A2 Applied ICT

Unit 9 - Website Design and Management

Student Workbook

Name: ________________________

Website Design and ManagementThis unit is worth 100 marks out of the 300 available at A2 level and is assessed by coursework. In this unit you are required to make contact with a real organisation who will become your client. You must

provide evidence of communication with your client to determine their needs and to create a website to assist with promoting their company.

In order to achieve a good grade in this subject, your work should be at least 150 pages. A number of

classes will be devoted to the theory required for Unit 7 so you must not assume that your work can be completed in class time alone. Some of the topics covered in this coursework will be assessed in your

Unit 7 exam. A significant proportion of your work should be completed outside class time.

To complete your coursework you will require a computer with Microsoft Word and Microsoft SharePoint Designer. Microsoft Word is available free as part of the Microsoft Office suite from c2k.

Microsoft SharePoint Designer is freely available from the Microsoft Website. You need to check whether your computer is 32-bit or 64-bit to ensure that you download the correct version. You can

access the download at http://www.microsoft.com/en-GB/download/details.aspx?id=35491.

The following pages provide additional information on the contents of each section. Please make sure that you have agreed, with your teacher, the organisation that you will use for your website.

Please complete the following:

Name of company: _________________________________________________________________

Nature of business: _________________________________________________________________

Address of business: ________________________________________________________________

Name of client: _____________________________________________________________________

Client’s email address: _______________________________________________________________

Your connection to the business: ______________________________________________________

1 | P a g e

1 Introduction1.1 Background to OrganisationThis should give a brief introduction to the organisation and its function. Do not expect the examiner to know what you organisation does.

Please complete the following sections:

History of the company

Nature of the business

Describe why you have selected this organisation; who you will make contact with and what their function is within the organisation. Describe who works for the organisation and what functions they

perform and the processing and storage of information.

Why have you selected this company

Organisational Structure

What information is required by the business and how do they process this information

2 | P a g e

1.2 Time PlanIn order for any project to be completed on time it is important that a plan is created to identify the personnel, resources and finance are available at the correct time. A failure to provide any of these

when required could result in the project over running and could lead to penalty payments. This will reduce the profits and, in extreme cases, could lead to a loss and possibly cancellation of the project.

There are three project management techniques used for scheduling activities that you need to be

aware of for the Unit 7 exam. These are Gantt charts, Network diagrams and Critical Path diagrams. However, for Unit 9, you only need to complete a Gantt chart.

Your Gantt chart should give an estimated completion time for each section of the project. Remember

that some sections of the project must be completed sequentially, but some can be completed in parallel. You should also mention key stages (milestones) in your project and when they need to be

completed by. These are usually the completion of a chapter.

In the space below, make a sketch of the main sections of your Gantt chart. You will be given deadlines by your teacher to ensure that you complete each section on time. Failing to complete sections on time

will lead to a delay in receiving feedback.

Gantt chart

3 | P a g e

When you have completed your Gantt chart, you need to describe the process you engaged and how

you decided on the timings. In the space below, make notes on what is required in each section. You should ensure that you understand the contents of each section before you start.

Introduction

Analysis

Design

4 | P a g e

Implementation

Testing

Evaluation

5 | P a g e

2 AnalysisThe analysis should provide the designer with all the information necessary to go about their work. The

analysis should identify problems that the organisation has. The web site will then be developed to solve these problems.

2.1 Fact Finding and Current SystemThis section gives details of the initial discussions /fact finding with the end user. There are five methods of fact finding you need to be aware of for Unit 7. These are: Interviews, Questionnaires, Observation

(or Work Shadowing), Background Reading and Document Analysis. You should try to use at least three of these techniques in your coursework. Try to remember their advantages when you are working for

the Unit 7 exam.

The purpose of the fact finding is to establish how the current system operates and identify any problems. You will need to identify the target audience for the website as this will enable you to tailor

the website, prepare page designs and help you decide on the features you wish to include.

