Architectural Site Maps

Requirement for architectural sitemaps to be created during the project and modified accordingly to reflect the current design of the solution.

RATIONALE

Architectural site maps depict the current layout of a website and the different pathways users will take to access certain screens, sections or functionality on the site. They will be created by the solutions designers during the design phase of a project so that other project members can see how the solution will be structured overall. An example of an architectural site map for the solution is as follows:

     
    Figure 1: Architectural Site Map

‘Figure 1: Architectural Site Map’ shows a small sample of a sitemap. In this example the user can access the ‘Rentals’ section of the solution by navigating to the ‘Account Overview’ screen which will contain 4 other pages they can navigate to: Account Settings, Chat, Library and ‘Manage Payments. If the user then selects ‘Library’ they will be taken to a screen containing ‘Rentals’ and 4 other sections: Purchases, Gifts, Read List and Watch List. 

These maps are critical for the project as the developers will be using them as guidelines for building the solution while the testers will be referring back to the maps during the testing phase to ensure the paths they navigate down in the built version match the paths depicted in the maps.

SUCCESS CRITERIA

•    The solutions designers create architectural site maps during the design phase of the project to represent the structure of the solution
•    The maps are modified to reflect the current design of the solution if required throughout the project
•    The solutions developers use the site maps as a guideline when building the solution
•    The solutions testers use the site maps as a guideline when testing the solution