What are different phases of web application testing?

What is a web application actually? How do we define it? Let us put it in very simple words!

" A web application is much like any other normal application, the only difference being that a web application can be accessed only over an internet connection."

So only the accessibility makes it different form the other types of applications.

What is Web Application?
- A web application can be purely an individual application with its own spate existence over the web.

- But, there are several other kinds of web applications which are written in the Java script and are embedded in a web page or web site.

- The scripts that are used to write these web applications should be supportable by the web browsers.

- The scripts are usually a combination of Java and HTML codes and can be executed only with the help of a web browser and otherwise not possible.

What makes these web applications so popular among today’s generation?

- It is nothing else but the ubiquity of the web browsers.

- The web applications make use of the web browsers as a running client.

- Most of the web applications display the property of the cross platform compatibility i.e., they can be used on multiple platforms and across multiple browsers.

- This further makes them very much popular.

- Web applications like online retail sales and wikis are gaining so much of popularity world wide.

- As the number of users of the web applications keep on increasing the more vulnerable its following aspects become: security, reliability and quality.

These are some of the most crucial factors responsible for the success of a web application.

What can be done to improve their efficiency?

- Effective testing is one such measure which can improve the performance of any web application.

- Performing a web application testing is kind of tough task and requires great skills since the tester has got no direct control over the working of the web application.

Phases of Web Application testing
A typical web application testing comprises of three main phases:

1.1st phase: Testing of the Web tier
This phase involves the testing of the web application for the cross browser compatibility. The web application is checked the commonly and widely used web browsers.

2. 2nd phase: Testing of the middle tier
This phase involves the testing of the security related aspects as well as the functionality and features of the web application.

3. 3rd phase: Testing of the Data base tier
This phase involves the determination of the integrity of the data base of the web application as well its components. This phase is also concerned with the verification of the components of the web application.

Steps followed in each phase are:
Whichever the phase may be, there are common steps that are followed in every phase.
- First step is usually the loading of the web application on to a web server. The testing is not concerned with the location of the server! It might be known or unknown, it doesn’t matters.

- After this step, the second step involves the installation of this web application on the client side server.

- The web application is tested on the client’s side. The following mentioned aspects are foremost tested:
1. Browser compatibility
2. Operating system compatibility
3. Error testing
4. Static pages
5. Validation of the CSS and HTML code (either by checking the URL or by uploading)
6. Load testing and
7. Back end testing.

What are different web engineering project metrics?

The objective of a good web application is that it delivers a combination of good content and appropriate functionality for the end user. Web engineering project metrics are defined that assess its internal productivity and quality are:

- Number of static web pages measure provides an indication of the overall size of the application and the effort required to develop it. This measure has less complexity and requires less effort to get construct.
- Number of dynamic web pages measure high complexity and more effort to get construct. It provides an indication of the overall size of the application and effort required to develop it.
- Number of internal page links measure gives an indication of degree of architectural coupling within the web application. Effort on navigation and construction increases as the number of page links increase.
- As Number of persistent data objects increases, the complexity and effort to implement it also grows.
- As Number of external systems interfaced increases, the complexity of the system and effort required for the development also increases.
- Number of static content objects includes static text, graphics, video, animation and audio within the application. Multiple content objects appear on single web page.
- Number of dynamic content objects includes objects based on end user action and includes text, graphic, video, animation and audio within the application. Multiple content objects appear on single web page.
- As the Number of executable functions increases, the modeling and construction effort also increases. A metric can be defined reflecting the degree of end user customization required for web application. An executable function provides a computational service to end user.

Web application metrics can be computed and correlated with measures like effort, errors and defects uncovered, models or documentation pages produced.

User Interface Analysis and Design - Testing Interface Mechanisms

There are interface mechanisms through which the interaction between the user and the web application occurs. There are some testing interface mechanisms described below:
- Links are tested to ensure that proper content object or function is reached. External link testing should occur throughout the life of the web application. Links within content object are also tested. Part of a support strategy should be regularly scheduled link tests.

- Client side scripting should be repeated whenever a new version of a popular browser is released. Compatibility testing should be done to ensure that the scripting language that is chosen is working properly in environmental configuration that support the web application.

