mobiForge Recent Content

Handling SMS delivery receipts

mokil — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:54:49 +0000

Recently, we looked at how to send SMS messages using a standard HTTP POST-based API. As was intimated at the time, most APIs also allow you to process delivery receipts for the messages you send. This allows you to determine the status of the message, i.e. delivered, failed, expired etc. Let's take a look at how this all works.

Sending SMS Messages - A Quick Recap

DeviceAtlas API 1.4

daniel.hunt — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 09:36:45 +0000

This week was an important one for DeviceAtlas - we finally launched the new 1.4 version of our API!

Why 1.4?

The mobile web is constantly evolving, and with it, device detection needs to evolve too. With significant evolution in device capabilities, and large structural developments in certain device headers, the new DeviceAtlas API provides a highly flexible platform to cater for this growth, both now and well into the future.

Sending SMS from Apps and Webapps

mokil — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:27:29 +0000

It’s easy to send SMS messages from any Web site or application, but it’s surprising how few sites/applications actually do this. Integrating SMS into your system gives it something extra, and allows your system to enhance the mobile experience for the user. In this article, we’ll look at how an SMS message can be sent from any system, and at a few providers who offer this functionality.

Choosing an SMS Provider

There are essentially three types of SMS provider:

Mobile Network (e.g. Vodafone, Three)
Aggregator
SMS Messaging Company

The dot conf 2010

daniel.hunt — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 13:36:51 +0000

Last week (22nd July 2010) I was lucky enough to attend the first ever dot conf in the NCI in Dublin, Ireland.

What is the dot conf?
The dot conf is a new web technology conference for anyone who works, rests or plays with the internet. It’s a one day event and it's free. Essentially it's a teddy bears picnic but with internet folk instead of bears.

The goMobi Challenge is on!

VanceMan — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:24:38 +0000

We’ve got a prize-winning contest for you: The goMobi Challenge is on now!

By now, you’ve heard us talk about goMobi, our new mobile site building and content management tool. While we’ve discussed it mainly as an easy way for non-tech folks to quickly build mobile sites, we designed it so that pros like you can use it as a base for building top-notch mobile sites as personalized and unique as you want (or your clients want.)

Testing on Physical Devices Made Easy

mokil — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:08:04 +0000

In past articles, we've discussed testing mobile Web sites using browsers, and testing using emulators. Using this combination, along with a solid test plan, should bring you to a point where your mobile site is stable and appears to be working correctly on a number of devices. Ah, but wait; what do I mean by appears to be?

Measuring the Effects of Operator Transcoders

ronan — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 16:59:05 +0000

The issue of mobile-operator transcoders on the mobile web has been hugely controversial. For many iPhone and Android phone owners the negative effects of the transcoders are no longer visible and the issue has dropped off the radar, but they remain a serious problem for those using lower-end devices.

Meet goMobi - A New Content Mobilization Platform

ruadhan — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:33:25 +0000

Here in dotMobi we've just launched our latest product. The culmination of months and months of hard work by the dotMobi team has resulted in the release of our spanking new content mobilization platform: goMobi.

You can find all the official blurb over at http://gomobi.info along with some videos of our CEO and CTO talking about the product. What I aim to do here is to give an overview, from a developer's viewpoint, so that you can find out what there is in goMobi to appeal to the developer in you.

A quick introduction

Device Detection in the Cloud: DeviceAtlas Personal

ruadhan — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 14:49:20 +0000

In this article we offer full tutorial on how to use the preview release of the service. So what is DA Personal?

The purpose of DeviceAtlas Personal is to make device detection even easier. The main difference between DA Personal and DeviceAtlas, is that Personal is a Web service. It works as follows: a user visits your Web site on his mobile device. You then forward the User-Agent HTTP request header to the DA Personal service, and the response you receive will contain information about the user's device. That's it!

SMS Bubble UI in iPhone Apps

weimenglee — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 16:50:36 +0000

Users of iPhone are no stranger to the built-in SMS application that displays your messages using cute little bubbles (see Figure 1).

