Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Engineering
Lecture-01 & 02

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Lecture Outline

 Introduction to Web Engineering

 Categories of Web Applications
 Web Engineering is Multidisciplinary
 Evolution of Web Engineering
 Difference between Web Development and other Development
 Web Development Practices
 Web Development Processes

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Introduction to Web Engineering

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

What is Web Engineering (WE)

Web Engineering – is the application of systematic, disciplined, and

quantifiable approaches to the design, production, deployment, operation,
maintenance and evolution of Web-based software products. [Gaedke,
2000]

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Engineering (WE)

 A holistic and pro-active approach to Web systems
development
 Offers systematic approaches and disciplined processes for
development
 Deals with the management of complexity and diversity of
Web development
 Brings to Web-based system development
 Control
 Risk minimization
 Enhanced maintainability and quality

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Basic Paradigm
 Hypertext + Internet
 Internet
 a global system of interconnected computer networks
 use the standard Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP)
 facilitate data transmission and exchange
 Hypertext – textual documents together with the ability to interconnect documents by
links between them as part of the document contents
 HTML: HyperText Markup Language
 the predominant markup language for web pages
 provide a means to create structured documents by denoting structural semantics for text
 E.g. headings, paragraphs, lists, links, quotes, etc.
 HTTP: HyperText Transfer Protocol
 a protocol (utilizing TCP) to transfer hypertext requests and information between servers and
browsers
 use for retrieving inter‐linked resources (hypertext documents)
 led to the establishment of the World Wide Web in 1990

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

History of Web
 1969: ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency)
 First small network: Stanford Research Institute, UCLA, UC Santa
Barbara, Univ. of Utah –
 TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)
 IP (Internet Protocol)
 1972: Telnet protocol
 1973: SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol)
 1973: FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
 1989: T. Berners‐Lee et al.:
 Word Wide Web (WWW)
 1994: W3C (World Wide Web Consortium)
 1996: HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol)

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)

 International consortium where member of the organizations,
a full‐time staff, and the public work together to develop Web
standards

 http://www.w3.org

 W3C's mission:
 to lead the World Wide Web to its full potential by developing protocols
and guidelines that ensure long‐term growth for the Web

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Protocol Stack

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Applications (Webapps)

A Web Application is a software system based on technologies and

standards of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that provides Web
specific resources such as content and services through a user interface,
the Web browser. [Kappel et al., 2004]

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Webapps (Cont.)
 Definition explicitly includes:
 Technologies
 User Interaction

 These are not Webapps:

 Technologies alone, e.g. web services
 Website without s/w components, e.g. static web pages

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications

 Scope and complexity of Web applications vary widely

 Ofer vastly varied functionality and have different

characteristics and requirements

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Document‐Centric (Informational)
 Precursor to Webapps, stored in server as ready‐made
 Informational
 read‐only content is provided with simple navigation and links
 Examples:
 static HTML‐pages, “home pages”
 web radio
 simple presentations of companies/products

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Interactive
 content of a website is dynamically generated as response to a user
request
 form‐based input is the primary mechanism for communication
between client and server
 Usage of HTML‐forms and Common Gateway Interface (CGI) techniques
 radio button, string input, choice lists
 Examples:
 dynamic HTML pages
 public transport schedules
 search engines

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Transaction‐oriented (Transactional)
 complex interactions
 read and write actions
 usage of transaction management of database systems
 efficient and consistent data management
 structured data and queries
 Examples:
 online banking
 e‐shopping
 reservation systems

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Workflow‐based (Workflow‐Oriented)
 support business processes (“workflows”) within and between
enterprises or private users access
 an application provides a complex service to the user, e.g. assists the
user in determining the mortgage payment
 use of Web services to guarantee interoperability
 Examples:
 Business‐to‐Business (B2B) Integration Frameworks
 E‐Government
 patient workflows in health care systems

