Web Engineering: Managing Diversity and Complexity of Web Application Development

By San Murugesan

Inlessthanadecadeofexistence, theWebhasreachedatrulystaggeringstage, demonstratedbythescope, thereach, andthesizeofWeb-basedapplications andactivities. Concentratinginitiallyoninformationdissemination, thescopeof theapplicationsisnowlimitedonlybyourimagination. Thereachisconstantly expandingandsoarethenumberandsizeoftheapplications, alongwiththe underlyingcomplexity, rangeofpurposes, andthetimeneededtodevelopand maintainthem. Atthesametime, thedevelopmentandmaintenanceprocesses ofWebapplicationshavenotprogressedatasu'cientlyrapidpacetomeetthese challengesanddemands. Consequently, thelikelihoodisthatWebapplication developmentwillgetintoacrisisanditisnothardtoimaginethatthiswould dwarfthe'softwarecrisis'identi'edlongagointhe1960s. WebEngineeringaimstoavertthispotentialcrisisbygeneratingaproactive approachtothesuccessfuldevelopmentofWeb-basedsystemsandapplications. WebEngineeringinvolvestheuseofscienti'c, engineering, andmanagement principlesandsystematicapproacheswiththeaimofsuccessfullydeveloping, deploying, andmaintaininghighqualityWeb-basedsystemsandapplications. WebEngineering, initscurrentform, isanearlyattempttoidentifythes- ni'cantissuesandproblems, andtheirsolutions, indevelopingWeb-basedapp- cations. Asweseeit, WebEngineeringisnotyetestablishedasafulldiscipline norhasitdevelopedanidenti'ableorstableform, sinceeverythingconnected withtheWebisstillinastateof'ux. Oneonlyhastolookatthenumberof variedactivitiesthattheWorldWideWebConsortiumisengagedintorealise thatastableWebenvironment, andhenceprovenmethodsfordevelopmental activitiesbasedontheWeb, isstillsomedistanceaway. OurearlyforaysintotheWebarena, withtheconstantexcitementofnew developmentsandchallenges, forcefullybroughttomindourentryintothec- puting'eld, almostthreedecadesago. Atthattime, comparedtowhatthe technologycoulddo, oure'ortsincomputerizingpayrollandaccountingapp- cationsinrealityseemedpunyanddisappointing. TheWeb, ontheotherhand, didnotseemshackled, inawaythatearlycomputingwas, tothesebure- craticandunimaginativewaysofconductinghumanandorganizationala'airs. Itseemedthattheorganizational, spatial, andphysicalconstraintswereabout toloosen, ifnotdisappear, altogether. Andyet, whenwelookedaroundatthewayWebsitesandapplicationswere beingdeveloped, itseemedtousthattheearlypatternofhaphazarddev- opment, minimaltesting, andlackofattentiontothemaintenanceissuesthat characterisedthe'softwarecrisis'werestillverymuchwithus. Itwasasthough the'newgeneration'insistedonmakingthesamemistakesasitsparents Thisfeelingofd ej avuledustoquestionthenatureofWeb-basedandW- relatedactivities. Ofcourse, wewerenotalone, aswesoondiscovered. The resultiswhatisbeingcalledWebEngineeringwhichhadits'rstintroduction inaworkshopattheSeventhWorldWideWeb(WWW7)conferenceinBrisbane in1998. IthasnowbecomeaserieswithmoreworkshopsatWWW8(Toronto, VI Preface 1999)andWWW9(Amsterdam,2000), andalsoattheInternationalConference onSoftwareEngineering(ICSE99)in1999inLosAngelesandICSE2000in Limerick, Ireland. AnotherworkshopisscheduledforWWW10inHongKong inMay2001. Themainpurposebehindtheseworkshopshasbeentoshareandpoolthe collectiveexperienceofpeople, bothacademicsandpractitioners, whoare- tivelyworkingonWeb-basedsystems. Theworkshopshavegenerallyconsisted ofkeynoteaddresses, peer-reviewedcontributedpapers, andsessionsofopen discussions. About This Book Inthisvolume, weprovideaconsolidatedviewofrecentwork, highlightingdev- opmentsandadvancesintheareaofWebEngineering. Thisselectionofpapers drawsmainlyfromthelastthreeworkshops, heldinconjunctionwithICSE1999, WWW9, andICSE2000. Wealsopres

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 3540421300
• ISBN13: 9783540421306
• Release Date: April 2001
• Publisher: Springer
• Length: 366 Pages
• Weight: 1.21 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.6" x 9.3"