Testing phase in Multimedia Project Management

1. Testing phase in Multimedia Project Management

2. Introduction • Testing is examining the project performance according to the specifications that have been agreed. • This will include the robustness of the code or compatibility of the website across different browsers, the structure and content of the program or website, the interface, the interactivity, the performance of the program or site under specific conditions, the look and feel and perhaps accessibility issues.

3. Developmental testing • Testing the program against specifications includes: • the overall structure, • text, • audio and video scripts, • the audio and video edits, • the look of the graphics, • the look and • the feel of the navigation.

4. Cont.. • Some design errors will be impossible to change because of the repercussions on the whole of the rest of the project. • They need to be spotted early in the project to avoid effects on other parts of the application.

5. Acceptance Testing • The first standard is the program has to operate without failing. Some issues to note: • amount of use- number of users might overload the system, cause the site to slow down or cause some functions to stop working. • Load testing and stress testing of the site may become necessary and in some cases the site will need to be given to a specialized test facility for this. • Predict and cost the extent of these forms of testing

6. Cont.. • HTML is fairly simple form of code, but different web browsers will interpret the code differently, and it is practically impossible to test web pages on every combination. • The most common ‘bug’ on a web page is the broken link. • The testing plan should be drawn up to ensure that all paths will be explored and all data checked for accuracy, that all interactivity operates as expected, that the right data appears in the right sequence, and that any records that the user builds up during use are faithful and accurate

7. Testing strategy • State what measures will be taken to ensure that the final program meets the client’s requirements. • This include: • The number and type of sign-off stages, • The responsibilities of the team members to meet the technical and functional requirements at each stage • The analysis of the users if applicable • A peer review process if applicable • The building and trialling of a prototype if necessary

8. Final sign-off.. • If the acceptance test is prespecified and understood by all parties, then final sign-off will follow smoothly

9. Summary • Multimedia does not have a strong tradition of testing. Web development is beginning to develop a clearer relationship with the methods of testing from other disciplines. • Developmental testing is the combination of sign-offs of the completed parts of the project as well as the natural refinement of the individual assets during the development process.

10. Cont.. • Acceptance testing takes place at the final stage of the project to predefined criteria specified in the testing strategy. The integrated code is tested, and the robustness of the project is scrutinized. • Final sign-off agrees that the team has met its responsibilities and that the application performs as specified.

11. Project example

12. Testing multimedia presentation according user’s habit • It is important to learn about your audience in order to test an appropriate pool of subjects. they use google analytics to track their viewers, which has been extremely useful. • Screen Resolutions • Operating System • Browser • Flash Versions • Visitors Overview • Topics for discussion

13. Screen resolution • This data is extremely important when first deciding what dimensions to set for you multimedia presentation. According to W3Schools Online Web Tutorials, most users are currently browsing the web with a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 or greater.

14. Operating system • A majority of the audience uses Windows PC (92%). Mac is next with 7.25%. Interestingly enough, in the past month we have had viewers on both iPods and iPhones. Unfortunately, these systems do not provide Flash support at this time, and therefore it might be wise to build in a Flash detector to display a message in place of the content when a viewer does not have Flash capability.

15. Browser • According to our stats, 77% use Internet Explorer, 18% use Firefox, 4.5% use Safari, .5% use Chrome, etc. All together, visitors have used 9 different browsers to view our content. This immediately tells me that I want to test individuals on all of these platforms.

16. Flash version • With version 10 just around the corner, and CS4 in beta mode, make sure you always watch Flash player penetration levels to determine whether or not you need to detect Flash versions and help out those stragglers with a “Download recent Flash upgrade” message.

17. Visitor’s overview • Lastly, watch your visitor loyalty and traffic overview. Where are your visitors coming from? Is language an issue? How long are they staying on the content? How are they arriving at your content? What is their connection speed (i.e. will preloaders be needed)? All of these questions are easily answered in Google Analytics, and can help improve future projects by building the presentation around your user’s interests via their trends. Little do they know how much we can see about their viewing experience!

18. The end Thank you