Using Scenario-Based Requirements to Direct Research on Web Macro Tools

Web macros automate the interactions of end users with web sites and related information systems. Though web macro recorders and players have grown in sophistication over the past decade, these tools cannot yet meet many tasks that people perform in daily life. Based on observations of browser users, we have compiled ten scenarios describing tasks that users would benefit from automating. Our analysis of these scenarios yields specific requirements that web macro tools should support if those tools are to be applicable to these real-life tasks. Our set of requirements constitutes a benchmark for evaluating tools, which we demonstrate by evaluating the Robofox, CoScripter, and iMacros tools.