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Computerworld - Whether you're launching a new Web-based application, extranet, intranet or Web site, your mission is to build something that meets usability, functionality, marketing and measurability requirements to generate positive returns.

In fact, according to a survey of technology buyers conducted in May 2002 by Dell Computer Corp., a majority of respondents said they regarded return on investment as their most important criterion in spending decisions.

With little room for error and finite budget and resource limitations, your projects demand attention to detail and granular specifications to keep them on time, on target and within cost estimates.

	Seth Miller is president, CEO and founder of Miller Systems Inc., a technology consulting and award-winning Web development and engineering firm in Boston. He can be reached at seth@millersystems.com.

Performing a proper project discovery and assessment can be a daunting and frequently avoided exercise, but the ROI can be exponential if the right strategic and tactical decisions are made early in the process.
What kinds of projects need detailed discovery?
Most horror stories about "feature creep" and budget explosion are usually the result of overlooked, under-researched, or underestimated requirements. The devil is in the details.

It's probably a fair statement to say that a static Web site with fewer than 50 pages doesn't require the kind of discovery process that this article focuses on. Sites of this nature typically just need a well-thought-out site content outline and design standards to be built on time and on budget. However, if your site or application meets any of the following criteria, there's a very strong chance that you'll need to go through a detailed discovery process:

• Your site or application involves an external or legacy system.


• Your site or application needs to be Web services-compliant (these projects are typically performed in Java 2 Enterprise Edition or the Microsoft .Net Framework).


• You are building or deploying any content management application (especially if you are building a browser-based administration interface).


• Your site or application employs e-commerce (however simple).


• Your site or application involves a database that is read from or written to by a Web-based interface.


• Your project is a complex multimedia piece (e.g., Macromedia Flash) that involves data-driven components (and is therefore programming-intensive, for instance, using ActionScript).

Projects that involve features or components as listed above are true software development projects and must be treated as such by beginning them with a detailed discovery phase.

What are the deliverables of a properly executed discovery phase?

All applications should be built from the user experience backwards. The point of discovery is to minimize unknowns from