For me it’s usually some context-specific, low-level DAG of functions/data flow. Maybe a higher level of C4 model depending on the scope of my work.
I’ve been studying this to build a VS code extension that visualizes my codebase as I work. Similar to Feynman’s point, there are many ways of visualizing the same task/section of code, but I’ve found some are more universally interpretable than others.
Agreed this is a poor experience, we're making pricing very transparent now. Hope you give CodeViz another chance. Were you able to generate the top level architecture or interact with the call graph? If you couldn't use CodeViz, or saw the subscription modal immediately after opening the extension, this is a bug that I'll look into
Yep I did see some kind of top level graph, with a few items in it (maybe 5?), but that wasn't very useful. It was also quite small as it was in the left panel of vscode, so nothing of value at that point. This was with a pretty vanilla react/typescript codebase.
Maybe I was supposed to single click one to find out more? I double clicked for what it's worth, and got the message to upgrade. But given that it hadn't done anything useful yet I of course had no reason to proceed. Just early feedback, I'm sure you'll get it all worked out.
To generate second layer of architecture diagram, $19/mo subscription with a 7 day free trial. The call graph and top layer of the architecture diagram are free. We'll update our website and the extension with pricing info asap. The subscription didn't exist until a couple of days ago, since layered architecture is a feature that we made public specifically for HN to try.
We only use Anthropic at the moment, but we left OpenAI in the Data & Privacy in case we change models (not in the foreseeable future)
> The only way I found out was installing it, create a call graph, and the first click took me to a payment page
Yes, we need to be much more clear. It's not intentionally hard to find, we just been distracted with bugs and haven't had time to update the website. The subscription didn't exist until a couple of days ago. The layered architecture is a feature that we made public specifically for the HN community
> Having to fill out my payment details for a trial version is a a hard no for me
We'd love to embed a demo repo for people to play with, or let users generate nested architecture for one repo before having to subscribe
> The price is too steep. I get way more value out of Copilot than I get from CodeViz which is similarly priced.
Copilot is a great product and inexpensive, I do understand where you're coming from. Personally, I spend most of my time reading code and gathering context vs typing code. We hope to provide much more than $19/mo in value, so the subscription is a good signal for whether we're making something useful for you. We also have more features for team licenses that we haven't publicized.
The reduced subscription price for using your own API key does make sense though. If you send me an email or message me on discord I'd be happy to chat this over. This goes for anyone with a strong opinion on the matter
Appreciate the honest feedback! We're working hard to improve CodeViz, please let me know if there are any features you'd love to see.
I cloned pulumi and exported both layers of the CodeViz diagrams into mermaid format: https://github.com/EdisonLabs-Inc/Pulumi-Diagrams/tree/main. I'm not familiar with the repo so let me know if anything looks off. Hope you find these useful!
Thanks, that is really cool, especially when ramping up on a code base. The labeling is mostly pretty good (though I'd not call some stuff "backend" but who can blame it for not knowing). I still think it might be too expensive as is but if I were using this to generate mermaids for everyone in my company a one time fee of 20 might be justified (you often dont need this continuously)
We'd love to have CodeViz run with local LLMs so you can untangle the spaghetti. The call graph is generated without LLMs or servers - any interest in a 'local only' mode so you can still use CodeViz while keeping your code on-device?
I get where you're coming from - Copilot is very cheap and useful! We want the free version of CodeViz to be as useful as possible for you. Some features, like the second architecture layer, are just expensive for us.
Personally, I spend a small fraction of my time actually typing code and much more time gathering context & building a mental map. CodeViz speeds up the mental map part, so we hope to deliver much more value than $19/mo
Let me know if there's anything missing from CodeViz that would change your mind!
I’ve been studying this to build a VS code extension that visualizes my codebase as I work. Similar to Feynman’s point, there are many ways of visualizing the same task/section of code, but I’ve found some are more universally interpretable than others.