Tuesday, July 4th, 2006
Mobile Web Best Practices
Yesterday, speaking of Firefox, tangentially touched the topic of the advantages, web design, follow the standards agreed in the W3C. This interesting subject has entered fully into the subject of this blog, publishing barely a few days ago the Mobile Web Best Practices by the W3C (Gonzalo thanks for the warning). But what is the mobile web?
When talking about the Mobile Web are referred to a website where users can access information from anywhere, regardless of the type of device used to it.
Currently, there is a growing demand by users in regard to an unconditional availability of the Web, but the reality is another market because although the offer of mobile devices is growing at an astonishing rate in recent years, offering plenty of devices from which to conduct operations that we conducted normally from the desktop, there are limitations when accessing services from these mobile devices. In most cases the result is an unsatisfactory user experience encountering numerous problems accessing the Web from mobile devices.
The W3C, with the aim of making access to the Web from a mobile device as simple and comfortable as it is from desktops, has launched the Mobile Web Initiative which seeks to solve the problems of interoperability and usability that currently hinder access to the Web from mobile devices and allow one of the main goals of W3C is to achieve a single Web. It would transform the Web into a ubiquitous service platform transparent to the user.
Now that we know what we mean, let's see what these bring Mobile Web Best Practices W3C:
W3C is pleased to announce the move to Candidate Recommendation for Mobile Web Best Practices 1.0. Written for web designers and content managers, these guidelines describe how to create Web content that works well on mobile devices. Thirty organizations participating in the Mobile Web Initiative, aiming to reach a consensus and promote the implementation of these guidelines to improve the user experience and achieve a "single site".
As well explains Gonzalo on his blog, candidate recommendation means that the next step, once it has received sufficient information on the implementation of these practices will be the recommendation (ie officially approved by the W3C). We can learn more about this initiative to standardize the mobile web on the official website and read the official press release and the opinions of the characters, which is strongest in this new world of mobile web. Also, to keep abreast of the latest developments, we can follow the blog of the working group responsible for this area. In parallel, another group is working to describe the characteristics of all mobile devices, and to define rules that facilitate the design for these devices.
The mobile web is already an important part of the web
Volunteers aware of the importance of this document are preparing a summary in Castilian to add it to the other documents already translated. In total there are 60 guidelines, which advise us how to make web pages suitable for small Internet-connected devices such as mobile phones and PDAs. This practical guide will be as important as they are in acualmente web design in general the other established by the W3C. In fact, as existing validation tools to check our documents CSS, HTML, etc, will soon receive a validator of mobile content.
The use of standards is critical for achieving a seamless interoperability between different technologies. At first there were only browsers for PCs, which conditioned the web design to a specific screen sizes, and some specific programs. How many pages of the 90 wore a naive "optimized for Internet Explorer 4 and a resolution of 800 × 600". Through this "optimization" are now difficult to read using Firefox eg 1280 × 1024. Moreover, nowadays a web page can also be viewed using a PDA, a reading software that converts text to speech, or BrailleBook, which shows in relief, using Braille, the text on the page, allowing to navigate the blind. We can to make our page look good on all these devices, and which make up later, otherwise than using web standards.
Patented by a Spanish, uses free software and connects via bluetooth
To learn more about web standards, the W3C can be found a short guide in Spanish:
- Accessibility: at first the goal was to make Internet content should be accessible to persons with disabilities. But later it was found that the designs are concerned about accessibility to these groups, are also easier to use for the rest of society.
- CSS: The aim of the current web design is complete separation of presentation and content. One thing is what you mean, and over how you want to display (colors, fonts, positions). If both are well differentiated, it will be easy to make different presentations for clients (agents) different. One example is the mobile version of this page, that from the same content, easily generates a presentation designed for mobile devices.
- Device Independence: the separation discussed earlier, we get easily make presentations specifically designed for devices that might not exist at the time of creating the content.