- Forms testing is done at two levels:
At macroscopic level, tests ensure that labels correctly identify fields within the form; server is receiving the information that is contained within the form; defaults are used when user is not selecting from pull down menu or set of buttons; browser functions do not corrupt data and error checking script is working properly.
At targeted level, tests ensure that form fields are of proper width and data types; appropriate pull-down menus option are specified; tab key is performing in the right manner and browser auto fill features do not lead to data input errors.

- Dynamic HTML in web applications are tested to ensure that the dynamic display is working fine.

- Pop up windows are tested to ensure that a pop up window is properly positioned and sized; the design of pop up window is consistent with the aesthetic design of interface; scroll bars are working properly.

- Streaming Content is tested to ensure that they are up to date, properly displayed and restarted without difficulty.

- Cookies are tested at both server and client side. On server side, tests are conducted to ensure cookie is properly constructed and transmitted to client side. Proper persistence of cookie is tested to ensure that the expiration date is correct. On client side, tests are conducted to ensure whether web applications properly attaches existing cookies to specific request.

What constitutes the testing process of web applications?

Web engineering testing process starts with tests that check content and interface functionality. As testing moves further, navigation testing comes into picture and finally tests are done which check the technological capabilities not visible to end users.

Content testing uncovers errors in content.It examines the static as well as the dynamic content of the web application.

Interface testing validates the aesthetic aspects of user interface. It uncovers errors that have occurred due to interaction, omissions, ambiguities.

Navigation testing designs test cases that tests each user scenario against navigation design. Navigation mechanisms are tested against use cases to ensure that any kind of errors are identified and corrected.

Component testing tests content and functional units within a web application. In web application architecture, a unit is a functional component that is directly providing service to end user.

Navigation and component testing are used as integration tests. Strategy behind integration testing depends upon the web application architecture that has been chosen during design.

Thread based testing tests each thread that is integrated tested individually.
Cluster testing uncovers errors which results due to the collaborating pages.

Configuration testing uncover errors specific to a particular client or server environment. Tests are conducted to uncover errors associated with every possible configuration.

Security testing are tests that are designed to make use of weaknesses in the web application and environment.

Performance testing is a series of tests that assess how increased load affects the web application response time and reliability.

WebApp Interface Design - Interface Control Mechanisms and Interface Design Workflow

INTERFACE CONTROL MECHANISM
The objectives of Web application interface are:
- establishing a consistent window into content and functionality provided by interface.
- guiding the users through interactions with web application.
- organizing the content and navigation options.

A metaphor is drawn that guides the user interaction and enables the user to gain understanding of the interface. Some interaction mechanisms available to web application designers are
- navigation menus that list key content and or functionality.
- graphic icons that enable user to select some property or specify a design.
- graphic images that implements a link to content object or the functionality of web application.

INTERFACE DESIGN WORKFLOW
It includes the following tasks:
- The information contained in analysis model is reviewed and refined.
- A rough sketch of web application interface layout is developed.
- The user objectives are mapped to specific interface actions.
- Set of user tasks associated with each action are defined.
- For each interface action, storyboard screen images are developed.
- Input from aesthetic design can be used to refine interface layout.
- User interface objects required to implement interface are identified.
- A procedural representation of user's interaction is developed.
- A behavioral representation is developed.
- Interface layout is described.
- Interface design model is refined and reviewed.

What are different design issues and attributes for web applications?

Design model contains enough information to reflect how requirements are translated into content and executable code. Design should be specific. It is an engineering activity. It leads to a high quality product. the major attributes for quality of web applications are:

- Security of web applications is the ability of WebApp and its server environment to stop unauthorized access or threat.
- Availability plays an important attribute. Availability is the measure of the percentage of time that a web application is available for use. The expectation of a end user regarding the availability of a web application is each and every moment. Using features available on one browser or platform makes the web application unavailable to those who work on different platform or browser.
- Scalability is whether the web application and interfacing systems are able to handle significant variation in volume or will the responsiveness drop. Web application should be designed in such a way that it is able to accommodate the burden.
- Time to market is a measure of quality from a business point of view.

