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Reasons why it sucks

The Mobile Web. Pin-Chin Huang Columbia University. Reasons why it sucks. COMS E6125 WHIM. Introduction. The Mobile Web The World Wide Web as accessed from mobile devices such as cell phones and PDAs  Reports in 2007

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Reasons why it sucks

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  1. The Mobile Web Pin-Chin Huang Columbia University Reasons why it sucks COMS E6125 WHIM

  2. Introduction • The Mobile Web The World Wide Web as accessed from mobile devices such as cell phones and PDAs  • Reports in 2007 More than 60% of U.S. wireless users own an Internet-enabled mobile device, but only 5% of them actually use the mobile Internet  • Why? Mobile devices, wireless carriers, and the Web itself. WHIM Spring 2008

  3. Mobile Devices: Problems • Screen Size Users want a smaller device, but a larger screen  • Processor & Memory Need beefy hardware to render web pages: CSS stylesheets, DOM manipulation, multimedia, client-side scripting, etc. • Input Capabilities Numerical keypad not enough for E-mail or IM applications WHIM Spring 2008

  4. Mobile Devices: Problems • Browser Behaviors Different browsers (Opera, Nokia, Openwave, Pocket IE, NetFront, Minimo, Safari) have different support for XHTML, CSS, JavaScript, Flash, frames, background images, SSR, max page size, etc. • Cost Smart phones/PDAs typically cost $400 – $800 CNN.com MSDN.com WHIM Spring 2008

  5. Mobile Devices: Possible Solutions • Rollable Display • Handheld Projector Scheduled to commercialize in 2008 • Boost processor speed & memory But what about heat dissipation? • QWERTY keypad • Wait for someone to unify standards… WHIM Spring 2008

  6. Wireless Networks: Problems • Slow • WAP = Wait And Pay; GPRS/EDGE = 10 to 20 KB/s at best • 3G: theoretical rate 1Mbps, but often falls short of expectations • Scott Karp describes his 3G experience: “It would have been faster, literally, to call my wife at home and ask her to look it up on a real broadband connection.” • Expensive Pay per kilobyte  but people are used to unlimited surfing WHIM Spring 2008

  7. Wireless Networks: Possible Solutions • WiMAX 802.16 • Practical rate 10 Mbps  2x faster than cable, 6x faster than DSL • Sprint Nextel deploying nationwide network in 2008 • Intel’s 5th generation Centrino and Nokia’s new handsets to support WiMAX in 2008 as well • 3GPP Long Term Evolution • Goals: 172.8 Mbps downlink, 86.4 Mbps uplink • First testing successful in November 2007 (by Nokia) • AT&T and Verizon Wireless planning to migrate toward LTE • Initial deployment planned in 2010 • Cost? Depends on the wireless carriers… WHIM Spring 2008

  8. The Web: Problems • Web Presentation • Sites not formatted for small screens  endless scrolling & zooming • “So, great, you can jam the entire NYtimes.com onto the screen – got a magnifying glass?”  • Device Fragmentation • H/W diversity: screen size, processor, keypad, stylus, etc. • S/W diversity: OS platforms, browsers, APIs • User Context • Most websites are not context/location-aware • “When I visit Costco on a mobile device, what are the chances I’m going to shop? I want store locations, hours, and phone numbers, and I don’t want to stumble through four slow-loading screens to get that info.” WHIM Spring 2008

  9. W3C One Web Principle • “Making the same information and services available to users irrespective of the device they are using.” • Do Nothing • Pray SSR renders well • Rely on HTML transcoders  • Use Raw HTML • Remove styling and images • IYHY.com provide raw rendering service • Develop Handheld CSS Stylesheets • develop a CSS (Cascading Style Sheet) for each targeted screen size nytimes.com viewed with IYHY WHIM Spring 2008

  10. Multi-Web Practice • “Create associated web pages that will give good user experiences in several of the most popular devices.” • .mobi Domain • Top-level domain for mobile-friendly sites • Backed by Google, Microsoft, Nokia, Samsung, Vodafone • Alternative URIs • Users are redirected to a URI appropriate to their device • Requires browser sniffing WHIM Spring 2008

  11. I Would Choose… • Multi-Web Practice • Web presentation problem is eliminated • Device fragmentation can be addressed • Specific needs of mobile users can be met (user context) • Alternative URIs • .mobi breaks URI address space  unnecessary • Not every company can get their .mobi domain name • E.g. nytimes.mobi is taken by someone else WHIM Spring 2008

  12. Conclusion • Facts • Mobile devices becoming faster • New display technologies coming to market • 4G networks being deployed • To make m-web “less sucky” we should… • Unify mobile web standards • Lower price for accessing wireless data networks • Adopt multi-web practice • Avoid breaking address space by adopting alternative URIs WHIM Spring 2008

  13. Conclusion • Mobile devices outnumbers PCs • 20:1 by worldwide number • Mobile web poised to replicate the success of Internet WHIM Spring 2008

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