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All posts tagged "browser"


Friday, May 27, 2011

Mango Moves the Browser Address Bar Down Under: Clever Evolution, or Mistake?

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Windows Phone Talk" @ 11:30 AM

One of the things that came out of the Mango preview was a change that Microsoft has made regarding the browser: they moved the address bar to the bottom of the interface, right above the keyboard. The above screen capture was from a Mango preview video. What do you think? Is this an improvement for the better, or a step back? Sound off!


Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Manage The Presentation of Your Web Site With Viewport Tags

Posted by Richard Chao in "Windows Phone Software" @ 11:23 PM

http://windowsteamblog.com/windows_...r-viewport.aspx

"As web browsing on mobile devices continues to grow in popularity, it's more important than ever to design mobile web sites that match the look and feel of native applications. One of the features provided by the browser in Windows Phone that helps with this task is programmatic control over the browser layout viewport."

Image courtesy of PCWorld.uol.com

In the beginning, mobile surfing meant wap browsers. As devices gained horsepower with ever increasing screen sizes and faster connections, web sites have transitioned from the aforementioned wap browser to mobile versions to desktop view. Users now have an expectation that when they go to a web site on their mobile device, the page will look like it does on their desktop and not be overly compressed. There is also an expectation that the page will re-flow smoothly and format correctly when transitioning from portrait to landscape view.

Fortunately for web designers, WP7 OS and its browser allows for programmatic control over the layout viewport. When a page is rendered in the WP7 browser, the default layout viewport width is always 1,024 pixels. The browser then determines the appropriate zoom level to fit the screen. Click read to see how you can use viewport to control the layout viewport width.


Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Google Takes Printing to the Cloud

Posted by Craig Horlacher in "Android News" @ 09:00 AM

http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2011/...og+(Gmail+Blog)

"Let’s say you need to print an important email attachment on your way to work so that it’s waiting for you when you walk in the door. With Gmail for mobile and Google Cloud Print — a service that allows printing from any app on any device, OS or browser without the need to install drivers — you can."

Google Cloud Print lets you print from Gmail in any current web browser, desktop or mobile. You need a Windows PC connected to the printer your want to print to right now but they're going to add support for Mac and Linux machines as well. Just go into Gmail from a browser and you will see a "Print" option in it's drop down menu near the top right. Besides just printing your messages it supports the printing of some attachments like .doc and .pdf files. Give it a try! Does this solve a specific printing need for you?


Thursday, November 25, 2010

Windows Phone 7 Is No Slouch With Browser Speed

Posted by Brad Wasson in "Windows Phone Talk" @ 06:30 AM

http://wmpoweruser.com/windows-phon...-the-iphone-4s/

"While he felt the Samsung Focus finished loading faster, a frame by frame examination does show the iPhone had 1 second on the Focus. It is however very clear there is not much between the two handsets, making browser performance another non-factor in choosing between the two devices."

WMPoweruser.com has collected some evidence from Wirefly.com that suggests the browsing experience on a Windows Phone 7 device runs neck and neck with the iPhone 4. It's certainly a bit of a subjective test, and more exhaustive testing would be required to actually validate the results, but I'd say that performance is not too bad for this initial release. Personally, I find the ability to auto-flow text while you vary the zoom level while browsing, a feature offered on other platforms like the Android, to be the most desirable browsing feature. I hope to see it on the Windows Phone 7 platform down the road.


Wednesday, May 5, 2010

The Best Browser Promo Video I've Ever Seen

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Thoughts Media Off Topic" @ 11:30 AM

This is off topic for sites other than Digital Home Thoughts, but this video is just so darn cool, I wanted to share it with everyone. Worth noting is that it's loading the pages out of the cache, so this is a rendering test, not a "download speed test", but it's perfectly valid because download speeds will vary from location to location. Personally, I still use Firefox more than Chrome - at some point, browsers are "fast enough" at page rendering and further improvements can't be perceived. I value stability and usefulness more than sheer speed at rendering. What about you?


Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Opera Mobile 10 Goes Gold

Posted by Darius Wey in "Windows Phone Software" @ 02:00 AM

http://www.opera.com/mobile/

"Today, Opera Software released the final versions of the world's most popular mobile Web browsers, Opera Mini 5 and Opera Mobile 10. Now, nearly any mobile phone can support an Opera-driven Web experience, complete with unmatched speed, style and cost savings. Simply go to m.opera.com/ to download it directly to your phone today. Today's release puts the finishing touches on the Opera mobile-browsing duo. The focus is on delivering the best Internet experience on nearly any mobile phone, along with a unified look and feel and innovative favorite features, such as Speed Dial, password manager and tabbed browsing."

Opera Mini 5 for Windows Mobile is actually still in beta, though Opera Mobile 10 has indeed lost its beta tag and is now available as an official release. Head on over to Opera and grab it. It's free and widely seen as a better alternative to Internet Explorer.


Friday, January 15, 2010

ACCESS Unveils NetFront 4.0

Posted by Darius Wey in "Windows Phone Software" @ 11:10 AM

http://www.access-company.com/produ...er/concept.html

"Leveraging the latest NetFront Browser core available for the Windows Mobile platform, NetFront Browser v4.0 for Windows Mobile Concept Version features significantly improved JavaScript execution performance. ACCESS encourages you to download NetFront Browser v4.0 for Windows Mobile Concept Version and submit your feedback by clicking on the download button and or comment form button listed at the bottom of this page. ACCESS will use your feedback to strengthen NetFront Browser v4.0."

Remember NetFront? After an update hiatus, it's back! The new v4.0 is supposedly twenty times faster than v3.5 in the JavaScript side of things. It's also free for you to try, so scoot over to ACCESS and grab yourself a copy. There are limitations, however: the trial version expires on June 30, plug-ins are a no-go, and you may encounter hiccups if you install on a storage card. Other than that, happy browsing.


Wednesday, August 26, 2009

RIM Acquires Torch Mobile; Torches Windows Mobile Versions

Posted by Jon Westfall in "Pocket PC Software" @ 10:30 AM

http://www.wmexperts.com/rim-purcha...be-discontinued

"Word dropped this morning that Torch Mobile, makers of the Iris Browser, had been purchased by Research in Motion. That's great news for BlackBerry fans, who have been in dire need of a browser for, well, ever. However, this is bad news for Windows Mobile. We just heard back from Torch Mobile spokesman George Staikos, and the response is unequivocal: 'The company will no longer continue developing for Windows Mobile or Windows-CE.'"

I just can't help but think that if another large company in the mobile market, such as one that may also be chronically dogged as anti-competition, were to do this, people would be outraged. But since it's RIM, I suspect no one will make much of a fuss. Pity to see a WM browser alternative bite the dust over purely financial reasons.


Monday, April 6, 2009

Opera Mobile 9.7 Announced at CTIA

Posted by Jon Westfall in "Pocket PC Software" @ 08:33 AM

http://www.opera.com/press/releases/2009/03/26/

"At next week's CTIA Wireless Show, Opera Software will be announcing the new Opera Mobile 9.7 server-accelerated browser for smartphones and mobile devices. Opera Mobile 9.7 features Opera Turbo, Opera's breakthrough compression technology, along with the company's latest Presto 2.2 rendering engine (also used in Opera 10 desktop) and full support for dynamic Web technologies such as Ajax and Flash (for accessing popular sites like Facebook and YouTube)"

I'm a fan of Opera when it's pre-loaded on my devices, however I've yet to have the ambition to go out and download it to install. Opera Mobile 9.7 though may be tempting to download as we get ever closer to the "real" internet on the "really small" screen.


Friday, March 6, 2009

Early Review Of IE 6 for Windows Mobile

Posted by Ed Hansberry in "Pocket PC Software" @ 04:00 AM

http://www.wmexperts.com/internet-e...t-you-need-know

Microsoft has revealed details on the much-hyped Internet Explorer Mobile 6 (IEM6), which is also making its official debut within the next 2 weeks with the Sprint Treo Pro (no word on Alltel's version)

As it has been discussed much in the past few days, IE Mobile 6 will be coming to some 6.1 devices, so you may not have to wait until WM6.5 ships this fall. WMExperts has a hands on review of the new browser, including Adobe's Flash Lite 3.1. I was a bit surprised by the harshness of the review, but part of their comments were lamenting the fact that single-column view from the current version of Pocket IE is gone. Are you really going to miss that given the new power of the browser?

