Internet language takes flight: Vendors work to develop HTML alternatives for mobile users

For all its vast information and flurry of technology developments, the Internet is largely a closed door to mobile phone users. That may be ending sooner than expected, however, as a number of vendors and carriers develop stripped-down versions of Web browsers and content to suit the needs of Internet surfers on the go.

One of the biggest hurdles to viewing Web content on mobile handsets is presentation, according to Daniel Johnson, product marketing manager for Spyglass Inc. Hypertext markup language (HTML), which can work wonders on a desktop PC with lots of processing power, simply confuses mobile phones.

The result is a chicken-and-egg quandary for carriers developing new services. Users accustomed to sharp graphics are turned off by simple text presentations, and content providers won't develop material for the relatively small number of mobile phone users.

"The content providers won't go through the trouble of developing content just for these devices," said Johnson. "And carriers are concerned about the availability of content for these devices."

One solution is to translate HTML-based Web pages into a simple format by stripping out elements that wouldn't show up on a mobile phone screen-substituting a bold font for blinking text, for example. "That way we still retain the developer's original intent of drawing the user's eye to the particular text, but we don't transmit useless information," said Johnson.

It also saves the user money because airtime is not spent receiving information that the device can't display. Another technique Spyglass uses is caching information accessed on a regular basis. And while that can't be done with real-time information such as stock quotes, it's useful for text directions or intranet information for field sales reps.

"It's very costly to download a page, so we're trying to cut the time that [users are] actually using the network," said Thierry Roullier, product manager for Spyglass.

At the same time, the company is exploring the use of new languages that allow content developers to write material once and have it displayed in different ways depending on the device. One such language, extensible markup language (XML), already has received support from industry heavyweights such as Microsoft, which is including it in its latest version of Internet Explorer. Among its other attributes, XML provides a file format for representing data and a mechanism for extending and annotating HTML.

"There's a lot of use for that in the wireless space because of the way you'd be using the Internet," said Johnson.

The handset vendors themselves are providing another approach to Internet mobility. SpectraLink recently signed an agreement with San Diego-based Indyme Electronics to develop new applications for in-building wireless users. Under the deal, Indyme will combine its Java-based hyperdisplay markup language software architecture with SpectraLink's Pocket Telephone System to create a miniature Web browser.

"The information content is what's interesting because they can customize each handset to fit each job function," said Ben Guderian, product marketing manager for SpectraLink. "They also can use a browser approach to customizing the information available to each handset."

Initially, SpectraLink is gearing the devices to retail markets where most of the information would stored on-site. However, future developments should allow the company to focus on wide area networks and the Internet.

"Right now, there are certain constraints in the devices in terms of display sizes, but that's certainly where it's going," said Guderian. "You have a small device, so you certainly aren't going to be putting a lot of information on there, but you are going to be putting on the most critical information."

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