Impact of source code decompression (unminification process) on the map application performance

Performance is the key usability attribute. Application performance is affected by its constituent components such as scripts, image files, and libraries. The objective of the paper is to analyse the impact of source code decompression on the performance of a map application. It focuses on two research questions. RQ1: what is the effect of source code decompression through unminification on the map application performance; and RQ2: does an application with a decompressed source code exhibit the primary (initial) performance? A prototype map application was developed to tackle the questions. Three application variants were prepared: 1) basic, 2) minified (compressed), and 3) decompressed (unminified source code). All three variants had their performance tested. The results were juxtaposed. New notions were introduced: primary performance, secondary performance, and code recycling. It was demonstrated that the secondary performance was a compromise between the primary performance and code clarity (readability).