Me If You Can
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>>>>>> RE>>>>>>A ME IF YOU CAN We’re on the cusp of a revolution in mobile computing and application deployment. Is your infrastructure ready? SEVERAL POTENT FORCES ARE ACTING IN CONCERT to dramatically expand the abil- ity of mobile workers to access any information, at any time, from any- where. The implications are far greater than improved productivity: We see companies functioning in completely new ways as they eliminate the unnecessary or redundant steps bogging down business processes. Firms that fully integrate the power of these technologies will become what we call “mobile dynamic enterpris- es.” This metamorphosis occurs ////// BY PETER RYSAVY ////// Copyright (c) 2007, CMP Media LLC. Important note: This PDF is provided solely as a reader service. It is not intended for reproduction 38 NWC I or public distribution. For more information on obtaining a Reprint, please contact a Reprint Services Rep at 516.562.7026 or visit www.cmpreprints.com/faxback.jhtml A CH>>>>>>>>>>> when IT starts using mobile computing strategically, and strategic adoption—after all, we’re moving toward not just tactically as is the norm today. a converged world of multimedia communications and Don’t get us wrong: Tactical is a great way to get your handheld computers that are more powerful than last feet wet with mobile computing. But if you can go to the year’s desktop PCs. A grasp of technology trends and next level, the payoff will be immense. It shouldn’t be a drivers. An understanding of what constitutes an effec- huge leap—how many of your employees already carry tive mobile application and its architecture. And finally, powerful laptops and handheld devices and have access awareness of aspects beyond the app itself, including to 3G networks? The missing link: A wide selection of security, mobile middleware and device management. off-the-shelf software applications. Three factors are causing a shift in the status quo: IMS ON THE HORIZON Faster wireless networks mean improved application One thing to focus on as you make long-term plans: In responsiveness, and middleware has grown more sophis- the next couple of years, mobile operator networks will ticated. But most important, vendors are finally getting support a much wider range of services. Today’s networks in sync with their customers’ needs and offering built-in primarily deliver packets or messages. But operators like support for mobile devices in their enterprise software. AT&T, Sprint and Verizon are laying the foundations for And clearly, mobility is on your mind: Our reader poll more sophisticated communication. IMS, a work-in- for this article showed 70 percent of responding compa- progress framework based on SIP (Session Initiation Pro- nies adopting mobile/wireless technologies. However, tocol), for example, supports the dynamic blending of a only 17 percent had companywide strategic initiatives, so variety of communications components, including cir- much work remains to be done. What’s the holdup? In a cuit-switched voice, packet-switched voice through VoIP, word, complexity. A smorgasbord of mobile platforms video, user location information and messaging. and wireless networks means integration challenges. Although operators are likely to use IMS initially for What does it take to overcome? Anticipation of their own services, such as video streaming and push-to- where carriers are headed (hint: IMS, or IP Multimedia talk over cellular, they also will open up IMS interfaces to Subsystem). Knowing the difference between tactical third-party apps. The result will be far richer multimedia- IMPACT ASSESSMENT: MOBILE APPLICATIONS BENEFIT RISK IT may be able to leverage some Managing and securing applications mobile applications for its own and mobile devices, especially multi- IT Organization puposes (say, service-issue notifica- ple types of devices, can be a com- tion), but most implementation and plex and expensive undertaking. support efforts will benefit end users. To avoid wasted effort and money, Most employees can benefit from it’s crucial to follow a strategic plan Business real-time access to important com- that prioritizes what mobile plat- Organization pany information. Mobile platforms forms and applications to support can include handhelds and laptops. and which workers to target. Improved internal communications aids competitiveness, as employees We don’t see mobile application Business who interact with customers can deployment as posing any competi- Competitiveness provide better information and tive risk, assuming you avoid control on items such as inventory, ill-conceived projects. project status and delivery time. The increased use of a wide range of applications on mobile platforms is inevitable, and productivity gains—especially if strategically implemented— BOTTOM LINE can be huge. Many new applications now directly support mobile platforms, simplifying deployment. However, there are still sticky issues to work XXXXXXXXXthrough, including network and device selection, management and security. Copyright (c) 2007, CMP Media LLC. Important note: This PDF is provided solely as