However, this innovative UI feature is not exposed to the iPhone developers - you have to create it yourself if you want to have the same look-and-feel of the SMS application. Creating this UI - which I will call the Bubble UI, allow you to represent information in a conversational style. A good application of this is when you are creating a chat application. Messages exchanged between two persons can be shown in message bubbles.

DeviceAtlas & HTML5

daniel.hunt — Wed, 19 May 2010 12:50:37 +0000

HTML5 is the brand new version of HTML, which contains a number of differences to it's predecessor.

Using the PopoverView in iPad App Development

weimenglee — Thu, 13 May 2010 08:51:12 +0000

In the previous article, we saw how to develop a new type of application known as the Split View-based application on the iPad. And one of the new views introduced for the iPad is the PopoverView, which you had a quick glimpse of it in action in the previous article. In this article, I will show you how you can use the PopoverView in your iPad application, not just in a Split View-based application.

Getting Started with the PopoverView

Developing Split View Based Apps for the iPad

weimenglee — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 11:31:06 +0000

The iPad runs on the same OS used by the iPhone and the iPod touch, which means that developers who are already familiar with iPhone programming are able to quickly write applications for the iPad. In fact, most (if not all) iPhone applications should run without any problem on the iPad, albeit in a smaller frame size, with an option to pixel-double. However, to really make full use of the large size screen afforded by the iPad, you would need to redesign your UI to take into account the extra screen space.

Offline iPhone Web Apps

weimenglee — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 10:56:34 +0000

One of the several features outlined in the HTML 5 specification is the support for Web applications that continue to work while they are offline. This feature is very useful for Web applications because a Web application can be loaded just once and then run offline without needing a persistent Internet connection, making it behave just like a locally installed native application.

Dashcode supports the manifest attribute available in the HTML 5 specifications for offline web applications. And so in this article, you will learn how to write offline iPhone Web applications using Dashcode.

dotMobi company acquired by Afilias

VanceMan — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 16:02:10 +0000

You may have heard – or seen the press release http://www.afilias.info/mobi+acquisition – that dotMobi has been acquired by Afilias.

Location in iPhone Web Apps

weimenglee — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 10:40:49 +0000

One of the key limitations of developing Web applications for iPhone is that you are not allowed to access the hardware on the device via the Web browser. For example, you cannot access the camera on the iPhone; neither can you access the accelerometer. This seriously limits the kinds of applications you can develop on the iPhone. One notable exception, however, is the support for tracking the location of devices, through a combination of GPS, Wi-Fi, and cellular triangulation.

Programming Apple Push Notification Services

weimenglee — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:56:55 +0000

One of the key limitations of the iPhone is its constraint on running applications in the background. Because of this, applications cannot keep running in the background when the user switches to another application. So, applications that require a constant state of connectivity (such as social networking applications) will not be able to receive timely updates.

Nexus One: Where is Android at?

ruadhan — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 17:02:30 +0000

With the announcement of the new GooglePhone, which promises to be the best Android device yet and by all early reports at least comparable with the iPhone 3GS, it seems appropriate to stop to take a look around to see where Android is at.

We start with the breakdown of Android Platform distribution, based on access to the Android Market.

Android versions (Source: http://developer.android.com)

Sending SMS with SMPP, Kannel and Java

senthadev@gmail.com — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:30:28 +0000

There are many technologies and protocols that can be used to send and receive SMS from an application. This article focuses on sending SMS via a Short Message Service Center (SMSC), with the help of the Kannel SMS gateway.

In order for an application to send a SMS, it generally has to communicate with a Mobile Network Operator (MNO) over the Internet. To understand in more detail consider the following example.

A Media service provider wants to send a program timetable as an SMS to its end customers. The application is running on a Linux based java application server.

Newsletter October 2009

admin — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:35:18 +0000

Welcome to the mobiForge newsletter October 2009.

