Mobile software

Mobile software is designed to run on handheld computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), enterprise digital assistants (EDAs), smartphones and cellphones. Since the first handheld computers of the 1980s, the popularity of these platforms has risen considerably. Recent model cellphones have included the ability to run user-installed software.

Mobile development lists the differences between the various mobile software platforms, in chart format.

J2ME

The dominant mobile software platform is Java Fact|date=December 2007 (in its incarnation as "J2ME" / "Java ME" / "Java 2 Micro Edition"). J2ME runs atop a "Virtual Machine" (called the KVM) which allows reasonable, but not complete, access to the functionality of the underlying phone. The JSR process serves to incrementally increase the functionality that can be made available to J2ME, while also providing Carriers and OEMs the ability to prevent access, or limit access to provisioned software.

This extra layer of software provides a solid barrier of protection which seeks to limit damage from erroneous or malicious software. It also allows Java software to move freely between different types of phone (and other mobile device) containing radically different electronic components, without modification. The price that is paid is a modest decrease in the potential speed of the game and the inability to utilise the entire functionality of a phone (as Java software can only do what this middle-man layer supports.)

Because of this extra security and compatibility, it is usually a quite simple process to write and distribute Java mobile applications (including games) to a wide range of phones. Usually all that is needed is a freely available JDK (Java Development Kit) for creating Java software itself, the accompanying Java ME tools (known as the Java Wireless Toolkit) for packaging and testing mobile software, and space on a web server (web site) to host the resulting application once it is ready for public release.from many sites you can download mobile softwares

BREW

In terms of use, J2ME is followed by BREW. BREW can provide complete control of the handset and access to all its functionality. However the power provided by native code with direct access to the handset APIs, has caused the BREW development process to be tailored largely towards recognised software vendors. While the BREW SDK (Software Development Kit) is freely available, running software on real mobile hardware (as opposed to the provided emulator) requires a digital signature which can only be generated with tools issued by a handful of parties, namely mobile content providers and Qualcomm themselves. Even then, the game will only work on "test enabled" devices. To be downloadable on regular phones the software must be checked, tested and given approval by Qualcomm via their TRUE BREW Testing programme.

Other

Windows Mobile, Palm OS and Symbian OS support typical application binaries as found on personal computers with code which executes in the native machine format of the processor (the ARM architecture is used on many current models). Windows Mobile also supports the Portable Executable (PE) format associated with the .NET Framework. Both Windows Mobile and Palm OS offer free SDKs and Integrated Development Environments to developers. Machine language executables offer considerable performance advantages over Java.

ee also

* Mobile development
* Mobile games
* MoSoSo
* BlackBerry
* Enterprise digital assistant
* Personal digital assistant
* Adobe Flash Lite
* Mobile computing

References

* Marshall McLuhan and Quentin (1967) "The Medium is the Massage", Hardwired, San Francisco,pp.8-9,26-41,74-75

* Lelia Green (2001) , "Technoculture", Allen & Unwin, Crows nest,pp.1-20

External links

* [http://pocketpcmag.com/_top/bestsites.asp PocketPCMag's List of Best Sites for Windows Powered Pocket PCs, Handheld PCs, and Smartphones]