Assessing content quality includes :
- whether the user needs are met by determining the scope and depth of content?
- whether the background and authority of content's authors be easily identified?
- whether it is possible to determine the currency of content, last update and what was updated?
- whether the content and its location stable?
- credibility of content?
- uniqueness of content?
- whether content is valuable to targeted user?
- whether the content is well organized and easily accessible?

Overview of Functional and Configuration Model in analysis for WebApps

THE FUNCTIONAL MODEL
There are two processing elements of web application. The functional model addresses the above two elements of web application:
- user observable functionality delivered by web applications to end-users.
- operations within analysis classes that implement behavior within class.

User observable functionality encompasses processing functions initiated directly by user. These functions are implemented using operations within analysis classes but from end-user point of view, the function is the visible outcome.

The operations within analysis class manipulate the attributes of the class involved as class collaborate with one another to accomplish required behavior.

THE CONFIGURATION MODEL
The web application must be thoroughly tested within every browser configuration that is specified as part of configuration model.
In some cases, configuration model is not more than a list of server and client side attributes. For complex web applications, configuration complexities have an impact on analysis and design.
Client side software provides the infrastructure that enables access to the web application from user;s location.
On server side, appropriate interfaces, communication protocols and related information should be specified if web application has to access large database or inter-operates with other applications.

What is Requirement Analysis for Web Applications?

Requirement analysis for web applications consists of formulation, requirement gathering and analysis modeling.
- In formulation, goals and objectives and categories of users for web application are identified.
- In requirement gathering, communication between web engineering team and stakeholders deepens.
- In analysis modeling, content and functional requirements are listed and interaction scenarios are developed.

USER HIERARCHY
It is a good idea to build a user hierarchy. It provides you with a snapshot of user population and a cross check to help ensure that the needs of every user have been addressed. End-user categories interacting with web application are identified. As the number of user categories increases, developing a user hierarchy is advised. User categories provides an indication of functionality provided by WebApp and indicate need of use cases to be developed for each end-user in hierarchy.

DEVELOPING USE CASES
For each user category, use cases are developed which is described in user hierarchy. A use case is relatively informal i.e. a narrative paragraph that describes a specific interaction between user and web application. As the size of web application grows and analysis modeling becomes more rigorous, the preliminary use cases presented would have to be expanded to conform.

REFINING USE CASE MODEL
Use cases are organized into functional packages and each package is assessed to ensure that it is comprehensible, cohesive, loosely coupled and hierarchically shallow. The new use cases will be added to packages that have been defined, existing use cases will be refined and specific use cases might be reallocated to different packages.

What is meant by analysis for web applications?

Web sites are complex and dynamic in nature. Web application analysis concentrates on three important criteria:
- information or content that is presented.
- functions that are to be performed for end user.
- behaviors of web applications.

Analysis of web applications is mainly done by web engineers, non technical content developers and stakeholders. Analysis modeling is important because it enables a web engineering team to develop a concrete model of web application requirements. It helps to define fundamental aspects of problem. There are four important aspects that analysis modeling focus:
- Content analysis identifies content classed and collaborations.
- Interaction analysis describes user interaction, navigation and system behaviors occurring as a consequence.
- Function analysis defines web application functions performed for user and sequence of processing.
- Configuration analysis identifies the operational environment in which a web application resides.

Analysis modeling should be done by web applications when the following conditions are met:
- web application is large or complex.
- number of stakeholder is large.
- number of web engineers is large.
- goals and objectives for web application will effect the business.
- success of web application will have strong affect on the success of business.

What are the guidelines to be remembered if outsourcing strategy is chosen for web application development?

Web applications are outsourced to vendors who specialize in web development. There are some guidelines to be followed while considering outsourcing strategy for the web development:

PROJECT INITIATION :
Before searching for an outsourcing vendor, some tasks needs to be done :
- Analysis tasks should be performed internally.
- Web application audience are identified.
- Overall goals and objectives are defined.
- A rough design of the web application should be developed internally.
- A rough project schedule including delivery dates, milestones dates should be developed.
- Responsibilities for internal organization and outsourcing vendor is created.
- Degree of interaction and oversight with contracting organization is identified.

