Date: Mon, 17 Apr 2006 15:19:36 -0400
From: “Scott Weiss” <upcscott@spamarrest.com>
Subject: [IxDA Discuss] Prototyping for Mobile Apps
To: <discuss@ixda.org>
Message-ID: <002e01c66253$de627580$6901a8c0@Venus>
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There are several platforms usable for mobile deployment prototypes.

1.SVGt 1.1 and the Ikivo Animator, using XHTML as a wrapper
2.Adobe Macromedia FlashLite, using the Flash authoring system
3.WAP by itself



SVG is the Scalable Vector Graphics format. Ikivo Animator is an animation authoring package. You can create graphical files, representing user interfaces, in any graphics editor that outputs SVG. Adobe Illustrator outputs SVG. Ikivo Animator supports SVG animations of these files with an intuitive graphical user interface. Combining the animations with XHTML enables the prototyper to simulate more elaborate user interactions. Getting the content to the phone depends on the equipment, accessories, and any data plan set up for the equipment. With the Sony Ericsson W600i, we were able to transfer files using the included data cable.

Adobe Macromedia FlashLite player, available on many phones, enables Flash
authoring to be deployed on handsets in a similar manner to the SVG described above.

Lastly, WAP can be used as a prototype delivery mechanism. Coding the WAP pages and serving them is up to you.

We have been prototyping handheld applications for some time. Flash is the
easiest, but it’s far from easy.



Scott Weiss
Principal, Usable Products Company: usableproducts.com (+1.212.929.8599)
Author, “Handheld Usability”: handheldusability.com