A Three-Level Schema Architecture for the Conceptual Design of Web-Based Information Systems

It has been recognized only recently that, like databases, web sites need models and schemes. Data-intensive web sites are best developed using a multi-level design approach proceeding from data design via navigation design to web-page design. Modern web-based information systems are no longer static in nature. Rather they are dynamic. Besides querying, they support workflow tasks and e-commerce transactions. The design of such systems needs to consider the underlying business process next to the data. Their integrated design has been mainly treated in an ad-hoc way so far. In this paper, we present a three-level schema architecture for the conceptual design of dynamic web-based information systems. We employ an object-oriented approach that integrates data and process management and complements previous approaches for the design of data-intensive web sites.

Keywords:web-based information system, object-oriented database system, object-oriented design, schema architecture, workflow