Introduction to Web Engineering

The impact of Web-based systems and applications is arguably the single most significant event in the history of computing. As WebApps grow in importance,a disciplined WebE approach adapted from software engineering principles, concepts, process, and methods has begun to evolve.
WebApps are different from other categories of computer software. They are network intensive, content driven, and continuously evolving. The immediacy that drives their development, the overriding need for security in their operation, and the demand for aesthetic as well as functional content delivery are additional differentiating factors. Like other types of software, WebApps can be assessed using a variety of quality criteria that include usability, functionality, reliability, efficiency, maintainability, security, availability, scalability, and time to market.

WebE can be described in three layers - process, methods, and tools/technology. The WebE process adopts the agile development philosophy that emphasizes a "lean" engineering approach that leads to the incremental delivery of the system to be built. The generic process framework - communication, planning, modeling, construction, and deployment - is applicable to WebE. These framework activities are refined into a set of WebE tasks that are adapted to the needs of each project. A set of umbrella activities similar to those applied during software engineering work - SQA, SCM, project management - apply to all WebE projects.