WML Programming

[Cat]

I'm new to programming in WML and I have a question. Can wml pages be
displayed from a server that doesn't use WAP?

 

[Andy Dingley]

I'm new to programming in WML and I have a question.

I have a question. Why use WML ? Didn't we kill that abominiation off
about 5 years ago?

Can wml pages be
displayed from a server that doesn't use WAP?

In general, yes. Maybe. Most networks these days are so keen to get
hold of content that they're good at proxying external content from
outside servers. These outside servers are often running HTTP and
standard HTML / XHTML / cXHTML / PartnerML They certainly aren't
running the close-coupled WAP/WMl stack that was originally needed when
the "mobile web" was purely a walled-garden and separate from the main
web.

So if you're a simple static-page site, you can offer HTML by HTTP and
the network can handle it (for most networks).

If you're looking for a better user experience, offer tailored XHTML
by HTTP and the network can handle it even better. This is
network-specific. Some networks want XHTML that's modularised in a
vaguely standards-based manner, Vodafone even used their cut-down
PartnerML dialect.

If you're looking to support WML directly, then the network can tell
you more. Chances are that you'll serve WML content via HTTP and their
network will proxy this into WAP. You'll probably test this with a
software-emulated WML phone running on your desktop, connected directly
to your server.

If you really to work closely with WAP, then you might still need to
run this on your server. Provided it's your server, then even this is
easy. It's hard to get affordable commercial hosting for it though.

This whole thing is a mess, but getting better. We're leaving WAP/WML
far behind and aiming to a more standards-based XHTML-based content
platform. Unfortunately the networks are often horribly clueless and
can make some unbelievably stupid technical decisions for bad
"business" reasons.


The best thing you can do is read c.i.w.a.h and learn how to do
best-practice modern web design, in pure semantically-described content
presentation-free HTML and good use of CSS. That will put you in a very
good position for dropping your content straight onto mobile devices
and it will give your mobile users a good site too.