SELECTING OUTSOURCING VENDORS :
- Interview clients to determine the vendor's professionalism, ability to meet schedule.
- Determining the name of the vendor's chief web engineer.
- Examine work samples of vendor.

ASSESS THE VALIDITY OF PRICE QUOTES AND RELIABILITY OF ESTIMATES:
- Does the quoted cost provide direct or in direct return on investment.
- doe the vendor providing the quote has the professionalism and experience.

UNDERSTANDING THE DEGREE OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT YOU CAN EXPECT:
- It depends on size, cost and complexity of the web application.
- Plans are developed for mitigating, monitoring and managing risks.
- Quality assurance and change control mechanisms are defined.
- Effective communication between contractor and vendor should be established.

THE DEVELOPMENT SCHEDULE SHOULD BE ASSESSED:
- The development schedule should have a fine granularity.
- Tasks and minor milestones should be scheduled on daily timeline.

MANAGE SCOPE:
- Scope changes as web application project moves forward.
- To manage scope, the work to be performed within an increment is frozen.
- Changes are deployed until the next web application increment.

Overview of The Interaction Model - Use cases, Sequence diagrams, State diagrams, User interface prototype

The interaction model of web applications enables a conversation between an end user and application functionality, content, and behavior. Interaction model is made up of four elements:
- Use cases
- Sequence diagrams
- State diagrams
- User interface prototype

Some use cases describe the interactions between end user categories and the system. Other use cases refine the interactions, providing the analysis detail necessary to guide design and construction. Use cases provide a one-dimensional view of the interaction.

Sequence diagrams are a shorthand representation of the manner in which dynamic elements(user actions) collaborate with the structural elements(analysis classes) of the system. There is a need to ensure that traceability exists between the classes that have been defined and the use-cases that describe system interaction. Sequence diagrams can be created for each use-case once analysis classes are defined for the use case. Sequence diagrams present a second dimension that is more procedural in nature.

As the interaction occurs, state diagrams are another way to represent the dynamic behavior of the web application. State diagrams can be represented at different levels of abstraction. State diagrams provide a third dimension that is more behavioral and contains information about potential navigation pathways that is not provided by use cases or the sequence diagram.
Large complex web applications benefits from interaction model that encompasses the three representations : use cases, sequence diagrams and state diagrams.


User Interface Prototype : The layout of user interface, content it presents, interaction mechanisms, and overall aesthetic of user-web application connections have much to do with user satisfaction and the overall acceptance of the web application. User interface prototype is performed during the creation of analysis model.

Analysis Model and analysis activities for Web Applications

The analysis model of web application is driven by information contained within the use cases that have been developed for the application. Analysis modeling focuses on four fundamental aspects - content, interaction, function, and configuration. Content that is presented by the web application is identified and functions to be performed are extracted from use case descriptions.

TYPES OF ANALYSIS ACTIVITY OCCURRING DURING MODELLING OF A WEB APPLICATION

- Content analysis: It identifies the content across the full range provided by the web application. The content includes text, graphics, images, audio and video.
- Interaction analysis: The user interaction with the web application is defined in the interaction analysis.
- Functional analysis: There are operations and some other processing functions that are applied on the web application. These operations and processing functions are defined in functional analysis. These functions are independent of content but necessary for the end user.
- Configuration analysis: The environment and infrastructure is described in which the web application resides.

All the information that is obtained from these four steps is reviewed, modified as required and then organized into a model which contains structural elements that identifies analysis classes and content objects and dynamic elements that describes all the structural elements interact with one another and with end users.

Overview of analysis for Web Applications

Web application analysis focuses on the information or content that is to be presented, the functions that are to be performed for the end user and behaviors that a web application exhibits as it presents content and performs functions.

Web application analysis model is comprised of a set of UML diagrams and text that describe content, interaction, function and configuration. Analysis of web applications is done when the following conditions are met:
- Web application to be built is large and complex.
- Number of stakeholders is large.
- Number of web engineers and other contributors is large.
- Web application's goals and objectives will effect the business bottom line.
- Success of web application will have strong bearing on the success of business.