InterviewInterviews are useful to obtain detailed information from a small number of people. You can ask

additional questions to obtain greater detail, or ask for clarification if you don’t understand an answer.

You will need to carry out an interview with your client to determine their needs. You need to make a note of their answers and include these in an appendix. In the space below, list some possible questions

that you will ask your client.

6 | P a g e

QuestionnaireQuestionnaires can be useful to gain information from a large number of people quickly. They tend to be closed questions with a list of possible responses. Questionnaires can be analysed quickly.

You should create a questionnaire that could be given to other members of your client’s organisation.

Often questionnaires are also given to customers to find out their opinion of the organisation.

In the space below, make a note of questions that you could include on a questionnaire that would be given to either employees of the client’s organisation or their customers. Remember the questionnaire

should have closed questions.

7 | P a g e

2.2 Current ProblemsYour fact finding should have identified the current problems within the organisation. As a Systems Analyst, it is now your job to come up with creative solutions to these problems through the

introduction of a website. For example, there are too many phone calls from customers requesting prices and availability of stock. The website will have current prices and stock availability which will be

updated each evening.

In the space below, make a note of some of these problems and suggest possible solutions. Some of the solutions may not be possible due to technology or time. These can be described at the end of your

project as possible extensions.

8 | P a g e

2.3 End-user RequirementsAfter completing your initial fact finding, you should now be in a position to agree end user requirements. These describe the content and functions of the website. If you create a website that

does not meet the end user requirements, the client may not make full payment. You may suffer a financial penalty and will be required to add the additional features. If your client fails to notify you of a

particular requirement, they you will be entitled to charge them an additional fee. The end user agreements therefore form a legal contract between the client and the web developer.

In the space below, make a note of the end user requirements. You will need to have confirmation from

the end user that these have been agreed. Some user requirements will be: to include the company logo, to use company colours, to provide a location map, etc.

9 | P a g e

2.4 SpecificationIn this section you need to state the requirements for the design and implementation of the website. Software is often created by a team and it is important that everyone communicates and is aware of

how their component fits into the overall project.

Domain Name IssuesA domain name is a unique name that identifies the site. Most companies include their name as part of

the domain name, eg: www.tesco.co.uk. This helps users to find the site. Web pages are located by adding additional information to this web address, for example

http://www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=266723152. You should research several options for domain names, including costs, and discuss these with the user.

Your client must be provided with a list of options fo that they can make a choice. You must have

communication from the client confirming the choice of domain name. Remember to include a screen dump from the site giving the prices. Make sure also that the prices are in sterling!

Web address used for prices for a domain name: _________________________________________

In the space below list some available domain names and the prices.

Domain Cost per year

Management IssuesOnce the website is created, it must be maintained and updated on a regular basis. Web links need to be

checked, product availability need updated, web pages need to be kept fresh, the number of hits needs to be reviewed, browser compatibility needs checked, etc.

Maintenance is required for four reasons: to make corrections to errors (Corrective), to adapt to

changing circumstances (Adaptive), eg updates to web browsers and to make the site better (Perfective) by adding more features.

10 | P a g e

You should suggest how this can be achieved and who is going to manage this. Some the updating can

be done by the end user, eg updating prices, etc, and some will need to be done by the web designer, eg changes to structure and page designs.

In the space below, list the features that would need to be maintained and suggest a cost for these. It is

good to get agreement from the user to confirm that they would agree to the costs.

Maintenance Costs

Legal requirementsIt is important that the site conforms to the current legal requirements. Customers entering details, especially of financial transactions, will require that their details are kept confidential. The information

on the site eg logos are subject to copyright and should not be copied.

