by Don Park
at 2005/01/16 21:30:11
The last time I've done any intense development work for mobile devices was 4~5 years ago. At that time, I've looked at Palm, Pocket PC, J2ME, and WAP and concluded that mobile platforms were not yet ready. Last week, I've looked at the mobile devices and OSes again. My opinion is that it's still not ready despite the amazing change in capabilities and capacities.
The main problem that prevents emergence of killer apps on mobile platforms is that applications are treated as second-class citizens, placed in a straight-jacket and pigeon-holed.
To receive or make a call, one just flip-opens the phone or press a button. To use an application. one has to navigate around a typically hierarchical tree of functionalities. Some devices have separate buttons for built-in applications but they either cannot be remapped to another application or controls for remapping is buried and lost in that confusing tree of functionalities.
In addition, functionalities are not tightly integrated and offers wide array of modal experiences depending on where you are on the tree. On top of the default phone mode, browser mode, SMS mode, e-mail mode, address book mode, and various preference modes, each application has its own mode.
Before killer apps can emerge, mobile platforms must be changed drastically, removing modes and allowing applications to add their functionalities without being boxed in.
Comments
This is all because mobile phones should get a pen input (but remain small, Treo or Palm way is no good). Only after mobile phone gets a pen, they would become an OK application platform. It could be deliveerd today, but it would not be delivered for couple years, because hardware development process is messed up bigtime.
The phones of the future would have a pen inside the disposable antenna and all those silly problems with buttons would be gone ;-)
Voice recognition path (which they are beating now) is no good, I think ...
The phones of the future would have a pen inside the disposable antenna and all those silly problems with buttons would be gone ;-)
Voice recognition path (which they are beating now) is no good, I think ...
I disagree Paul. Pen input is IMHO inappropriate for mobile devices despite Palm's past success. Touch sensitive LCD screens with smart input system can cover most needs if need be.
But my main points are not about input methods but about the lack of ability to tightly integrate third-party applications to the phone's hardware and built-in applications. It's the difference between having your cellphone in your pocket versus having it in your luggage.
But my main points are not about input methods but about the lack of ability to tightly integrate third-party applications to the phone's hardware and built-in applications. It's the difference between having your cellphone in your pocket versus having it in your luggage.
I find email, IM, and taking notes on my Treo work very well. I even write a lot on it when trapped in places like an airplane. (Its just not worth it to get my laptop out anymore.) The treo has a stylus, but the screen is good enough that I can tap on things with my fingernail.
Sadly, web browsing is not all that great. Its partly the limited screen & memory, but also Palm's lack of multi-tasking, and an old-fashioned browser (I miss tabs).
btw, I had no problem remapping the apps I wanted onto the phone buttons.
Sadly, web browsing is not all that great. Its partly the limited screen & memory, but also Palm's lack of multi-tasking, and an old-fashioned browser (I miss tabs).
btw, I had no problem remapping the apps I wanted onto the phone buttons.
Paul, I think Don is right on target here. That something not obvious untill you start developing for phones, and then you just horrified how completely disconnected everything is. based on our little alerts thing www.h-mind.com/frontieralerts/ - say you subscribed on web and start getting our SMS alerts. can i send you a hyper link with that alert? No, no, thats completely different protocol! - sez mobile technology. you got to use WAP-Push for that! ok, so how i send you a push? well, get provider for *that*, they will charge you 10c-20c per message, just to send hyperlink. think how far you can go on technology where there is a per-hyperlink price...next - browser. WAP browser is not your grandpa browser. thats browser which completely customized phone to phone, and they can remap and change virtually ANYTHING. and some expect WAP content, and some want normal HTML which they will "covert" (ha-ha!) for you and some want cHTML. browsers are very often incredibly buggy. either create virtually 200 flavors of your site or accept you don't really know what users going to see.... (partialy I solved that with our "on the fly adaptive" gateway, but very partially) Want to drop browser and write own code - say with J2ME? even worse - now it slightly different JVM on evry device - now you test matrix is *per handset* not even per browser. given Java virtual focus you cant *really* access anything specific to your phone (say address book) from J2ME code ("oh, what if you runing it on the phone *without* address book?"). to certain degree J2ME games are popular because there is not MUCH else you can write on J2ME.
bottom line mobile scene right now is crazy mish-mach of conflicting technologies, none of which gives you more then 10-20% of full solution. adding WAP site link to the phone is 20 min finger breaking excercise. no obvious way how to install apps and where they go. etc. everything Don said.
