Is .mobi a good thing?
Monday, 3. April 2006, 13:43:00
Russel Beattie just wrote:
I agree that this is a step forward for the mobile Web because it focuses on the very concept of browsing the Internet from mobile devices. That said, I fear it may complicate things: There is one Web, and that one Web should be accessible regardless of the device you are using. That's why making mobile stylesheets makes a lot of sense for Web developers. People shouldn't have to remember a different URL just because they are on a different device than their PC. With Opera Mobile and Opera Mini, we use Small-Screen Rendering to display desktop-sized Web pages on small screens. Sites that use mobile stylesheets are left untouched. The URL is the same.
Opera is one of the sponsors of the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Mobile Web Initiative (MWI). If you're not familiar with the group's work, it's worth taking a look at their Activity Statement, the last part of which reads as follows:
Or, as I say every night before going to bed:
I believe in Tim Berners-Lee, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of the Internet,
and in the World Wide Web, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived at CERN,
born of the Open Standards,
suffered under proprietary tyranny,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into Redmond.
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into the W3C
and sits at the right hand of Tim the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the advocates of two different Internets.
I believe in one Internet, the holy World Wide Web,
the same for all devices
the redundancy of .mobi
the resurrection of the standards
and one unified Web everlasting.
Amen.
I'll admit I've gone back and forth on my opinions of the new .mobi TLD. But I've finally made the firm decision that it's definitely a step forward for the mobile web.
I agree that this is a step forward for the mobile Web because it focuses on the very concept of browsing the Internet from mobile devices. That said, I fear it may complicate things: There is one Web, and that one Web should be accessible regardless of the device you are using. That's why making mobile stylesheets makes a lot of sense for Web developers. People shouldn't have to remember a different URL just because they are on a different device than their PC. With Opera Mobile and Opera Mini, we use Small-Screen Rendering to display desktop-sized Web pages on small screens. Sites that use mobile stylesheets are left untouched. The URL is the same.
Opera is one of the sponsors of the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Mobile Web Initiative (MWI). If you're not familiar with the group's work, it's worth taking a look at their Activity Statement, the last part of which reads as follows:
... Mobile Web access today still suffers from interoperability and usability problems. W3C’s Mobile Web Initiative (W3C MWI) proposes to address these issues through a concerted effort of key players in the mobile production chain, including authoring tool vendors, content providers, handset manufacturers, browser vendors and mobile operators.
Or, as I say every night before going to bed:
I believe in Tim Berners-Lee, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of the Internet,
and in the World Wide Web, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived at CERN,
born of the Open Standards,
suffered under proprietary tyranny,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into Redmond.
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into the W3C
and sits at the right hand of Tim the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the advocates of two different Internets.
I believe in one Internet, the holy World Wide Web,
the same for all devices
the redundancy of .mobi
the resurrection of the standards
and one unified Web everlasting.
Amen.
WIDGETIZE