Project Narrative

Acknowledgements

Without the support of Dr. John McMahon, Dean of the Communications & Design Division at SeattleCentralCommunity College, this project would not be possible. He provided me a list of contacts, research materials, and his insights in Wireless communications. My industry-insider-guru, Mike Peck of AT&T Wireless, provided invaluable guidance and advice for the foundation of the project. I also extend special thanks to Kathi Buchanan for all kinds of help including editing and suggestions.

Project Overview

Wireless Internet technology is one of today’s most exciting innovations, bringing the power of communications, the Internet, and the World Wide Web into the hands of users worldwide. The race to create and implement new wireless technologies is a global endeavor.

The wireless medium affects all areas of society, from how businesses run and how employees work, to consumer purchases, advertising opportunities and personal communications. Every day, technological advances in it provide new hardware, extend old hardware to new uses, develop new software, and create new communications protocols.

Thanks to the increased cooperation and coordination among industry leaders and organizations over last few years, this Wireless Internet consortium has established standards and technology trends. This made it possible to develop a course that can remain current for some time.

The course introduces two major standards in Wireless Internet programming. XHTML Basic markup language is for Wireless Internet content or WAP page development. Java 2 Micro Edition (J2ME) programming language allows Wireless application development. The course introduces these two programming tools on the foundation of related technologies, protocols, and concepts.

Project Challenges

Creating a curriculum involving a rapidly evolving technology isboth challenging and rewarding. During the evolution of Wireless Internet, standards have changed and transmission speeds have increased. For this reason, the coursebegins with a primeron network and wireless communication technologies. This puts emphasis on wireless standards, protocols, devices, markup languages, and enabling technologies.

Building on this foundation, the course develops a holistic view of the wireless industry: market drivers, major players, predominant technologies, applications, and services. This includes an evaluation of Wireless solutions, an analysis of factors for implementing a successful wireless strategy, and a forecast of future challenges and applications.

XHTML for Wireless Internet is the outcome of an adaptation of a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) 2.0 standard. It allowed XHTML-based markup languages such as XHTML Basic to create WAP pages. With XHTML MP, students can develop dynamic content for Wireless Internet.

Change of Plan

In the project proposal, I stated that the course might include Wireless Markup Language (WML) as the markup language for developing Wireless Internet contents. However, XHTML Basic and XHTML MP replaced WML during the course of curriculum development. Developers had considered WML a transitional tool until the Wireless protocol adapteda more permanent standard. Leading organizations like W3C and WAP Forum and industry leaders now embrace XHTML-based markup languages as the industry standard. In consideration of this development within the industry, the curriculumadopted XHTML-based markup languages.

Developing Course Content

The main topics of the course are an outcome of research on the current technologies of the Wireless Internet. I consulted with Mr. Mike Peck and Dr. John McMahon on each item I included.

Openwave, the de facto Wireless Internet browser, providedmajor resources for course development in XHTML Basic and MP. The developer site provides detailed specifications and powerful tools for Wireless Internet content development.

Java 2 Micro Edition (J2ME), a platform designed for wireless devices, uses the strengths of the Java programming language (e.g., portability and security) to support mobile applications. The course provides working examples of these technologies throughout the text.

The focus of researching and referencing are on the developer Web site of Sun Microsystems and J2ME. A book titled Core J2ME by John Muchow is a major reference.

Most lessons have a short introduction and examples. However, lists of learning materials have hyperlinks to Internet Web sites of industry leaders and organizations. Due to the rapid development of the technology, the most current and in-depth materials are found on the Internet.

The entire curriculumhas been placed on a Web site. I used Macromedia Dreamweaver to accomplish this task. Each lesson is hyperlinked tothe other for better navigation. In addition, each lesson is presented in a modular format for greater portability. The course site can be converted for an online course.

Here is a sample fromone of over 30 Web pages:

Trends

There are three main forces behind the Wireless Internet evolution. One is the increasing speed of Wireless transmission backed by faster networks such as the G3 and Wi-Fi. Another is the convenience of Wireless technology, such as Bluetooth, that allows wireless networking. The third is that relatively inexpensive handheld Wireless devices such as Internet-capable cellular phones and PDAs motivate increasing consumer demand for additional Wireless Internet contents and applications.

The demand for and use of Wireless Internet are increasing as the technology and hardware become more affordable. Dr. John McMahon states:

“Profitability, not market share, is driving decisions. Therefore, things that mimic telephony billing and services are more likely to result in revenue than things that mimic Internet applications. Otherwise, telecom will have basically capable networks in search of a profitable business model so they are 'throwing things at the wall to see what sticks.’ Insightful market research seems to be lacking and that is what they need.”

The demand and the capacity are here. We are now looking at the explosion of the Wireless technology that the industry experts predicted a few years ago.

References

Most research was conducted from resourcesavailable on the Internet. Many of the Web sites of industry leaders and organizations offer extensive developer information, tutorials, and tools. However, there were few printed publications as well.

Print Publications

  • Wireless Internet & Mobile Business - How to Program - by Deitel, Deitel, Nieto, &Steinbuhler.
  • Core J2ME by John Muchow
  • Pocket PC Development in the Enterprise by Christian Forsberg and Andreas Sjostrom
  • Wireless Communications – Principles and Practice by Theodore Rappaport
  • Guide to Wireless Communications by Mark Ciampa
  • 3G Generation magazine
  • M-Business
  • Wireless Design and Development

Service Provider Web Sites

  • AT&T Wireless / DeveloperCenter / MessengerCenter
  • Sprint / DeveloperCenter
  • T-Mobile / DeveloperCenter
  • VerizonWireless

Manufacturer Web Sites

  • Ericsson / DeveloperCenter
  • Nokia / DeveloperCenter
  • Motorola / DeveloperCenter
  • Samsung

Browsers

  • Openwave / DeveloperCenter / Downloads /

Others

  • Microsoft Mobile Developer

Organizations

  • WAP Forum  Open MobileAlliance (OMA)
  • Global Wireless Educations Consortium (GWEC)
  • The GSM Association
  • The Mobile Games Interoperability Forum (MGIF)
  • The Mobile Wireless Internet Forum (MWIF)

Newsletters

  • Nokia
  • Sun Microsystems

Tutorial Web Sites

  • Mobile Web Glossary
  • Tutorial of .Net Mobile by W3Schools
  • IT Toolbox Wireless Tutorials
  • AuburnUniversity Wireless Program
  • Cool WAP Site of the Day
  • About.Com

J2ME

  • Sun Microsystems
  • SunDeveloperCenter
  • Sun J2ME

Benefits of the Course

This course extendsexisting Web development programs by including wireless Web development. It offers students an option of specializing in the Wireless Internet environment.

Since the existing Wireless Communications program emphasizes a network orientation, this course creates a natural link between the Web development program and the Wireless Communications program. Based on the intensifying trend of integrating technologies, the marriage of Web development and Wireless Internet is timely, and an important step in the evolution of our curriculum.

The main goal of our division is training students for their chosen occupation by providing them with the skills required to perform their job well. One of the programs that our division offers is Wireless Communications. The Wireless Internet programming course provides students with critical skills to offer their prospective employer.

The division also offers a number of microcomputer courses including Internet, HTML, and graphic applications. For students studying HTML and/or Internet courses, the Wireless programming is a logical next step to extending their skill set and making them more competitive in the market. For these reasons, the new course is an excellent addition to the current curriculum.

Project Sound Bite

I am excited because I have learned a lot about new Wireless technology during the last year. I am pleased that the project appeared to generate a lot of interest from students. I believe students and the college district will benefit from this course.

Created by Yun Moh

SeattleCentralCommunity College