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Vesa Purho
Research Analyst, Information Design, Nokia
A year ago (March 2001 CIDM e-newsletter), I wrote
about the challenges in writing information to be read using
a handheld device. I thought it was time to see what has
happened since then and provide some tips on what you can do
to prepare for mobile access now even though you may not be
sure if you ever will provide such a service.
I want to stress that I am not talking about an application
created for a handheld device like a mobile banking or an
address finding solution, but I'm talking about a case where
you want to enable the users of your product to read the
documentation, or parts of it, using a mobile device so that
they don't have to carry heavy books or a clumsy laptop with
them.
During the last year, the main change that happened was the
selection of XHTML Basic
(www.w3.org/TR/xhtml-basic/)
instead of WML as the language to be used in the future
microbrowsers in mobile phones. XHTML Basic is a stripped
down version of XHTML 1.0 aimed for small devices so it does
not support, for example, frames, scripts, or the style
element. WAP is still the protocol that is used for the
connection but instead of downloading WML documents, XHTML
pages are used.
XHTML has more support for textual elements than WML. You
can, for example, have bulleted and numbered lists, which
were not available in WML 1.x. You can also use Cascading
Stylesheets to modify how information is presented on
screen.
XHTML Basic is the basic language that the major
microbrowser vendors use, but they can also add their own
extensions such as support of JavaScript or some other
functionality that is not supported by other browsers. So
the challenge of designing information for more than one, or
even two, different browsers still exists although there are
some lowest common denominators.
During the last year, we have also seen the first mobile
phones with colour display that also have high enough
resolution and contrast to make the text easy to read. They
now allow for better use of graphics in the documents.
The physical screen size itself has not changed much and
perhaps never will as the requirements for mobility set
certain limits to the screen size and therefore elements
like tables will always be problematic if the same
information can be viewed on a large screen and on a small
screen.
So what can you do to make your information ready for mobile
access?
- In your XHTML, use as many basic elements as possible and
use Cascading Stylesheets to create the presentation in
the devices. You can then show the information differently
in different devices without having to touch the source
text. All you need to do is to create a new stylesheet for
each device.
- If you are writing your original text in XML or SGML, use
as semantic DTDs as possible. Consider, for example, using
a specific structure for information that you could
present as a table such as a parameter and its
explanation. This way you can transform the structure into
a table for big screens and into a list with links for
small screens.
- Decide carefully, by doing a proper user and task
analysis, what information is actually needed
through mobile access if you are asked to create this kind
of service. It is usually not feasible to provide all
information through mobile access but only some. For
example, the information needed in planning an
installation of a server is usually such that when the
information is needed, the person has access to a PC. On
the other hand, the information needed while doing
troubleshooting at a remote location could be such that
users would benefit from mobile access.
It is also good to keep in mind the statement made by Ahmed
Zimran and Mark Hurst in the Wireless Customer Experience
white paper:
"To succeed, a wireless
service must provide a customer experience that is better
than existing alternatives." Although they talk about
applications, the same can be applied to documentation
browsing as well. A mobile device can provide a better
experience because it is easy to carry with you and
connecting to a mobile Web site can be faster than using a
laptop and so the user is able to access the information quickly.
It will
take awhile, or it may never happen, that a mobile screen
and keyboard provide a better user experience in terms of
ease-of-use than a laptop. So a successful mobile access service must be
based on the need for fast access of relatively short pieces of information
and people not wanting to carry laptops with them or not having them
in the first place.
This article is the personal opinion of the author and does
not necessarily reflect the opinion or practice of Nokia.
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