You should explain how the following laws apply to your website:

Data Protection Act

Copyright, Deigns and Patents Act

11 | P a g e

Trade Descriptions Act

Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations

Evaluation CriteriaFinally in this section you must have some means of evaluating your website. You will need specific

performance measures. It is best if these are simple yes/no types of evaluation. For example one evaluation criterion might by ‘The site uses the company colours’. Do not use statements such as ‘The

site looks modern’ or ‘The site is easy to use’. This is difficult to determine and is too subjective. It is better to state that ‘The information is correct as of … or ‘A menus system has been implemented’.

Much of these criteria will follow from the list of end user requirements. In the space below, list the

evaluation criteria you will use to evaluate the website.

12 | P a g e

3 DesignIn the design section you need to consider the site structure and the design of each page.

3.1 Similar Websites

Before you embark on the website design it is useful to look at how other company’s websites. This will help you to decide on features that you wish to include in your design. You should compare at least

three different websites and give the download speeds for the home page. You can use the website http://www.websiteoptimization.com/services/analyze to check these times.

When comparing the websites you should provide a screen shot of the home page and describe some of

the content of the web site. Think about the questions you have asked in your interview and questionnaire and the responses from your client. You should look for these on the websites.

In the space below, write down the home pages for the websites you will use.

Name of Company 1

Website 1

Address

Name of Company 2

Address

Website

Name of Company 3

Address

Website

13 | P a g e

When you have written about each website it is useful to provide a list of features that you think should

be included on your website. In the space below, describe some of the features and explain how they meet End User Requirements or solve a problem for the end user. Some features have already been

included.

Feature Purpose

Location map So that customers can easy find the business

Contact detailsEg> Tel, fax, email, facebook, etc

So that customers can contact the organisation by whichever means they prefer

14 | P a g e

3.2 Accessibility Features

Sometimes your customers will have disabilities and may have difficulty viewing your site. You should be aware of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines provided by the World Wide Web Consortium

(W3C) and how these issues can be addressed on your website. The key guidelines that you must follow are listed below. In the space provided, explain what you will do to meet these requirements.

Guideline How you will achieve it

Alternatives to visual content for images

Ensure that text and graphics are understandable when viewed without colour

Use stylesheets

Use clear understandable language

Use tables appropriately

Ensure user control of time-sensitive content

15 | P a g e

3.1 Hosting SolutionsFor a website to be available on the Internet, you must purchase domain space from an Internet Service Provider (ISP). The ISP will then make you website available to all Internet users. This is referred to as

hosting and is generally paid monthly. In this section you need to compare the hosting options from at least three ISPs and suggest a suitable host for your client’s site.

You should check some websites and compare their offering. Please complete the following table:

Name of Company

Cost/month

Web space available

No of email addresses

Percentage ‘Up’ time

16 | P a g e

3.2 Auditing SolutionsThe expenditure in any organisation must be evaluated to determine if it has been effective. Any expenditure which is not improving the business will be cut and used elsewhere. The effectiveness of

the website must also be evaluated. The use of auditing statistics can help with this process. You may not use all of these statistics, but you should make mention of them and at least include a hit counter on

your web page.

In the space below, describe how each of the following could be used by the administrators of the website.

Number of visitors to a website or page on the website within a given period

Home location of visitors

Phrases used in search engines to find the website

Length of time a visitor stays on the website

Date and time visitors are accessing the site

17 | P a g e

3.3 Site StructureA good site structure allows the user to navigate through your site quickly and easily. You should have links between pages which allow the user to easily select the pages they require and move between

pages. Creating a menu will help you to visualise the structure. There should be a menu for each main option and possibly sub-menus that appear when the main menu is selected. You should describe the

structure using a structure diagram and explain this structure would benefit a user.

Part of developing the site is to include meta tags. Meta tags are information about the information your site contains. For example this could be a list of key words that users might type into a search

engine to find your site. Remember some people may spell things incorrectly, so if you were creating a site for Friends’ School you might use Friends, Friends’, Friend’s, School, Schools, Lisburn, etc. Each page

needs a title and you need to include the author’s name (yours!).