my personal beleif - it so broken now, nobody will even try to fix it. phones will just grow powerful enough in few years to run mini-OS (which smartphones basicaly do already they just have too low market share now). they will ran standard PC-based browser we will compile apps for them just by selecting different target CPU platform. Untill we get there today solutions is just waisting time on stuff which will be completely irrelevent in few years time.
bottom line mobile scene right now is crazy mish-mach of conflicting technologies, none of which gives you more then 10-20% of full solution. adding WAP site link to the phone is 20 min finger breaking excercise. no obvious way how to install apps and where they go. etc. everything Don said.
my personal beleif - it so broken now, nobody will even try to fix it. phones will just grow powerful enough in few years to run mini-OS (which smartphones basicaly do already they just have too low market share now). they will ran standard PC-based browser we will compile apps for them just by selecting different target CPU platform. Untill we get there today solutions is just waisting time on stuff which will be completely irrelevent in few years time.
Don,
By 'pen input' I mean that it is *clearly* easier to hit the drawn + application specific icons / buttons with the pen, rather than press mechanical pre-defined buttons with your finger.
My version of 'pen input' can not be worse than button-based way, because my 'pen input' is a clear *superset* of button-based way.
I'm not talking about the Palm's or Treo's pen input. I'm talking about the 'pen input' similiar to what you use in Safeway's POS (if you ever visit Safeway ;-)
Palm / Treo give some idea, but they are not exactly fit.
By 'pen input' I mean that it is *clearly* easier to hit the drawn + application specific icons / buttons with the pen, rather than press mechanical pre-defined buttons with your finger.
My version of 'pen input' can not be worse than button-based way, because my 'pen input' is a clear *superset* of button-based way.
I'm not talking about the Palm's or Treo's pen input. I'm talking about the 'pen input' similiar to what you use in Safeway's POS (if you ever visit Safeway ;-)
Palm / Treo give some idea, but they are not exactly fit.
Paul, I agree that it's much easier to hit the target than crawl up to it. For that, I think touch-sensitive LCDs are superior cuz you don't have to pull out a pen which takes up unnecessary space on the phone also.
Combining touch-sensitive LCD with the Appy button [1], flattening and introducing uniformity to the UI hierarchy is a good direction IMHO.
[1] http://www.docuverse.com/blog/donpark/EntryViewPage.aspx?guid=828
Combining touch-sensitive LCD with the Appy button [1], flattening and introducing uniformity to the UI hierarchy is a good direction IMHO.
[1] http://www.docuverse.com/blog/donpark/EntryViewPage.aspx?guid=828
Next-App link is broken for some reason. Use this search link instead:
http://www.docuverse.com/blog/donpark/SearchView.aspx?q=Next-App%20Button
http://www.docuverse.com/blog/donpark/SearchView.aspx?q=Next-App%20Button
Don - it seems we agree in principle.
Now if only you would visit your nearest Safeway and try pocking their ATM with the finger ( ignoring the pen which they provide ;-) - I think that after *that* experiment we will be in 100% agreement that the pen is (unfortunately) 'must have' (can be a disposable antenna, can be the one next to existing antenna - that would be some funny looking phone ;-).
Seriosly - try that experiment.
Now if only you would visit your nearest Safeway and try pocking their ATM with the finger ( ignoring the pen which they provide ;-) - I think that after *that* experiment we will be in 100% agreement that the pen is (unfortunately) 'must have' (can be a disposable antenna, can be the one next to existing antenna - that would be some funny looking phone ;-).
Seriosly - try that experiment.
By 'ATM' I mean 'POS' ;-)
"Next APP" is also the right idea.
"Next App" + "Pen input" ( each "next app" moves you to next screen, the screen containg 'commands' ) allows convenient 2 step navigation, sufficient for almost anything ( Alt+Tab it is, BTW )
So - after 5 minutes of brainstorming we came up with a decent core for 'Windows for the cell phones'.
Back to coding now ;-)
"Next App" + "Pen input" ( each "next app" moves you to next screen, the screen containg 'commands' ) allows convenient 2 step navigation, sufficient for almost anything ( Alt+Tab it is, BTW )
So - after 5 minutes of brainstorming we came up with a decent core for 'Windows for the cell phones'.
Back to coding now ;-)
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Copyright © 2006 Don Park