- Internationalization: Internationalization can be defined as a process through which they will design Web sites adaptable to different languages and regions without requiring code changes. The use of formats and protocols do not create barriers to different languages, writing systems, codes and other local conventions is essential to talk about internationalization on a website. Internationalization is also known as I18N, which is short for Internationalization because there are 18 letters between the i and n.
- Multimodal Interaction: The Multimodal Interaction and Multimodality is a process in which different devices and people are able to carry out an interaction (auditory, visual, tactile, and gestural) joint anywhere, anytime, using any device and accessible form, thereby increasing the interaction between people and between devices and people. The user through multimodal interaction may determine the mode or modes of interaction that is used for accessing information, which extends and improves the user interface because it allows the pooling of voice and other types of devices data input such as keyboards, mice, pens, etc.., especially for mobile applications.
- W3C Patent Policy: how to manage patents in the process of creation and development of Web standards with the aim of enabling the dissemination, adoption and ongoing development of Web standards without the problems that may arise in relation to copyright . That is, the main objective of this policy is to ensure that W3C recommendations developed under this policy shall be implemented free of copyright.
- Privacy and P3P: sometimes there is a kind of distrust of the Internet that negatively affects the development of Web-based commerce. To resolve this problem arises P3P Platform for Privacy Preferences (Platform for Privacy Preferences), which arises from the need to guarantee privacy in an ever-expanding Web. P3P is a standard language that provides users an easy and automated control further the use made of your personal information on Web sites they visit.
- Security: the need to ensure the integrity, confidentiality and authenticity of data flowing through the Web has become an essential requirement. For this reason the security area is growing rapidly, but there are many difficulties to manage data with hierarchical structures and with subsets of data with different requirements in regard to confidentiality, access rights or integrity. To address these problems have developed standards like XML Encryption and XML Signature, prepared to handle situations in which parts of a document need different treatment, as they occur in different sections of documents whose content can be viewed by some users but not for others.
- Web Services: one could speak of them as a set of applications or technologies with the capacity to interoperate across the Web. These applications and technologies exchange data between them with the aim of providing services. Suppliers provide their services as remote procedures and service users request by calling these procedures across the Web.
- Multimedia technology: devices for surfing the Web have evolved in recent years exponentially. Alongside this development has lagged behind the introduction of simple text and pictures, and replaced by the possibility of incorporating a variety of objects, such as sound files, video and animation, with the aim of enriching the user experience and while providing the possibility of using different media together. But the introduction of all these elements in a manner consistent becomes a challenging job for developers. For this reason, the specifications developed by W3C working to develop language in this rich multimedia compatible with different devices and browsers on the market.
- XML technologies: XML is an Extensible Markup Language very simple, but strict that plays a key role in the exchange of a wide variety of data. It is a language very similar to HTML but its main function is to describe data and not display them as is the case with HTML. XML is a format that allows reading of data across different applications.
- Mobile Web: The topic we are discussing today. In this brief guide can better understand this phenomenon and its peculiarities.
- Semantic Web: the Web has profoundly changed the way we communicate, do business and perform our work. Communication with virtually everyone at any time at low cost is possible today. However, while these factors have led to the success of the Web, have also caused the main problems: information overload and heterogeneity of information sources with the attendant problem of interoperability. The Semantic Web helps solve these two major problems by allowing users to delegate tasks to software. With the Semantic Web, the software is capable of processing the content, reason with this, combining and logical deduction to solve everyday problems automatically.
- XForms: it is a new markup language for Web forms, designed to be a substitute for traditional HTML forms, which will allow developers of Web forms distinguish between purpose and presentation form. This clear separation between content and presentation has great advantages in terms of reuse, device independence and accessibility.