In the space below, list the information that you would include in the keywords meta tag.

18 | P a g e

Cascading Style SheetsAlthough it is possible to style text by including some styling around the element, it is also possible to include styling in the Head section of a page, or even on a separate page. Sometimes these stylings can

conflict and it is always the styling that is closest to the element that takes precedence. Thus the order is: beside the element, then in the Head section and finally on the separate page. This is known as

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). When you create your webpage you should have a separate style sheet page. This will enable you to change the look of the page by just changing the style definition on one

page rather than on all we pages.

In the space below, you should record the stylings from your style sheet and describe their function. You can wait until you complete your website before finishing this section.

19 | P a g e

3.4 ScalabilityYou must discuss how the website might grow and how would this affect the structure. For example, a small restaurant might want to expand into outside catering. You would need to discuss how the

website would be developed to cope with this.

In the space below, describe what changes would need to be made to the website in the light of:

Additional site content

Expansion of the business

Increased traffic to the website

Increased web space needed

Use of mobile technologies

20 | P a g e

3.5 Page DesignsWhen creating a website it is important that the user is happy with the design. Often a number of possible designs are presented and the used makes a selection. For this coursework you are required to

present three sample designs for the home page. Your pages should follow the standard format, colour scheme and font for each page to create a corporate identity. Your pages should have a width of 800px

as a maximum and should be laid out using a tabular format.

The user should select one design and then you should create designs for the remainder of the web pages from this design. Remember these are designs and could be completed using pen and paper.

Boxes (rectangles/circles/etc) to show where graphics/text is to be located and write a short description to explain the information that is to be included. You must have communication from the user

confirming the choice of design.

In the space below, make a quick sketch of three possible Home pages. You may wish to use EXCEL to create designs for your actual coursework.

21 | P a g e

You should have 6 pages as a minimum. These should include some of the following:

• Home page giving details of the organisation, a short video and links to other relevant websites• A page giving more detail about what happens in the organisation

• Map page with embedded google map showing location of the organisation• A contact page giving telephone numbers of important personnel and a form allowing users to

request further information or provide information• A confirmation page for the contact page

• A page linking to a database for searching or adding information

In the space below, make a sketch of the remaining six pages.

22 | P a g e

3.6 LogosYou may need to design logos, create videos or take pictures to be included on the website. In this section you must explain how the logos have been created or how the pictures have been modified so

that they can be incorporated into the website. Remember that images can use a lot of memory space and could slow the loading of pages. You must try to minimise this or users will become frustrated with

your site. You should explain how you have changed the format of pictures.

The inclusion of a video is particularly useful for helping to obtain high marks. This can be an actual video or can be a series of still images created in movie maker.

In the space below, describe how the images were obtained and how they were optimised for use on

the website.

You should have communication from the user confirming that you can use the logo. This relates to the

Design, Patents and Copyright legislation.

23 | P a g e

4 ImplementationThis section of the report will provide evidence of system implementation using Microsoft SharePoint.

Make sure you take screenshots of the pages as you create them. This will save you creating them again later.

4.1 First pageYou need to begin by creating the structure for the pages. This will be created using div’s and tables. Your teacher will have shown you how to do this. You need to show the code you have used and screen

shot of the basic page.

Next we can begin to create the menu structure. This will be set of list items. You teacher will have explained the html structure for this. Create the structure and show a screen shot of the completed

menu.

Now you need to add the logo. Once again you need to show a screenshot of the code and a screenshot of the page design.

Repeat this for any items that are common to all your pages.

When you have completed the basic design, save this page with the names of all the pages you intend to

use.

Finally complete the Home page. Remember to show a screenshot of the code and the finished item each time.

4.2 Other PagesOpen each of the remaining pages and populate them with the required content. Remember to use a screenshot show your code and finished elements. Remember that the examiner will not see an online

version of your website, so it is important that they see all the complete pages.

