Client requirements

Client envisioned building a flash game website. It’s a platform for a fun and educational game that allows players to collect their favorite cartoon characters, while learning facts about the shows they come from.

Strategic Intent:

“To provide users with an online platform for free online trading and card games.”

Client requirements:

• The website will be a platform for users to sell and place bid for ctoons.

• Members will have facility to create account and initiate the game.

• The site will only allow one account per user to avoid cheating and unfair practices, if there will be a particular need for an extra account, users can send a request to one of the moderators through the official forums.

• The site will allow members to login to their account, they can click on the "My Collection" link on the menu. Then, search through their collection for the ctoon that they wish to sell.

• The site will have inbox as a personal organizer for users to read and review all their personal messages, offline trade offers and trade board offers. Users can accept or decline trades, and can also save or delete their personal messages.

• The site will have live trading facility when two users trade each other ctoons in real time

• The site should allow users to load the referral page, they can add their friends email addresses to the correct fields and click send.

Challenges

Development of every web based portal had myriad inherent challenges and constraints.

The most critical problem that our team had faced was to understand the needs and requirements of all the stakeholders to make the site as per their expectations. At the same time it became imperative for us to study the psyche of clusters of target customers, their need, their taste, choice etc.

Besides this, we had many other constraints like-

1) Developing a Robust framework for the site which is capable of managing millions of users at a time without buckling down the system and site.

2) Developing and incorporating an extensive list of profile customization options, my account, my collection, cWorld etc for enhancing users' active participation.

3) Synchronizing the integrated features like my offers, my listings, buy cToons, trade board, auctions etc to function smoothly while being executed simultaneously.

4) Despite having complex structure and system, ensuring the easy navigation through the implementation of Web Usability principles in the website design.

5) Enabling the site to operate at top speed even in peak traffic hours and maintaining good load balance. Ensuring safe and secure transfer of data.

To overcome the aforementioned challenges and provide a robust web application to the client as per his requirements we used various technological approaches that are discussed in the next part.

Tools and technologies used

Probably the most popular language on the Internet used for web based scripting. Very fast interaction with databases. Read more Free, highly customizable low maintenance database management system. Consistently stable in high volume data environment with a wide range of support available for free over various forums and support portals. The preferred database used with PHP as a scripting language. Read more JavaScript and Asynchronous JavaScript and XML used for Crossover browser support, quick data updates. Scalable JavaScript used to provide enhanced user experience and validation. Open source and license free, sturdy platform with powerful capabilities used as Server.

Resources

Project manager 1 Business analyst 1 Designer(s) 2 Programmer(s) 5 Testing & QA stuff 3 Total manpower 12

Planning

With the prior experience in developing web based applications, Agile Technosys followed a Multi-tire approach towards the development starting from: The Database layer containing MY SQL Server Database, Tables, Stored procedures and so on The Data Access layer containing the libraries responsible for accessing data from database The Business Logic layer consisting of all business logic procedures for modules like User Profiles and Report generations, Invoice generation etc The User Interface Layer which forms the Graphical User, Interface of the website.

Architecture

PHP and MySQL formed the basis of development as the site has a program of Social Networking portal with extensive features. Company Profiles, Inquiries, Job Listings, Applying for Jobs, Job seekers Profile, Search and Advanced Search and other modules were developed in PHP such that they can be executed directly from the UI layer. These PHP files consisted of all Business logics used for respective modules like Save (Add/Update), Delete, Get single object, get multiple objects for listing and were designed to be capable of handling many more logics which were not related to the database. The Data Access layer contained the libraries responsible for accessing data from database and built a generic query for insert, update, delete and select, depending on the business class. All business layer components were coded to use this library for data accessing process from database. The UI layer was kept free of any business logic with images, applications and data being called from their respective servers. Sub-domains were used for the different areas of the website to guarantee scalability.