Workshop session at IWMW 2002 on "QA For Web Sites" facilitated by Brian Kelly. http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/webmaster-2002/materials/napier/

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QA for Web Sites
Brian Kelly
UKOLN
University of Bath
Bath, BA2 7AY
Email
B.Kelly@ukoln.ac.uk
URL
http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/
UKOLN is supported by:

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Timetable
Draft timetable
16:00-16:15 Introduction
16:15-16:45 What Is Quality / What Does It
Mean For Web Sites?
16:45-17:00 QA And The IWMW 2002 Web
Site A Case Study
17:00-17:10 Approaches To Testing
17:10-17:25 Developing A QA Framework
17:25-17:30 Conclusions

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Background To QA Focus
QA Focus:
• An advisory service for JISC’s 5/99 projects
• Provides advice and support for projects in order
to ensure that projects comply with standards
and best practices
• Provided by UKOLN and ILRT
• Managed by Brian Kelly, UKOLN and Karla
Youngs, ILRT
• Service provided by Marieke Napier, UKOLN and
Ed Bremner, ILRT
This workshop session is informed by the work
of QA Focus

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Your Interests?
What do you want to get from this
session?

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Group Exercise
In small groups discuss the questions given in
exercise 1 - What Is Quality?
E

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What is Quality?
Quality:
• Is based on judgements by an individual or
organisation
• Is fitness for purpose
• Corresponds to a rating
• Is based on acceptable performance
• Is meeting goals
• Is meeting requirements
Various definitions are available – see the
Pointer document for further information
Various definitions are available – see the
Pointer document for further information

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What is Quality Control?
Quality Control (QC) is the implementation of
regular testing procedures against your
definitions of quality and more specifically the
refinement of these procedures
• Formal use of testing
• Acting on the results of your tests
• Requires planning, structured tests, good
documentation
• Relates to output - Quality Circle
• Standards - ISO 9000 however there is currently
no such standard for Web sites

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What is Quality Assurance?
Quality Assurance (QA) examines the
processes that shape your Web site in the first
place and so encompasses Quality Control.
When good Quality Assurance is implemented
there should be improvement in usability and
performance and lessening rates of defects
• Relates to input - Quality Circle
• Should be involved in development stage of a
Web site and throughout its life cycle

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The Quality Cycle
Refine
site
Quality
Control
Quality
Assurance
Quality
output
input
Test
results
Create
site
Test
site

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Levels of QA
QA is not the destination…
…but the journey
The QA timescale model which is being
adopted by QA Focus:
• Strategic QA
• Workflow QA
• Sign-off QA
• On-going QA

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Group Exercise
In small groups discuss the questions given in
exercise 2 - Problems On Your Web Site
E

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What Can Fail on Your Site?
• Domain name wrong or not usable
• Broken links, broken emails
• Server load – too many hits on the site
• Client side performance –down load time
• Security isn’t working
• Content is out of date
• Browser incompatibility,HTML doesn’t validate
• Interface – navigation, link colour
• Graphics missing or too large
• Scripts don’t work - forms,databases
• Isn’t accessible to those with disabilities
• …

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What Can You Test?
• Functional testing
• Compatibility testing
• Load/performance testing
• Stress testing
• Usability testing
• Security testing
• Integration of unit testing
• Link testing
• HTML Validation
• Reliability testing
• Regression testing
• …

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What Procedures?
• Good documentation
• Requirements
• Specifications
• Mission statements or statement of direction
• Define your audience
• Testing suite and tools
• Use the right authoring tools etc.
• Track problems

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Issues
• Goals for testing will be related to the kind of site
you have
• Testing time is limited – use automated tools
Motivating/persuading people to implement a QA
Culture can be difficult
• Having a great team
• Documentation is critical – to make sure
practices are repeatable
• Implement your QA procedures slowly over time
to avoid stifling productivity
• QA planning at the start of development means
less time fixing things at the end

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IWMW 2002 Web Site:
We will now look at a case study
Approaches To Testing
We will now look at approaches to
testing
P

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Group Exercise
In small groups discuss the questions given in
exercise 3 - Developing A Quality Assurance
Framework
E

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Report Back

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Where To From Here?
How should we progress from here?

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Any Questions?