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Publishing to Mobile Devices: Best Practices and Strategies. Mike Hamilton V.P. Product Evangelism MadCap Software mhamilton@madcapsoftware.com. Agenda. Types of Devices Delivery Formats Delivery Strategy. Type of Device. Type of Device. Smartphones. Tablets. Smartphones/Hand Helds.
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Publishing toMobile Devices: Best Practices and Strategies Mike Hamilton V.P. Product Evangelism MadCap Software mhamilton@madcapsoftware.com
Agenda • Types of Devices • Delivery Formats • Delivery Strategy
Type of Device Smartphones Tablets
Smartphones/Hand Helds • Small form factor (7cm to 13cm) • Relatively low resolution • 320x480 • 480x360 • 400x800 • 640x960 • Low resolution pointing device (Touch)
Smartphones/Hand Helds Primary Limitations: • Limited screen width • Fine for text • Problematic for large, non-text content • Touch interfaces • Elements must be sized to be compatible with human touch
Tablets • Medium form factor (17cm to 26cm) • Medium to high resolution • 800x600 • 1024x600 • 1024x768 • 1366x768 • 2048x1536 • Touch/Mouseinterfaces
Tablets Primary Limitations: • Multiple interface options • Touch interfaces • Elements must be sized to be compatible withhuman touch
Tablets Primary Limitations: • Multiple interface options • Touch interfaces • Elements must be sized to be compatible withhuman touch • Mouse interfaces • Can use standardelements
Delivery Formats • EPUB • HTML5 • WebHelp Mobile
EPUB • Designed for long, linear documents (novels) • Requires a viewer • Presents like a book, but reflows content like a web page
EPUB Advantages • Comfortable book-like feel • “Off-line” format • Single file • Standards-based
EPUB Disadvantages • Requires an installed viewer • Difficulty with “overflow” • Inconsistentviewers • No branding
HTML5 • Optimized for medium or large format devices • Uses the on board browser • Tested: • Int. Explorer • Chrome • Firefox • Safari
HTML5 Advantages: • Cross-browser and cross-platform • No frameset! • Can be branded • Known experience
HTML5 Disadvantages: • No Internet Explorer 6 or 7 support (use the older WebHelp)
WebHelp Mobile • Optimized for small format devices • Uses the on board browser • Tested: • Android • Blackberry • iPhone • Windows Phone
WebHelp Mobile Advantages: • One output supportsall devices • Can be branded • Always up to date • Handles “overflow”content well
WebHelp Mobile Disadvantages: • Requires a livedata connection • Can be quite technical
Phones and Hand Helds WebHelp Mobile • Use an appropriate navigation strategy for the small screen • Customize your CSS • Use conditionals / meta-data to remove any unnecessary content
Tablets Modified WebHelp or HTML5 • Customize your CSS using a Mobile “medium” • Increase the size of navigation items
Summary • Determine what devices you need to support • Select an appropriate format for each type of device • Tailor content using templates, CSS, and meta-data • Modify navigation elements for touch compatibility
Questions? Mike Hamilton V.P. Product Evangelism MadCap Software mhamilton@madcapsoftware.com