Choice of Platform - Java or .NET for PDA applications
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Anything that runs windows, will run .NET, I would expect. .NET is not going to run on Palm, and I don't know if there is a third OS out there. Java is strongest in the mobile world, I am told, so I suspect the answer is use Java.
Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++ "also I don't think "TranslateOneToTwoBillion OneHundredAndFortySevenMillion FourHundredAndEightyThreeThousand SixHundredAndFortySeven()" is a very good choice for a function name" - SpacixOne ( offering help to someone who really needed it ) ( spaces added for the benefit of people running at < 1280x1024 )
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I think the way it works is if you're targetting Palm OS based PDA, use Java. If you're targetting WinCE based PDA use .NET or preferably C++ because the .NET Compact Framework is still pretty pathetic( I haven't checked 3.5 yet if there is one). If you're targetting both you're in trouble. Java runs like a dog if at all on most WinCE devices .NET isn't even an option on Palm. Cross platfrom C++ is hard at the best of times, across handheld devices X| don't even go there. It depends on your app but if I were you I'd do some serious research into what your market really is and what they really use. I would of course be more than happy to hear that I'm wrong and that there's a neat solution out there. :)
Nothing is exactly what it seems but everything with seems can be unpicked.
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Just out of curiosity, Is CP available on PDA - if yes - has it been build on JAVA ? if No - are there any plans (some features of it - specially lounge) for it to be developed for PDA compatibility ?
Shekhar
CP is a website. In other words, it doesn't matter what it's written in from the PDA's point of view because what it sends back is a combination of HTML, images and JavaScript.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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CP is a website. In other words, it doesn't matter what it's written in from the PDA's point of view because what it sends back is a combination of HTML, images and JavaScript.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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the proposed application, is actually a web based application only, so even if i develop in .NET - it would work on all PDAs (it would of course be sending back HTML, images & JS only)
Shekhar
stskpa wrote:
the proposed application, is actually a web based application only, so even if i develop in .NET - it would work on all PDAs (it would of course be sending back HTML, images & JS only)
Then you need to know more about what the browser is that runs on the PDA. For instance, some PDAs use Opera which behaves differently to embedded IE. This means that ultimately, the HTML, CSS and JavaScript that you send back will have to take this into account - fortunately the differences are fairly well understood and documented.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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I was wondering - how other mobile applicable providers are currently handling this
Shekhar
I've seen two kinds: One targets PDA's or phones already running some kind of proprietory framework/desktop and OS combination and tend to be coded as extensions to such a system. I have no idea how these work but I suppose its a similar concept to COM/ActiveX. These are usually GUI applications without much backend, i.e not doing anything with the hardware that the framework doesn't already do. Anything from animated wallpaper to menu skinning to online banking shortcuts. The second kind, the more serious apps tend to be targetted at a specific processor or range of processors like ARM or MIPS and OS Combination, almost always WinCE. Some of these have alternative downloads for PDAs based on ARM/MIPS/SH processors and even for different versions of WinCE. They don't usually gaurentee to run on your specific device unless it's on a very short list with which they're tested. I guess these apps are developed in C++ and the code base rebuilt for different processors. Not an easy task but possible. I've yet to come across an app like this which offers WinCE and Palm OS versions although I'm sure they're out there. If they do then I guess there may be some common code in standardish C++ but a lot of the work is going to have been duplicated. WinCE apps tend to be very Win32 API reliant so however Palm works any port is going to be hard and code sharing harder still. Does wxWidgets have a PalmOS build? I don't know but that might make it plausible.
Nothing is exactly what it seems but everything with seems can be unpicked.
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stskpa wrote:
the proposed application, is actually a web based application only, so even if i develop in .NET - it would work on all PDAs (it would of course be sending back HTML, images & JS only)
Then you need to know more about what the browser is that runs on the PDA. For instance, some PDAs use Opera which behaves differently to embedded IE. This means that ultimately, the HTML, CSS and JavaScript that you send back will have to take this into account - fortunately the differences are fairly well understood and documented.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
Opera Mobile is awesome - it is fully standards compliant and passes the ACID2 test, even IE7 on a desktop still can't get to grips with it. Speaking of mobile development, has anyone else looked at Android, the new developer-friendly mobile OS from Google? http://code.google.com/android/[^] It uses the Java language without using the JVM, quite a cunning ploy to get Sun out of the loop I thought...
