Bugzilla – Bug 7889
Create mobile/accessable compliant version of SN interface
Last modified: 2009-09-08 09:20:56 UTC
See this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=46425 I agree... when we're re-skinning SN, please create an iPhone/iPod touch compatible version. With the success Apple's enjoyed in bringing *real* web browsing to mobile phone, it makes sense. Plus, this would be a delightful customer experience.
I'd like to see an accessibility enhanced skin, allowing not only iPhone users, but _any_ mobile device access it. iPhone is cool and great. But there are still x times more other devices out there. And then there's my blind friend Kurt pushing me for a Nokia E65 compatible skin to be used with his mobile screen reader. > With the success Apple's enjoyed in bringing *real* web > browsing to mobile phone, it makes sense. Nice contradiction. If it brought _real_ web browsing, why would we need a special skin for it? ;-)
Actually, it works as is, so I stand by calling it a real browsing experience. However, given the gesture interface (which was likely not considered when most of the web technologies we're using were developed), it would be great to have a skin that allowed it to be used optimally. Also, working within the resolution constraints would make the experience even better. And, finally, Apple is dominating the web-on-mobile space: <QUOTE> M:Metrics, which has been researching the mobile market since 2004, found that the iPhone is “the most popular device for accessing news and information on the mobile Web,” with 85 percent of iPhone users doing so in the month of January. That contrasted with 58.2 percent of other smartphone owners, and 13.1 percent of the total mobile market. “It hands-down has become the device that is driving the most people to the mobile Web,” said Donovan." </QUOTE> Full text here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24017010/ That said, I *totally* support work on a generalized, small screen, "mobile" interface to SN, based on the work done for an iPhone app, as well as anything the furthers accessibility.
http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=46294 Someones done a plug-in already for the iPhone
James: the plug-in is for SqueezeCenter... this bug is open specifically for SqueezeNetwork.
Sounds a lot like bug 3087.
Ross: While it is similar, and you could possibly merge them as an umbrella bug to capture the multiple different requests (iPhone skin, handheld skin, and accessible skin), they aren't really the same from my perspective. I'd like to make sure that, if we do merge them, it retains the request for an iPhone skin. An iPhone skin's behavior would be specific to an iPhone/iPod touch (fundamentally the same, from a browser perspective), and could be marketed as such, while a mobile/handheld skin would be generic and less interesting from a product marketing perspective. Plus, an iPhone skin has just one platform to test against, while a mobile/handheld skin has an enormous test matrix (if you want to get it right).
> While it is similar, and you could possibly merge them as an umbrella bug to > capture the multiple different requests (iPhone skin, handheld skin, and > accessible skin), they aren't really the same from my perspective. I'd like to > make sure that, if we do merge them, it retains the request for an iPhone > skin. I don't understand the hype. I'm sorry, but the math you cited is far from science: the numbers can't be compared, as we neither know the share of iPhones on the full mobile market nor the "other smartphone's" share. Thus these numbers are three independant numbers. Don't belive any statistic you haven't faked yourself ;-). The effort to create an iTunes skin imho is much higher than Handheld/Accessibility together, as the latter easily share most of the code. But if you want an iPhone skin, designed to behave like an iPhone app, we'll spend a lot of time learning about its specifics, learning dedicated toolkits, and handle the much higher expectations etc. My personal order of priority clearly is: 1. full fledged skin 2. handheld/accessibility 3. iTunes One more reason for this order is the fact that 2 can easily work on 3, but 3 will just be that one device. Sorry, two (iPod Touch). I know, from a marketing's point of view it's better having "full iPhone support", than "works with any Handheld", as the former is sexy, while the latter is just functional. And hype kids will google for iPhone, not for "any".
Dean, can you please set a Target for this enhancement request
Let's scope out the reskinning and then prioritize this as feature within that larger effort. It would be non-trivial and I'm not sure how big the value is to the user. As far as a iPhone/touch skin for SC, I'd prefer to get the squeezewiki up and running and offer it as a one-click plugin install.
That said, we shouldn't make SN-web particularly iPhone/touch unfriendly, as it seems to be now. That would probably help our accessibility too...
> That said, we shouldn't make SN-web particularly iPhone/touch unfriendly, as it > seems to be now. That would probably help our accessibility too... I still vote for a not iPhone optimized, but accessibility enhanced version: a light skin, which can easily be loaded in iPhone or any other mobile device. iPhone might have seen it's biggest share by now, as any other mobile company will try to get on that mobile internet train too.
Removing iPhone specific bit, iPeng (et al) works well for this.