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The Wireless Web: What You Should Know!Jan 20 '01 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line The Wireless Web. Communication of the future! Small screens, slow access, uncomfortable data entry... these are the problems. Bottom Line: Shop very carefully, and try out devices in person!
In the broad sense of the term, the Wireless Web refers to any method of accessing the Internet without using a traditional phone line. This encompasses a large range of wireless devices, including modems that hook to your laptop, PDAs (with built in, or external modems), wireless networks, satellite access, and cellular phones. In the narrow, more recent use of the term, Wireless Web refers to the Internet accessed over small cellular-enabled devices such as PDAs and cellular phones. This is the wireless web you see commercials for (practically non-stop). Since I work for a Wireless Web enablement company, I can give you an overview of what the Wireless Web is really like, and what it will be like in the future. I'll start by saying that in America we are using the infant version of some technologies already available in Europe and Asia. In Europe, the consumers are already moving to high speed cellular networks to access their wireless data via their cell phones, and in Asia, many citizens have access to a technology called W-CDMA, or I-Mode, which allows them to view 256 color graphics and HTML on their phones! These cultures, because of their lack of wire-line infrastructures (extensive traditional phone lines), actually find it cheaper to talk and/or access the Internet via a cellular phone. Many families have a phone for each person, which has become their main source of communication with each other. In the United States, there are two main programming languages that make up our Wireless Web. They are WML (which is specified under the Wireless Application Protocol, and usually referred to as WAP, or WAP-enabled) and HDML. HDML, which means Handheld Device Markup Language, is a markup language, similar to HTML, which was developed by Phone.com (now Openwave) to run on a microbrowser that they designed, and the manufacturer installed on your cell phone. This microbrowser could only traditionally view sites in HDML (although newer phones can interpret both languages), and used its own gateway, or software on the server, to provide access to the wireless web. If you obtain a phone through Sprint PCS, or another carrier, most likely, it will be HDML-enabled. After HDML was used for a while, many developers of Wireless Web sites thought that it was not comprehensive enough. There were some abilities that it lacked, so a group of individuals, calling themselves the WAP Forum, developed a new Wireless Web protocol, and based it around XML. This new language was called WML (Wireless Markup Language), and it is what newer browsers, and newer gateways are supporting for the future. Even Palms, which use their own method of accessing wireless data, have browsers that will view WML. The only major hindrance in the simple usefulness of the wireless web is the actual phone itself. The screens are extremely small, the data is limited, and since you are using the phone to input usernames, passwords, and sometimes URLs, it can get to be a REAL pain in the... you know! So, what does all this mean to you, the consumer? If you want the Wireless Web, you can go out and buy a phone now, and have access at 19k per second, which is quite slow, use your plan minutes, and get some useful, text-based information (stocks, Amazon.com, PayPal, E-bay, NetBank, Ameritrade, and much more), or you can wait, and have access to higher speeds, full-color graphics, and more. My opinion, however, is that there will always be a newer, better technology on the horizon. So I say, if you are interested in getting wirelessly enabled for the Internet, go for it. Many phones come with browsers already built into them. Carriers usually add a monthly charge for the service. Sprint charges $10 a month, and you use your plan minutes. AT&T PocketNet doesn't use plan minutes, but you probably have a monthly fee. If you find you don't use it, just turn off access to the wireless web. Another alternative is a 2-way pager, or Blackberry (RIM) device. If you think you will only want e-mail and paging, then you might want to consider one of these devices. They allow you to send short text messages and e-mails back and forth between any e-mail address. Their main advantage is that they are easier to enter data into. So, before you go and order the latest WAP-enabled phone,with MP3 access, etc, do some extensive test driving. Check out your local carriers, and find out from people around town which ones have the most reliable service. Then physically look at the phones. Ask a salesperson to use the Wireless Web. Try navigating around. Try entering data. If it's not comfortable, don't buy it! I know it will seem TOO COOL when you first pick it up and play with it, but think long-term. Will this device really, really annoy you in a couple of weeks, or will it be something that you can use for 6 months, 1 year, or more? The wireless web we use now is just the beginning of an amazing phenomenon in data access, but that doesn't mean you can't take advantage of it now. Just use your intuition and best judgment, and never buy a device without testing personally. Your comfort is the absolute most important thing!  |
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by jordann23