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the proposed application, is actually a web based application only, so even if i develop in .NET - it would work on all PDAs (it would of course be sending back HTML, images & JS only)
Shekhar
If you are building a web application targeting mobile browsers then ASP.Net is a good choice, the browser.config files which are located in this folder: C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\CONFIG\Browsers let ASP.Net know about the capabilities of the different browsers so that the correct html/css/javascript can be sent out to the browser.
Declan Bright www.declanbright.com
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If you are building a web application targeting mobile browsers then ASP.Net is a good choice, the browser.config files which are located in this folder: C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\CONFIG\Browsers let ASP.Net know about the capabilities of the different browsers so that the correct html/css/javascript can be sent out to the browser.
Declan Bright www.declanbright.com
It's not so much the standard JavaScript that's the problem, it's when people try to get clever with their own versions that care has to be taken.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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Opera Mobile is awesome - it is fully standards compliant and passes the ACID2 test, even IE7 on a desktop still can't get to grips with it. Speaking of mobile development, has anyone else looked at Android, the new developer-friendly mobile OS from Google? http://code.google.com/android/[^] It uses the Java language without using the JVM, quite a cunning ploy to get Sun out of the loop I thought...
Android looks really cool, the architecture has been really well though out. It uses the Dalvik virtual machine and each application runs within a separate instance. I've had a play around with the SDK and will certainly consider getting a device whenever they arrive.
Declan Bright www.declanbright.com
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Hi Not a programming question, it is a choice of language and look forward to receive replies from knowledgable people out here. Would like to know - whether to use JAVA or .NET platform for developing an application for PDAs - will applications developed in .NET work on ALL PDAs out there in world ? what is the pros and cons. What I have been told is that applications developed on .NET may not work on all PDAs - will work only on blackberries and PDAs supporting Windows CE System, while applications developed in Java will work on ALL Java supported PDAs including blackberries. Thanks
Shekhar
At least from India, Java in mobile is very common. Microsoft seems to be pushing .NET based Windows Mobiles but the cost factor to go for it is threatening. At least for time being, PDA applications are best with Java from mass-affordability factor.
Vasudevan Deepak Kumar Personal Homepage
Tech Gossips
A pessimist sees only the dark side of the clouds, and mopes; a philosopher sees both sides, and shrugs; an optimist doesn't see the clouds at all - he's walking on them. --Leonard Louis Levinson -
At least from India, Java in mobile is very common. Microsoft seems to be pushing .NET based Windows Mobiles but the cost factor to go for it is threatening. At least for time being, PDA applications are best with Java from mass-affordability factor.
Vasudevan Deepak Kumar Personal Homepage
Tech Gossips
A pessimist sees only the dark side of the clouds, and mopes; a philosopher sees both sides, and shrugs; an optimist doesn't see the clouds at all - he's walking on them. --Leonard Louis LevinsonAffordability is not a factor for us developers really, question is - will (WEB) applications developed on .NET (ASP.NET) platform be compatible with all PDAs out there or do we have to develop two seperate applications - one supporting Java based PDAs and another supporting Windows based PDAs?
Shekhar
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Affordability is not a factor for us developers really, question is - will (WEB) applications developed on .NET (ASP.NET) platform be compatible with all PDAs out there or do we have to develop two seperate applications - one supporting Java based PDAs and another supporting Windows based PDAs?
Shekhar
stskpa wrote:
will (WEB) applications developed on .NET (ASP.NET) platform be compatible with all PDAs out there
They will be as compatible as a plain HTML/JS website (I am generalizing!), a Python website, a Ruby on Rails website, a PHP website, a JSP website, a ColdFusion website and so on. It's not the server technology that matters, but the markup that is sent to the requesting browser and that browser's capabilities. A few people already pointed it out, to me it seems like you are a little lost with the web application concept.
Kind regards, Pawel Krakowiak Miraculum Software[^]