4.3 Web Site StructureFinally you should show a copy of your website structure. This should match the design you created in

the design chapter.

4.4 Publishing Web SiteThe final task in the implementation section is to publish the website. You have been allocated web

space with C2k and you should upload the website to this space for testing.

24 | P a g e

5 Testing Testing is carried out on systems to eliminate errors and to provide evidence that the system operates

according to the requirements placed upon it. Testing involves setting up a test plan, carrying out the testing and showing the test results. User testing involves the user using the implemented system and

providing feedback to the designer before the system goes ‘live’.

5.1 Web page Load SpeedYou should begin testing by checking the download times for each of your pages. The web address of a

site for testing download speeds was given in the design section.

Use the space below to record the download speeds for each of your pages.

Page Download speed

You should explain why there is a difference in the times for each page and refer to the change of file format for images to help download speeds.

25 | P a g e

5.2 Test PlanThe test plan needs to include tests with correct data and erroneous data to see how the system responds i.e. check to see if the validation checks operate effectively and that valid data is dealt with

appropriately. The areas that need to be considered are testing of navigation, links to other web pages, testing of data entry (highlighting the validation of data), checking Alt Text, etc. You need to show

evidence of the tests.

In the space below, make a note how you will show evidence of the tests.

26 | P a g e

5.3 User TestingAsk the End User to ‘try out’ the system and see if it satisfactory for the purpose it was intended for. Report on the feedback that they give. Record here any positive and negative comments that are made.

No system ever gets positive feedback only and you must include negative comments.

It is best if you have some form of test schedule for the user so that they can work through the system as if they were a customer. They should note any problems with the website.

In the space below, make a note of the tests you wish the user to carry out so that you can be assured

that the website has been created according to the user’s needs.

27 | P a g e

6 EvaluationYou have now reached the end of your project and you are required to review the process of completing

this it. You need to consider how effectively your website meets the user’s needs and how your skills and knowledge have developed as you progressed through the project.

6.1 User EvaluationIn this section the user should describe their experience of using the website and communicating with you. They should be as positive as possible. They should refer to their testing of the website and

describe the features that you have included for them.

6.2 Evaluation against CriteriaThe evaluation section needs to evaluate the system that has been developed against the evaluation

criteria. For each item listed in your criteria, you should explain how you have met the criteria and give a reference to where it has been shown in the implementation section.

In the space below, List the User Requirements, explain how you have met them and give a screen shot

as evidence.

User Requirement How you met the requirement Screenshot (,)

28 | P a g e

6.3 Further DevelopmentIt is unlikely that you had the time or skill to add all the features the user would like on the website. You may even have ideas to develop the project further. In this section you are required to consider how

additional contents could be included on the website. You may wish to describe how e-commerce could be developed, a log in section for members, a table booking system, etc.

In the space below describe three additional features that you think would be a useful addition to the

site.

29 | P a g e

6.4 Personal Evaluation

In this last section you need to evaluate your own performance; to reflect on things you did well and

consider how you would improve those which you could have done better.

Project PlanAt the beginning of the project you created a project plan using a Gantt chart. You randomly allocated

days for the completion of each section. Think back to how you completed each section, the work involved and how accurately you were in completing each section.

In the space below, explain that factors that prevented you from completing the section in the time

allocated. If you were to complete the project again, would you allocate more days or fewer days to each section?

Introduction

Analysis

Design

Implementation

Testing

Evaluation

30 | P a g e

Interaction with the ClientTo complete the project you needed to make contact with your client and agree aims and costing before proceeding. How did you find this process was it easy to contact your client, were there any delays,

were you able to get on with other work while you were waiting for a response?

In the space below, make some notes about your communication with your client.

Your own performanceFinally you need to evaluate what you have learnt. Are you time management skills any better, have you learnt about project management, what have you learnt about communication with clients, what

additional skills do you have, what would you like to develop further?

In the space below, make a note of what you have learnt in completing this project.

31 | P a g e