The basis of the testing undertaken throughout the project will be the use cases and functional specifications developed in WP2. These will include the specification of not only the functionality of the system and its individual components but also the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) which will be used to appraise both the performance of the individual components and the integrated system. There will be a number of stages of testing during the project, with a different emphasis during each stage. The first of these stages will be the component testing, which will be undertaken to ensure the functional integrity of the individual system elements prior to their integration. Following integration, the performance and functionality of the supporting software elements will be tested to identify any issues with the performance relating to these facilities.
The final phase of the testing will be the most extensive, and will be formalized to ensure both that the findings are valid in terms of the methodology, functions and KPIs examined, and that the testing is reliable and can be seen to have been undertaken in a manner which provides both a high level of transparency and a sufficient “paper trail.”
As part of the Living Labs methodology, users will be involved in the project since its very beginning. They will not merely use the online services but will take part in their evaluation and improvement. Each beneficiary is committed to providing a group of active users for the project duration. User evaluation is based on a user evaluation plan, which will be produced during a stakeholder meeting. Furthermore, evaluation includes establishing and validating user performance indicators and identifying some measures in order to improve the efficiency, productivity and end-user satisfaction. A special end-user questionnaire and usability tests and scenarios will be designed and used within the determined user group.