Building Usable WAP Applications

Conclusion: Is Generic Navigation Good Enough?

At this point, you might wonder if the generic approach is good enough. Generally speaking, the answer is 'No!'

The generic approach forces you to discard all of the really good things that each microbrowser has to offer, and to settle for an alternative that proves to be mediocre in both environments, despite being useful in some cases.

The alternatives are the creation of multiple applications, or support for multiple versions through XML/XSLT transformations. For more information about these approaches, see http://www.webtechniques.com/archives/2000/03/passani/ , and check out the XML/XSLT article by Wei Meng Lee also on http://www.topxml.com/WAP

Resources

General application style guidelines for WML services:

http://updev.phone.com/dev/ts/technotes/userfriendly.pdf

Application style guidelines for WML services in GSM markets:

http://updev.phone.com/dev/ts/doc/style/gsm900-1800.pdf