Mobile Controls

The introduction and pervasiveness of wireless technology has quickly brought dramatic change in how we use and connect with applications. With built-in microbrowsers (defined as a mini version of a browser such as Internet Explorer), millions of mobile phones and PDAs have become immediate candidates for using Web-based applications. However, due to the limitations of these devices (memory, display size, processing power, power, intermittent connectivity) developers often must fine tune the application design and user interface suited for individual devices. With Mobile controls, ASP.NET enables developers to design applications using a set of controls targeted for wireless devices, where these controls take charge of customizing and generating the optimal user interface for different types of devices. As a developer, you develop to one abstracted wireless device model and leave the rest to the ASP.NET runtime. Out-of-the-box ASP.NET 1.0 didn't provide support for Web-application development for mobile devices. With the introduction of Mobile Internet controls, ASP.NET gained the capability to develop applications that are tuned for mobile devices with such microbrowsers as mobile phones, PDAs, and other handheld, wirelessly connected devices. The current release of the .NET Framework (1.1) includes Mobile Internet controls. A detailed discussion on ASP.NET Mobile is covered in Chapter 10, "Take .NET with You: Developing Mobile Applications."