Comparing syntax highlightings and their effects on code comprehension

Abstract: Syntax highlight is a system designed to assist a writer or programmer by displayingdifferent parts of a text in a specific color based on its function. In this study, we conducted a practical experiment comparing the effectiveness of two common syntax highlightings by primarily measuring the speed of which participants could understand a given piece of code. The highlights chosen forthe comparison were Atom UI Standard and Styri. Previous studies in this area, most notably by Advait Sarkar from the University of Cambridge, have shown a generally positive effect of syntax highlight but have not compared how different types of syntax highlightings affected the reader. Our study was performed with eight participants from a Technical High school with a minor background in programming who answered six questions where some code was highlighted and some not; the order of the items was found to affect results on some questions. The results do not show any significant advantage to using syntax highlight or a difference between the effectiveness of the two syntax highlights. Some participants saw a slight constant advantage from using syntax highlight, but no general or notable conclusion could be made about these participants.