Tags: browser

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Survey Of Mobile Browsers For Windows Mobile

Posted by Ed Hansberry in "Pocket PC Software" @ 05:00 AM

http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile...ows-mobile.aspx

"One of the things I like best about owning a Windows Mobile phone (a Samsung BlackJack II running Windows Mobile 6.1) is the diverse ecosystem of developers writing apps for my device. Whenever you have a strong developer community, you find a range of alternatives to match the way you like to work and play. When it comes to Web browsers for Windows Mobile, there are a number of options other than Microsoft’s Internet Explorer Mobile. Let’s look at a few of the browsers out there today, and one that’s in development."

Hulu video on Skyfire browser

Jim Causey gives a pretty good overview of alternatives to the rather anemic Pocket Internet Explorer currently on devices. Needless to say, I am anxiously awaiting the IE 6 on 6 browser we keep hearing about, but until then. if Pocket IE isn't meeting your needs, one of these alternatives may.

Tags: browser

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

No Internet Explorer Mobile 6 For You...Unless You Buy a New Phone Next Year

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Pocket PC Articles" @ 05:24 PM

http://blogs.zdnet.com/cell-phones/?p=319

"There has been a few rants posted over the last week or so about the statement that was made on a Microsoft Windows Mobile blog pertaining to the apparent lack of support for existing devices to support the upcoming Internet Explorer Mobile 6 web browser. James is one person not happy about it and echoes many of the comments made on the MSDN blog post. Brett is not happy either and made it a point to show how there are third party browsers that exceed anything Microsoft currently has with Internet Explorer Mobile and what it looks like Internet Explorer Mobile 6 may also support."

Matt Miller has written up a great article on this rather thorny subject. The whole thing is an unfortunate blow to the Windows Mobile platform, heaping insult upon injury. The insult is that Microsoft has had, literally, 5+ years to take the lead in creating a great mobile browsing experience, and they haven't. They stuck to their minimalist, "just barely renders HTML" strategy until the iPhone made desktop-like browsing a major factor in the eyes of consumers (not counting connection speed of course - 3G speeds where I am still suck!). Then, a year and a half later, with the iPhone being in its second generation, Microsoft starts to talk about IE Mobile 6 - and I think "OK, it's been a long wait, but maybe this will be worth it".

Now comes the injury: apparently Microsoft developers were unable to code something that would work on current generation hardware because it just didn't have enough grunt. The really "underpowered" HTC Touch Pro, with its 524 Mhz CPU and 288 MB of RAM, just couldn't handle this "monster" browser. I'm not a developer, but come on Microsoft - if mobile browsers like Opera Mobile and Skyfire can work on our devices today, why can't IE Mobile 6? This whole issue just makes my blood pressure raise - from the outside looking in, it looks like Microsoft just didn't realize that mobile browsing was important until it was too late.


Saturday, May 3, 2008

Skyfire Beta v0.6 Now Available For Download!

Posted by Rocco Augusto in "Smartphone Software" @ 07:00 PM

http://www.skyfire.com/

"Skyfire is a free, downloadable mobile web browser that makes browsing on your phone exactly like browsing on your PC. Now, you can use the web from your mobile phone with unprecedented speed and simplicity. For the first time ever, you can watch any web video, listen to any web music, stay connected on any social network and browse whatever you want. Anything you can browse from your PC, you can now browse from your mobile phone. We’re talking about full-featured PC versions of your favorite web sites. Skyfire gives you speedy page loads, full audio, video, images, dynamic Flash content, advanced Ajax, Java and more – just like your PC."



I received an email a few days ago informing me that Skyfire Beta v0.6 Internet browser is now available for download. According to an email, I would receive a SMS message within 24 hours with a link to download the newest browser. Unfortunately that still has not happened yet. For those of you that are a part of the Skyfire Beta, I would be on the lookout for this new version! If you're not a part of the current Beta and are interested in being a part of the second Beta program for the Skyfire browser you can do so by registering here.


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