This time:

1. Announcing mobiForge Antenna
2. A Guide to Mobile Emulators
3. Understanding UI in Android
4. The Mobile Web is Dead...
5. mobiForge Shortlisted for Golden Spiders Awards

Understanding User Interface in Android - Part 4: Even More Views

weimenglee — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:13:12 +0000

In this final installation of the Android Views series of articles, we shall continue our exploration of another category of views - Menu views, and some additional cool views. The views discussed include:

Context Menu
Options Menu
AnalogClock
DigitalClock
WebView

DeviceAtlas - Now with C++ & Apache Module

daniel.hunt — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:22:17 +0000

Here at dotMobi we're paying attention to what you, our users, customers and loyal followers want.
And something we've noticed about your comments and emails, is that one of the most important things about device detection is performance.

Well, in answer to the floods of emails from our regulars, we're delighted to announce the release of an official C++ API implementation, and an Apache Module!

Free iPhone Programming PDF

ruadhan — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:11:28 +0000

Hopefully you've been enjoying our series of iPhone articles over previous weeks.The topics recently covered in this series have looked at both developing native apps with Xcode, and developing webapps with Dashcode. Xcode and Dashcode are two IDEs supplied with the iPhone SDK.

Now you can get a PDF download that covers both of these approaches to programming for iPhone in one handy document. The content has been arranged (by Wei-Meng Lee) into two practical 'Labs', and is ideal if you are just starting out and want a chance to dip your toe into both approaches. And did I mention it's FREE...?

A Guide to Mobile Emulators

mokil — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:15:31 +0000

In a previous article, I put forward a three-point plan for testing mobile Web sites. One of the points involved the use of emulators for first-pass device testing. This article concentrates on configuring emulators for mobile site testing (it also highlights emulators that can be used to test mobile applications too). It outlines the different types of emulator available, the best ones to use, and the various ways in which they can be used.

For the uninitiated, an emulator is a software program that aims to replicate the functions of a specific piece of hardware or software.

Newsletter September 2009

admin — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:34:17 +0000

Welcome to the mobiForge newsletter September 2009.

This month's goodies:

1. A Python Device-Aware Webapp
2. iPhone Webapps with Dashcode
3. Android UI - More Views
4. The Beauty of Device Data
5. Guide to Mobile Advertising Networks
6. Tip of the Day

Understanding User Interface in Android - Part 3: More Views

weimenglee — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:59:23 +0000

In the previous article, you saw the various basic views such as the TextView, EditText, Button, and how you can use them in your Android applications. In this article, we shall continue our exploration of another three categories of views - Picker views, List views, and Display views. The views discussed include:

TimePicker view
DatePicker view
ListView view
Spinner view
Gallery view
ImageView
ImageSwitcher view
GridView view

A minimal mobile-aware web app with Python & cloud-based device detection

ronan — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:44:05 +0000

In this article we'll look at a how to make a minimal device-aware web application. The point of this article is not to demonstrate a useful application but rather to show just how little code is required to make an app that is fully device aware, and that can change its presentation entirely depending on the nature of the device accessing it.

The Beauty of Mobile Device Data

ronan — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:13:52 +0000

Recently at dotMobi we have been investigating how to make our DeviceAtlas device detection even better, while at the same time trying to keep the size of the distributable database as compact as possible. As some of you may know, DeviceAtlas uses a tree of data stored in a very compact JSON file to distribute our device data knowledge. The actual format of this JSON file is a Patricia tree organised around the user-agent strings of the devices that we have data about.

Build Web Apps for iPhone using Dashcode

weimenglee — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:44:00 +0000

So far, much mobile developer attention has been fixated on the iPhone SDK released by Apple to build native iPhone applications. This is understandable, since with the SDK you can write native iPhone apps that take full advantage of the capabilities provided by the device, such as accessing the accelerometer, the camera, as well as obtain geographical locations using Core Location.

Post Markup Directly to mobiReady.com

ruadhan — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:33:37 +0000

If you missed our newsletter yesterday you are probably not aware of a small announcement we made in it. We've pushed out a few updates to mobiReady.com, our mobile-readiness page testing tool. The most significant change is that you can now post markup directly to the service, instead of posting a URL for the service to visit and test.

Newsletter August 2009

ruadhan — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:09:17 +0000

Welcome to the mobiForge newsletter August 2009.

