USABILITY DRIVEN WEB BASED SOFTWARE PROCESS MODEL.PDF

Abstract

Software process model is defined as the simplified description of the process or set of activities chosen to build a software product. A complete and organized software process model is a key to deliver a successful software product. Modern Web applications are full-fledged, multifaceted software systems providing customizable services. Web Application development involves planning, selection of an appropriate Web architecture, system design, page design, coding, content creation and its maintenance, testing, quality assurance, and performance evaluation. So, to successfully build complex Web-based systems and applications, both large and small, Web developers need to adopt a disciplined process and sound design methodologies. The work proposes a customized development framework (Web based Software Process Model) for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) of College of E&ME. Keeping in view the distributed nature of users of ERP and other important aspects, it was decided that ERP should be a web based application as the reach of the web based application is wide and mobile. Being a web based application ERP development necessarily requires a full fledged framework for its development. The need leads to the proposed model called “Usability Driven Web based Software Process Model”. It is complete framework in a sense that it incorporates all the activities to build a successful web based software application. It covers all the activities rendered for software development from requirement elicitation to design, coding and testing. Model contains certain sub activities in each phase describing the flow and steps which should be followed to develop a web application. The main emphasis of the model is on usability aspect, keeping in view the criticality of the user interface for a good web application. For validation of the proposed approach, thesis follows two major directions. First direction leads to validation of the proposed model by its application in development of a module of ERP. For this purpose, Hostel Management Module (HMS) of ERP was taken as case study. HMS was developed using the development approach proposed by the novel usability driven web based software process model. However, the other direction leads to the simulation of model using an internationally acclaimed software engineering simulation tool (SimSE) which has 15 international publications to its credit. The results are obtained by case study (actual application of model within College of E&ME development environment) and by simulation as well.