a reader service. It is not intended for reproduction or public distribution. For more information on obtaining a Reprint, please contact a Reprint Services Rep at 516.562.7026 or visit www.cmpreprints.com/faxback.jhtml common—and generally the most effective. We run down YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR market forces in “What’s Driving Adoption,” below. Given today’s 3G networks, powerful laptops and s handheld devices (which we refer to as smartphones t s o NNativeative clclientient c even for PDA form factors), we already have all the com- t r o puting and networking power needed to extend data to p p JJavavaa u mobile workers. What’s been missing has been a wide s d n selection of off-the-shelf software applications. Previ- a BBrorowwseserr-based-based t n ously, enterprises may have selected hardware to solve e m a specific business problem. Now, companies frequent- p MMessessaagingging o l e ((suchsuch as SMS) ly purchase smartphones to address one set of prob- v e D lems, then look to migrate additional applications to Performance capability the platform, much as in the desktop environment. However, running applications designed for always- A comparison of performance and capability levels versus develop- connected, high-speed networks with low latency over ment and support costs for mobile platforms clearly illustrates that wireless links too often results in sluggish and/or unreli- native clients provide superior performance and capability, but at the greatest development cost. able behavior. It’s common to experience temporary loss of connectivity, reconnections with different IP addresses oriented apps that will captivate consumers and further and inconsistent throughput levels due to high network enhance enterprise productivity. Imagine an app on a load or poor signal conditions, where the wireless link desktop at corporate headquarters that shows the loca- may have to retransmit a large percentage of packets. tion of an employee in the field and can initiate an IM ses- Also, older networks, such as GPRS, simply moved sion simply by clicking on that person. Support personnel packets too slowly (tens of kilobits per second) with too could stream video to show a mobile salesperson a new much latency (hundreds of milliseconds). Dealing with offering that’s of interest to the customer at that location. the foibles of 2G wireless often meant employing wire- Operators are testing IMS and have services, such as less middleware, which could involve rewriting the appli- AT&T’s “video sharing,” planned for later this year. cation or developing custom apps using programming interfaces specific to the middleware. The result: Expen- TREND REPORT sive and cumbersome application deployment, often jus- A number of other technology drivers are accelerating tifiable only for focused vertical market applications, deployment of mobile applications, by which we mean such as dispatch or field service. apps that involve communication between a mobile Three things have changed to improve this situation device, including phones, wireless PDAs and laptops, and dramatically. First, wireless networks have become much enterprise servers. Some mobile applications also can faster; applications that ran poorly on 2G often perform operate in a standalone, disconnected fashion, while oth- well on 3G networks. That SQL database application ers, such as most wireless e-mail systems, can operate as might refresh a screen in 5 seconds instead of 30. islands at times, then synchronize with your or third-party Second, wireless middleware has become much more servers when network connections are available. There are sophisticated, and can often be deployed without requir- also always-connected models of operation, especially for ing changes to the application. Today’s wireless e-mail browser-based applications. Of these approaches, the gateways are good examples, as are current mobile VPNs. “sometimes” or “usually” connected model is the most Third, and most important in our view, application WHAT’S DRIVING ADOPTION DRIVER WHY IT MATTERS Today’s mobile platforms have significant computing power and gigabytes Powerful mobile devices of solid-state storage. Innovative keyboards, large bright screens, thumbwheels, trackballs and touch screens Improved user interfaces make using phones for data applications more painless for users than ever. 3G cellular broadband rates of 1 Mbps are becoming available in virtually all major metro Powerful wireless technologies areas, with fallback to slower 2.5G networks of 100 Kbps in other areas. Many new devices now support both cellular and Wi-Fi networks. Applications designed to support Major applications now likely provide mobile support directly, rather than mobile devices requiring middleware to get access and interface. Many companies offer comprehensive suites for managing large deployments of mobile Good management and security options devices, as well as for securing the devices, their communications and data storage. Copyright (c) 2007, CMP Media LLC. Important note: This PDF is provided solely as a reader service. It is not intended for reproduction or public distribution.