Summary

Before getting in too deep with mobile application technology, spend some time focusing on the customer requirements. This will result in an application that solves both business and technical requirements. For developers who have experience with server or PC development, mobile application development will require extra care to address user input, screen size, memory and processor limitations. To aid with development of these applications, there are a variety of development tools and SDKs available for all of the leading mobile platforms.

When it comes to testing applications during the development process, emulators can be extremely effective. They allow you to develop and debug applications on a single machine, without having to obtain physical devices and wireless connectivity. But under no circumstance should emulators replace testing on physical devices over the target wireless networks. Every stage in the development cycle serves a purpose. Not taking the time to execute the complete development process can cost more in the form of changes made late in the development cycle.

In the next chapter, we are going to take an in-depth look at mobile database technology and how it factors into creating smart client applications.