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Collaborative (Collaborative Work Environment)
 support cooperation in case of unstructured flow of activities and high
degree of communication
 Unstructured operations, “groupware“
 Support shared information and workspaces
 Log entries and edits
 Mediate meetings or make decision
 Examples:
 Wiki, http://c2.com/cgi/wiki
 Google Map

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Social Web (Online Communities and Marketplaces)
 People provide their identity to small community of others with similar
interest
 Examples:
 Social networking
 Video‐sharing
 Blogs

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Portal‐oriented
 the application channels the user to other Web content or services outside the
domain of the portal application
 “single point of access“

 Specialized portals, examples:

 Community portals
 dedicated user groups
 customer loyalty through user interaction, customer profiles
 Enterprise portals
 Allow employee and business partners focused access to different sources on info and services
 Via intranet, extranet
 Marketplace portals
 B2B, B2C, SCM

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Ubiquitous
 personalized services at every time at every location
 multi‐platform delivery (PC, PDA, mobile phone)
 context‐dependent information

 Examples:
 Display of today‘s menu on end‐user devices while entering a restaurant
 Must consider limitations of mobile devices
 Bandwidth, screen size, memory, context

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Categories of Web Applications (Cont.)

 Semantic web
 Increasing convergence of TIMES leads to domination of ubiquitous
applications
 Telecommunication, Information Technology, multimedia, Education,
Entertainment, Security
 Present information on the web
 adequate for human understanding and
 adequate for automatic manipulation
 Facilitate “Knowledge management“ on the web

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Engineering is Multidisciplinary

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

WE discipline
 systems analysis and design
 software engineering
 hypermedia/hypertext engineering
 requirements engineering
 human‐computer interaction
 user interface
 information engineering
 information indexing and retrieval
 Testing
 modelling and simulation
 project management
 graphic design and presentation

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

WE discipline (Cont.)
 Web Engineering is not a clone of software engineering
 While Web Engineering uses software engineering principles,
it encompasses new approaches, methodologies, tools,
techniques, and guidelines to meet the unique requirements
of Web-based systems

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Evolution of Web Engineering

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Evolution of Web Engineering

 Progressively emerging as a new discipline addressing the
unique needs and challenges of Web-based systems
development
 Since 1998,
 Workshops
 Conferences
 Journals
 Books

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Difference between Web Development and other Development

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Development is Different

 Web application development has certain characteristics that make it
different from traditional software, information system, or computer
application development
 Web applications have the following characteristics:
 Web applications constantly evolve
 Web applications are inherently different from software
 Web applications are meant to be used by a vast, variable user community
 Web-based systems are content-driven (database-driven)
 Web-based systems demand a good “look and feel,”
 Web applications have a compressed development schedule, and time pressure is
heavy
 Ramifications of failure or dissatisfaction of users of Web-based applications can be
much worse than conventional IT systems

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Development is Different

 Web applications have the following characteristics (Cont.)
 Web applications are developed by a small team of (often young) people with
diverse backgrounds, skills, and knowledge compared to a team of software
developers
 There are rapid technological changes
 Web development uses cutting-edge, diverse technologies and standards, and
integrates numerous varied components
 The delivery medium for Web applications is quite different from that of
traditional software
 Security and privacy needs of Web-based systems are more demanding than
that of traditional software
 The Web exemplifies a greater bond between art and science than generally
encountered in software development

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Development Practices

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Current Practices
 Lacks rigor, systematic approach
 The completed system is not what the user wants
 System not developed on time, cost overruns
 Lacks scalability and maintainability, hence a limited useful life
 Does not meet performance requirements
 Resources are wasted
 Complexity of Web-based systems is often deceptive and is not often
recognized by many stakeholders
 Several attributes of quality of Web-based systems are not given the due
consideration
 Web applications also fail to address cultural or regional considerations, and
privacy, moral and legal obligations and requirements
 Web systems also lack proper testing, evaluation, and documentation

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

Web Development Processes

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology
 Web Engineering (CS-666)

PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

University Institute of Information Technology