Usable Mobile Web Design- Getting It Right

As the Internet ages, both the frequency and types of interaction we have with it continue to grow and develop.

One area in which the Internet is currently growing rapidly is mobile computing. This is being fuelled by a raft of low cost and high powered mobile technologies. Laptops, iPhones and other smartphones are allowing us to stay connected whenever and wherever. But coming up with a winning formula for mobile web sites requires a new approach. So how can businesses design usable and accessible mobile web sites?

The Environment

Consider the environment of a mobile web user. When people use the Internet on a computer or laptop, they are likely to be using a large screen, and generally experience few interruptions. It fills their world, they get sucked in. But mobile web is a different story. People use their mobile phones in environments that are filled with distractions: walking down the street, or waiting for a bus, for example. In these environments, services that require complex interactions fail. They need to finish using the site before they walk into the next lamp post. One user I spoke to summed it up perfectly: 'it has to fit in the cracks in my life'.

Do less, get more

Mobile web gives the promise of immediate access to information and entertainment, so users will be looking to accomplish specific, time sensitive goals. So, when creating a site for mobile, focus only on offering the features that will enable users to accomplish these goals; they don't want to be bothered with lots of insignificant or irrelevant information, questions or images. Design bite-sized, focused experiences; take a risk and focus only on the most important elements of the site.

Read More Article...

Mozilla Labs Scopes Out the Future of the Web

Recent activity from Mozilla Labs has been focused on the future of the browser--and a world in which the browser is pretty much the operating system. Other browser vendors--including Microsoft, Opera and Google--are hot on its heels.

Lots of people talk about the future of the Web—about what types of applications and services we will see in the coming years. But what about the browser itself? How will future browsers interact with sites and applications? Will we even have browsers as we know them today, or will everyone use browser-like single-purpose applications to access different areas of the Web?

One company very concerned with the answers to these questions is Mozilla. After all, the browser is pretty much the only product the organization has.

The unit of Mozilla whose mission is to look toward the future is Mozilla Labs. This is where many of the features and capabilities currently found in the Firefox browser first make their appearance, as do other, more stand-alone applications such as Prism, which was recently released in beta.

In recent weeks, there has been a lot of news and activity coming out of Mozilla Labs. And all of this activity has been focused on the future of the browser.

Read More Article...

Five Steps To Effective Mobile Web Design

As consumers turn to their mobile devices for Web access, smart Web developers will keep key features in mind as they develop their sites

Almost every report on mobile usage statistics and forecasts says the same thing—more and more people are turning to their mobiles for access to the Internet. In the U.S. and Western Europe, people are increasingly using their BlackBerries, iPhones, and other smart phones to access information on the move.

In many countries, the mobile handset is the primary means to get online. For example, there are more than 60 million mobile users in Turkey, but only around 6 million PC broadband subscribers. Similarly in emerging markets, the high price of PCs and lack of broadband networks make the mobile the single point of contact with the Internet world.

Recent reports by Nielsen indicate that in Britain, mobile Internet traffic grew 25% in the second half of 2008, whilst PC traffic grew only 3%. In the U.S., mobile Internet traffic jumped 30% in the second quarter of 2008 alone. Much of this growth is undoubtedly driven by the Apple iPhone, yet this is just one of many thousands of devices available today, and it only represents a relatively small percentage of the total device landscape.

According to Nielsen, the iPhone represents about 1.5% of devices in use, and even the top 10 only represents around 20% of the subscriber population (see the table below). The remaining 80% represents a significant majority of potential customers using devices ranging from smart phones to more basic devices. Looking further afield to Europe, the top device mix is completely different, with the iPhone and Nokia devices dominating the market.

Read More Article...

The Mobile Web Industry Takes Center Stage

It's still early in the development of the mobile Web. The majority of the iPhone Web apps currently available are cool little tools created by a developer for kicks or because they want a better way to access a Web site. While many people get that the mobile Web has potential, most companies still need to figure out how to profit from it.

Wait. Scroll. Scroll. Tap-tap. Wait. Wait. For many years, that was the typical experience of someone surfing the Web using a mobile phone or PDA, at least in the U.S. Although some content Relevant Products/Services providers offered stripped-down versions of their sites specially designed for mobile users, most did not, and reading a page designed to be viewed on a PC on the small screen was about as much fun as sitting in a dark room reading a newspaper by flashlight.

Today, the mobile Web environment is in a period of rapid change, thanks in no small part to Apple's iPhone. From the phone's introduction in June, 2007, through March, 2008, 5.4 million iPhones have sold, and to date developers have created more than 17,000 sites or "Web applications" optimized for the device.

Read More Article...

Moving to the Mobile Web

Thanks in no small part to the iPhone, the mobile Web is about to get a lot more crowded, and a lot more useful. The iPhone's interface has made it easier to read Web pages that were originally designed for desktop browsers. However, site owners who want to take the mobile Web a step further have found ways to improve the user experience in terms of both content and context.

Wait. Scroll. Scroll. Tap-tap. Wait. Wait. For many years, that was the typical experience of someone surfing the Web using a mobile phone or PDA, at least in the U.S. Although some content providers offered stripped-down versions of their sites specially designed for mobile users, most did not, and reading a page designed to be viewed on a PC on the small screen was about as much fun as sitting in a dark room reading a newspaper by flashlight.

Today, the mobile Web environment is in a period of rapid change, thanks in no small part to Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone. From the phone's introduction in June, 2007, through March, 2008, 5.4 million iPhones have sold, and to date developers have created more than 17,000 sites or "Web applications" optimized for the device.

But this isn't a story about the iPhone, per se; it's a story about designing for the mobile Web. The iPhone was just a catalyst of sorts, bringing buzz, investors and new technology to the sector. As a result, the mobile Web design and customer experience bar has been raised.

Read More Article...