcegraph released new data identifying the emergence of Big Code, and highlighting the unique problems it poses for development teams across all industries. Similar to how Big Data has disrupted data teams, Big Code is creating new hurdles for development teams as code rapidly grows in four major ways.

Volume. There have been exponential increases in the amount of code being created.

Variety. The complexity of the languages, tools, and processes used for delivering software continue to multiply.

Velocity. Accelerated delivery cycles mean code is changing faster than ever, and being shipped virtually every day.

Value. The reimagination of business models and practices through high-quality software has greatly increased the value of code within the enterprise.

The survey, conducted by Dimensional Research, polled over 500 software development professionals across North America. The data gathered serves to quantify Big Code’s complexity, understand its real impact on development and business outcomes, and identify what needs to be done so enterprises can succeed.

“Today’s massive codebases make it difficult for developers to discover, understand, and fix code because of the significant increase in its volume and complexity,” said Quinn Slack, co-founder and CEO of Sourcegraph. “It’s for this reason that Big Code is often compared to Big Data—both have the potential to disrupt teams, decrease productivity and quality, and make it harder for enterprises to stay competitive. Code shows no signs of slowing down, so it’s critical that developers have tools that empower them to navigate the challenges associated with Big Code.”

Key survey findings include

The volume, variety, velocity, and value of code are increasing

94% of respondents report they are affected by Big Code

51% have more than 100 times the volume of code they had ten years ago

More than 60% report a significant increase in a number of different development dimensions including architecture, supported devices, use of open source, and number of platforms

92% say the pressure to release software faster has increased in the past ten years

90% report that the software their teams deliver has become more critical

Big Code is creating big problems

Challenges include less time for new hires to be productive (62%), code breaking due to a lack of understanding of dependencies (57%), and difficulties managing changes to code (50%)

99% report that Big Code has a direct impact on the business outcomes of software development efforts

74% report that their teams avoid updating code due to fear of code changes breaking dependencies

Development teams need new tools to tackle Big Code

85% agree that existing tools were not designed for the era of Big Code

99% would benefit from additional capabilities for searching enterprise code