BACKGROUND

The Internet is rapidly expanding into all sectors of our society and becoming an indispensable platform of information systems and other computer applications as well. Web-based applications are complex, ever evolving and rapidly updated software systems. Testing and maintaining web-based applications are a nightmare because the Internet is a heterogeneous, distributed, multiplatform, multilingual, multimedia, autonomous, cooperative wide area network computing environment. Traditional quality models, testing methods and tools are not adequate for web-based applications because they do not address problems associated with the new features of web-based applications. At present, web-based applications testing and maintenance are still an unexplored area and rely on ad hoc testing processes. Little has been reported on systematic testing methods and techniques, quality metrics, and dependability of web-based applications, to mention just a few.

The first workshop on quality assurance and testing of web-based applications was successfully held at IEEE 28th Annual International Computer Software and Applications Conference (COMPSAC'04) in Hong Kong, Sept. 30, 2004. This is the second workshop of the series. It is aimed to provide a forum for researchers, practitioners and tools vendors to exchange ideas, research results, practical experiences and lessons learned on quality assurance and testing of web-based applications. It will also be held at COMPSAC'05 in Edinburgh, UK, July 26-28, 2005.

 CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS

We are seeking for position papers addressing, but not limited to, the following themes and topics:
Testing and Quality Assurance Methods and Techniques

Effective quality assurance and testing of web-based applications require a systematic approach, which include models, methods and techniques that deal with the representation of software artefacts under test and processes for the analysis of these artefacts, and the generation of test cases/test data from them. This theme seeks proposals of test models, methods and techniques for web-based applications including but are not limited to the following:

• Test models and meta-models
• Verification and validation techniques, such as modelling checking, consistency and completeness checking, etc.
• Analysis and testing
• Test criteria
• Architecture and framework
• Reverse engineering
• Exception handling
• Testing for security, privacy and trustworthiness
• Content management
• Tools and environments

Process and Management Issues

A process is a sequence of macro-level activities performed to accomplish a significant task. This theme deals with processes and management activities for quality assurance and testing of web-based applications. Example topics are:

• Quality management
• Human factors
• Web configuration management
• Metrics and indicators
• Maintenance and evolution
• Content management
• Process improvement
• Quality of service
• Security and privacy (as quality metrics)
• Dependability
• Fault tolerance and automatic recovery models

Practical Applications and Experience

Reports on quality assurance and testing of practical web-based applications or industrial experiences are strongly encouraged. Topics include but are not limited to:

• Quality assurance and testing of E-Commerce applications
• Quality assurance and testing of E-Government applications
• Quality assurance and testing of E-Science applications
• Quality assurance and testing of Wireless applications
• Security and privacy in practice
• Lessons learned

Technology Impact

This theme is concerned with impact of related technologies to quality assurance and testing of web-based applications as well as impact of quality assurance and testing of web-based applications to other technologies. Example technologies are:

• Bio-metric technology
• Data warehouse and data mining
• Agent technology
• Autonomic computing
• Component software engineering
• Wireless communication
• Mobile computing
• Service-oriented computing
• Ubiquitous/pervasive computing
• Network centric computing
• Web services technologies
• Grid computing
• Open grid service architectures
• Grid middleware

  SUBMISSION  

Original papers not being submitted to journals or other conferences will be considered. All submitted papers will be evaluated according to its originality, significance, correctness, presentation and relevance. Papers should be submitted electronically at QATWBA'05 Submission Page: QATWBA'05 Submissions by Feb. 28th, 2005. Please follow the instructions given by the web page.

The format of submitted papers must follow the IEEE/ACM conference proceedings guidelines, including no page numbers. We encourage authors to present novel ideas, critique of existing work, and practical studies and experiments.

Accepted papers will be published in the workshop proceedings of the 29th IEEE Computer Software and Applications Conference (COMPASC2005). At least one of the authors of each accepted paper must register as a full participant of the workshop to have the paper published in the proceedings.

The authors of accepted papers of the workshop will be invited to submit a revised full version of the paper for publication in a special issue of the Journal of Information and Software Technology. Submissions to the special issue will be reviewed again according to the journal's quality standard.

 IMPORTANT DATES

• February 28, 2005 (Extended): Deadline paper submissions
• April 15, 2005: Notification acceptance
• May 16, 2005: Deadline for camera-ready copies of accepted papers
• July 26-28: COMPSAC conference date
• Workshop date: To be determined, during July 26-28, 2004

 CONFERENCE ORGANIZERS

Workshop Co-Chairs

Program Committee:

Sami Beydeda, University of Leigzip, Germany
Shing-Chi Cheung, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong
Chien-hung Liu, Taipei University of Technology, Taiwan
Jose Maldonado, University of Sao Paulo, Brasil
Jeff Offutt, George Mason University, USA
Amie Souter, Drexel University, USA
Wei-Tek Tsai, Arizona State University, USA
TY Chen, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia