Hand-held devices - the NEW Web

The Internet is expanding into a new genre: hand-held devices like the IPhone. Firms are springing up to design little, trimmed down Web sites specifically for hand held devices.

A full sized Web site won't display on a hand-held device. It is FAR too big. A full sized Web site is at least 800 pixels wide. The Apple IPhone for example, is 320 pixels wide. Since the IPhone won't scroll side to side, large format sites are a big problem. They won't fit on tiny screens.

Savvy Web companies create two Web sites: a full sized version for the Web and a small version for hand-held devices. Cool companies get two domain names: the dot com (net, biz, or whatever) for the big Web site and the corresponding dot mobi (.mobi is short for mobile) for the hand-held site. The dot mobi domain extension is new. You should be able to get the dot mobi version of your domain name. There is NOTHING to stop anyone from registering the dot mobi version of your domain name.

Small dot mobi Web site are different internally, more than size alone. Here are a few recommendations from designers leading the field:

1. Make the site small - 320 pixels wide to match the IPhone.
2. Make the site clear and concise, limiting content to the bare essentials.
3. Use standard HTML. Eliminate things like pop-ups, flash, and java-script.
4. Use a style sheet rather than HTML font tags.
5. Employ the device's function keys. Typing is tough on a hand-held device.
6. Set the site up for a specific function, like getting a quote.

You can test your site to see how Mobile Ready it is, rating from 1 to 5. You can also see what it will look like (if it displays at all) here:

http://mr.dev.mobi/launch.jsp?locale=en_EN

Mobile technology is emerging. Mobile devices are Internet ready. They hold data internally, however most of their functionality will come from the Web. Get your company positioned for this coming trend. It is only $10 to get the proper name. Imagine how you would feel if someone else got your name. A hand-held Web site may be just the thing to propel your business over the top.