- XHTML: XHTML (HyperText Markup Language Extensible) is a stricter and cleaner version of HTML, which arises precisely in order to replace HTML with its limitation of use with increasingly rich XML-based tools. XHTML 4.0 extends HTML by combining the syntax of HTML, designed to display data with XML, designed to describe data. Before the arrival on the market of a large number of devices, XHTML language emerges as the labeling of which stricter than HTML, it will allow a proper interpretation of the information regardless of the device from which you accessed. XHTML can include other languages such as MathML, SMIL and SVG, unlike HTML.
The topic of web standards has gained the importance it deserves in recent years and now with the boom in mobile communications, begins to take shape for these small devices. Something no doubt that he who wants to evaluate good web designer must keep in mind from now.
By: Mark Gonzalez Troyes in Palm News
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The fact is that the WWW has changed (evolved call it too), to give more benefits to our way of navigating. Because we want to browse and visit the web from anywhere with our PDA's ...
Today is not uncommon to find in almost any site, Flash content, multimedia objects (videos, etc ...), they can not always be compatible with your browser.
Obviously, any desktop / laptop, or with the OS it is, usually takes a browser that includes almost all the options to read / play / interpret correctly next generation Web content. Sometimes touch update some modules, but generally everything is reproducible.
Instead, navigate using PDAs and / or devices "that are outside the minimum format screen (640 × 480?), Can become an ordeal if the site designer has not taken into account what type of end device is for the site and, of course, if your hardware is not ready for that purpose.
Lately I come to find quite a few sites that advocate a "return to simplicity" that is, using typical HTML commands understood by all browsers, however simple they may be. This initially may seem silly or a "step backwards", accelerates the navigation as there are fewer objects to carry "extra" and is more compatible with the WWW at any gadgets-call it a mobile phone with web services.
Personally I often use on Palm OS, known Plucker (http://www.plkr.org/) to get out some content for offline reading. It's simple, Donateware and works pretty well as it adapts to the Palm screen correctly.
In my late PocketPC (died a few days ago, here you can read his epitaph: http://www.pcdemano.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=15095), using the very well-known Avantgo. Never seemed comfortable using these tiny screens to navigate. Netfront Even software that is usually best not show all web content at 100%.
In my k700i SonyEriccson recently tried the mobile version of Opera, and it's not bad, but as usual, or the pages are "prepared to mobile" or AGARRENSE to navigate with ease.
Hopefully in the future, when software developers, the W3C and device manufacturers will join in Standard's 100% compatible with ALL, we have a truly mobile Web site with quality, with ls have the same options browser "desktop".
I for while, I just buy a PSP in "replacement" of my late Paca, and I'm very surprised with the browser included. Do not load any type of content, but if it works in almost all types of websites (including this one which I can read comfortably from my couch). As the browser is very "new" missing muuuchas options, but hopefully with time, distance erode older siblings safe. and eye, Nintendo will soon publish a browser for DS system (developed by Opera).
So keep you alert the WWW keeps moving.
Greetings, Hark0
(Sorry to hook up both).
Hark0 Hello, first my condolences on your paquita
The future of internet is on mobile devices. Just as the computer is restricted to mainframes, and now there are laptops, PDAs and computers to watch Internet moves from fixed PCs to all types of devices. Moreover, I think the fixed PCs may disappear altogether.
Advanced technology, but the problem I see is the screen size. A PDA screen slashing the minimum that normal people would be willing to use a mobile and better for quick reference only and transactions not longer than one minute.
But in exchange, the possibility of internet connection anywhere, either with wifi, wimax, or whatever comes, is impressive. It will be the next revolution, and will change our way of life (see now what you think of a road map on paper, compared with a GPS, and extrapólalo everything you use every day).
Mobile devices are the future, one day a company took out a device that is usable by the masses (eg, a UMPC but well designed), and since then we can not believe that before we had to go home and sit on a chair clearance to access the internet and watch anything.
100% agree with you Mark ...
You, me .... We all want to bring the Internet in your pocket .... And so comfortable that you can read .... but of course .... unless it's a UMPC market like god ....
Meanwhile, continue to use "there".
H.