This month:

1. Understanding UI in Android
2. Testing Mobile Web Sites in Firefox
3. Verizon Wireless Opens Up
4. Getting started with J2ME
5. Planning & Buying Mobile Media
6. Guide to Word of Mouth Marketing
7. DeviceAtlas & mobiReady Updates

Getting Started with Java ME

Soma Ghosh — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:30:36 +0000

As the world gets connected, we see the emergence of a wide variety of sophisticated and personalized mobile devices. Although the number-crunching power of the higher-end devices is very respectable, there is still a need to build applications that use minimal resources, and that are portable.

Java Platform, Micro Edition (Java ME), formerly known as J2ME, with Java’s inherent ‘Build once, run everywhere’ concept has been adapted to build resource constraint applications for these myriad devices.

Understanding User Interface in Android - Part 2: Views

weimenglee — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:31:47 +0000

In the previous article on Android UI you saw the components that make up the UI of an Android application. The basic unit of the Android UI is the View. A View represents a widget that has an appearance on the screen. In this article (and the next two), you will learn about the various common views that you would likely use in your journey of Android development. In particular, I have categorized the views in this series into the following group:

Basic Views - commonly-used views such as TextView, EditText, and Button views

Verizon Wireless opens up to the mobile developer community (for real)!

Ronan_Mandel — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 10:58:47 +0000

Late last month, Verizon Wireless held an open developer conference down here in San Jose. The conference was notable, important, and relevant to you for a number of reasons.

Testing Mobile Web Sites Using Firefox

mokil — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:34:27 +0000

Before you ever begin testing your mobile site to determine how it looks on handsets, you should make sure the functionality of the site is working as you expect. This is not always straightforward, as you want to approximate the mobile environment as closely as possible. Fortunately, Mozilla Firefox supports some great extensions that can make testing your mobile sites a piece of cake. This article explains how to set Firefox up to act as a first pass test environment for your site.

Newsletter July 2009

ruadhan — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:00:28 +0000

Welcome to the mobiForge newsletter July 2009.

This month's goodies:

1. iPhone Programming Fundamentals
2. Understanding UI in Android
3. (Not very) Dramatic Developments from AT&T
4. Device Detection in the Cloud
5. Lastminute.com Labs Introduces DA Rails Plugin
6. MMA President Mike Wehrs Talks Tough
7. A Word from Our PR Guy

iPhone Programming Fundamentals - Outlets and Actions

weimenglee — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 11:06:28 +0000

An understanding of outlets and actions is one of the first things you will need for iPhone programming. For someone coming from the .NET background, this is a concept that requires some time to get used to - the concepts are similar, but it is a different way of doing things.

And so, in this article, I am going to show you what outlets and actions are. At the end of this article, you will have a solid understanding of how to create outlets and actions, and be on your way to creating great iPhone apps.

Lastminute.com Labs presents the DeviceAtlas Rails Plugin

mathias.dahlstrom — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:51:35 +0000

Last year at lastminute.com labs we started developing mobile web services in Rails. The first service we launched is called fonefood. It is a restaurant booking site you can use from your phone. We've got restaurants across lots of countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom. You can read more about it at: http://labs.lastminute.com/fonefood/

Mobile Web 2.0 "Dramatic Developments" from AT&T Really not all that dramatic....

Ronan_Mandel — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:50:20 +0000

Well, I'm sad to report that the folks over/up/down at AT&T wireless appear to not quite have their act together when it comes to what is the 'next big thing' in wireless. I had really been hoping/anticipating that the webinar they hosted on June 30 entitled "Dramatic Developments in Mobile Web Technology" was going to provide something concrete and actionable for you (and I), alas, that was not to be the case.

Convergence still 'coming soon' for mobile web platforms

Ronan_Mandel — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:37:40 +0000

So honestly, when I went into writing the last couple of postings about widget platforms I did not know about the webinars that had been scheduled by the folks at FierceWireless or AT&T about browsing platforms, but it's comforting to know that I'm not the only one trying to get my head around exactly what is and what isn't possible (and where things are headed) in the browser container and beyond.