Programmers often rely on different environments depending on the nature of their tasks. For large-scale software projects, IDEs help manage complexity through structured abstractions like files, modules, and classes, and provide tools for code visualization and navigation. In contrast, exploratory programming tasks—such as data analysis, rapid prototyping, and design space exploration—are better served by interactive environments like REPLs and Notebooks, which support incremental development and immediate feedback. However, these tools tend to prioritize either complexity management or exploration, limiting their effectiveness across contexts.

This paper investigates a hybrid graph-based programming environment that bridges these two modes by building on Incremental Graph Code (IGC), a graph-based system for structuring, visualizing, and interacting with source code. We explore how IGC can support both complexity management and exploratory programming through three key features: projectional views for aggregating and navigating interrelated code and documentation, graph-type nodes for encapsulating subgraphs to manage structural complexity, and an exploratory programming view for managing branching executions and promoting experimentation. Together, these features suggest that graph- based environments like IGC can offer a unified platform for both systematic software engineering and dynamic, exploratory development.