Requirement analysis consists of formulation, requirement gathering and analysis modeling. In formulation, goals, objectives and categories of users are defined. In requirement gathering, communication between web engineering team and web application stakeholders intensifies.
Building a user hierarchy provides with a snapshot of the user population and a cross-check to ensure that the needs of every user have been addressed.

A use case diagram is created for each user category. Use cases are organized into functional packages and each package is assessed to ensure that it is comprehensible, cohesive, loosely coupled and hierarchically shallow.

Requirement analysis and modelling are iterative activities, new use cases are defined and added to packages, existing use cases will be refined and that specific use cases might be reallocated to different packages.

Introduction to Content Design - Content Objects and Content Design Issues

Content design focuses on two different design issues, each addressed by individuals with different skill sets. In content design :
- a design representation is developed for content objects and
- mechanisms are represented that are required to initiate their relationships to one another.
- representation of information within a specific content object is concerned.

It is design activity that is conducted by copywriters, graphic designers, and others who generate the content to be used within a web application.

A content object is closely aligned with a data object. A content object has attributes that include content specific information and implementation specific attributes that are specified as part of design.
UML association and aggregation may be used to represent relationships between content objects.

Once all the content objects are modeled, the information that each object is to deliver must be authored and then formatted to best meet the customer's needs. Content authoring is the job of specialists who design the content object by providing an outline of information to be delivered and an indication of the types of generic content objects that will be used to deliver the information.

As content objects are designed, they are chunked to form web application pages. The number of content objects incorporated into a single page is a function of user needs, constraints imposed by download speed of internet connections, and restrictions imposed by the amount of scrolling that the user will tolerate.

Aesthetic or Graphic Design - Layout Issues and Graphic Design Issues

Aesthetic or Graphic design makes the web application appealing, though it is functional in nature. It is an artistic angle that compliments the technical aspects of web engineering. To perform aesthetic design, web application users decide how they want the application to look like.

General Layout Guidelines To Consider When Screen Layout Is Designed

- Do not over crowd the web page with too much information as it makes it difficult for the suer to identify the needed information and it creates too much visual chaos.
- Scrolling on web page should be reduced as the users prefer not to scroll much. The best idea is to reduce the content or just put necessary content.
- The design should specify all layout items as a percentage of available space.
- There has to be a pattern that should be followed during group navigation, content and function geographically within the page.
- Web application should be designed in a way in which there is more emphasis on content. A typical web page should contain eighty percent of content with the remaining part dedicated to navigation and other features.
- Users have a tendency to scan the web page in a way they scan the page of a book i.e. from top-left to bottom right. High priority elements should be placed in upper-left portion of the page.

GRAPHIC DESIGN ISSUES

Graphic design begins with layout and then it covers the color schemes, sizes, styles, use of media, typefaces and all other aesthetic elements of an application.
Different web sites provide design tips and guidelines.

Hypermedia Design Patterns in Web Engineering

Web engineering uses design patterns. These are of two types:
- Generic design patterns - applicable for every software.
- Hypermedia design pattern - specific to WebApps.
Design problems can be solved by using design patterns. There are some pattern categories:

NAVIGATION PATTERNS
These patterns helps in the design of NSU, navigation links and overall navigation flow of the web application.

ARCHITECTURAL PATTERNS
It helps in the design of content and web application architecture. Many architectural patterns are available for web engineers who design web applications in various business domains.

COMPONENT CONSTRUCTION PATTERNS
The web application components can be combined by the methods provided by these patterns. When data processing functionality is required within a web application, the architectural and component level design patterns are applicable.

PRESENTATION PATTERNS
Presentation patterns assist in the presentation of content as it is presented to the user via the interface. They tell how to organize user interface control functions, shows the relationship between an interface action and the content object it affects, establish content hierarchies.

BEHAVIOR AND USER INTERACTION PATTERNS
These patterns assist in design of user machine interaction. They address how the interface informs the user of the consequences of a specific action, how a user expands content based on usage context, how to best describe the destination that is implied by a link.