Embodiments of the invention disclosed herein provide techniques for generating an alternative design recommendation. The techniques include determining, via a processor, a first function associated with one or more first components included in a first design. The techniques further include analyzing, via the processor, a plurality of components included in a database to select one or more second components associated with a second function that corresponds to the first function. The techniques further include causing an alternative design recommendation that includes the one or more second components to be output for display.
Please help me write a proper abstract based on the patent claims. CLAIM: 1. A computer-implemented method for generating an alternative design recommendation, the method comprising: determining, via a processor, a first function associated with one or more first components included in a first design; analyzing, via the processor, a plurality of components included in a database to select one or more second components associated with a second function that corresponds to the first function; and causing an alternative design recommendation that includes the one or more second components to be output for display. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising automatically replacing the one or more first components with the one or more second components in the first design. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the first function comprises receiving a user selection that assigns the first function to the one or more first components. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising retrieving, from the database, the first function in response to receiving a user selection of the one or more first components. 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising computing a measure of similarity between the first function and the second function. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein selecting the one or more second components is performed in response to determining that the first function is the same or substantially the same as the second function. 7. The method of claim 1, further comprising computing a measure of similarity between the first design and a second design stored in the database, wherein the second design includes the one or more second components. 8. The method of claim 7, further comprising selecting the second design based on the measure of similarity. 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising: computing a measure of similarity between a first graph that corresponds to the first design and a second graph that corresponds to a second design, wherein the second design includes the one or more second components; and selecting the second design in response to determining that the measure of similarity between is above a threshold level. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the measure of similarity between the first design and the second design is computed based on one or more graph matching algorithms. 11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the steps of: determining, via a processor, a first function associated with one or more first components included in a first design; analyzing, via the processor, a plurality of components included in a database to select one or more second components associated with a second function that corresponds to the first function; and causing an alternative design recommendation that includes the one or more second components to be output for display. 12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising automatically replacing the one or more first components with the one or more second components in the first design. 13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein determining the first function comprises receiving a user selection that assigns the first function to the one or more first components. 14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising retrieving, from the database, the first function in response to receiving a user selection of the one or more first components. 15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising computing a measure of similarity between the first function and the second function. 16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein selecting the one or more second components is performed in response to determining that the first function is the same or substantially the same as the second function. 17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising computing a measure of similarity between the first design and a second design stored in the database, wherein the second design includes the one or more second components. 18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, further comprising selecting the second design based on the measure of similarity. 19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising: computing a measure of similarity between a first graph that corresponds to the first design and a second graph that corresponds to a second design, wherein the second design includes the one or more second components; and selecting the second design in response to determining that the measure of similarity between is above a threshold level. 20. A computing device, comprising: a memory that includes a design recommendation application; and a processor that is coupled to the memory and, when executing the design recommendation application, is configured to: determine, via a processor, a first function associated with one or more first components included in a first design; analyze, via the processor, a plurality of components included in a database to select one or more second components associated with a second function that corresponds to the first function; and cause an alternative design recommendation that includes the one or more second components to be output for display.