[Server-devel] [crazy idea] Supporting basic mobile phones | Searching for possible standards

[David Farning]

This is one of the reasons for my constant harping on modularity; A
very small core with many loosely coupled services.

If someone wants to leverage the school server for use with mobile
phones, it should be possible.

IFF we have done the design correctly, it should be possible to to the
mobile phone work as extended services. During the initial phase this
might require some coordination between the core team and the mobile
phone team to adopt and extend the APIs. Then if we start we finding
our selves says "Wow, is is awesome" we can take step to roll parts of
the mobile phone services into core.

I am expecting that the project will spend the next couple years
circling around a coupe of themes:
1. System Integration - Create a turnkey system of hardware, software,
and content.
2. Polish -  Continual clean ups to make XSCE easy to work with and
adapt to ones own needs. Configuration fits into this theme.
3. Extensions - People will take XSCE into unforeseen directions via services.
4. Student Information Systems / Statistics - Decision makers are
hungry for data.
5. Content -  As always the point of XSCE is to collect and deliver content.



On Sun, Nov 24, 2013 at 9:51 PM, Anish Mangal <anish at activitycentral.com> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Disclaimer: Please do not construe this as a direction that XSCE should be
> taking, but more of a crazy idea I am exploring on the side.
>
> In developing nations, the most common communication device is the mobile
> phone. It is atleast a magnitude more common any other electronic
> communication device. If one were to look at building technology solutions
> for education in less developed nations of this world, a cellphone would
> seem like the perfect thing to piggyback upon.
>
> On the other hand, this would seem like saying lets shut down sugar and move
> to android, because it's everywhere, something I'm not sure is the best
> thing to do. (So I am conflicted about it).
>
> Cutting to the chase:
> 1. Is there any overlap between the xsce vision *as you see it* and
> supporting mobile phones.
> 2a. If the answer to that is a yes, are there standards or software that
> might help make XSCE content and services available on basic mobile phones.
> We will probably forego 80% of the value XSCE provides, but that 20% might
> be valuable.
> 2b. What kind of service standards would be most suitable to build upon?
> WAP, SMS, Voice (navigation)? Most basic mobile phones today have a WAP
> browser.
>
> The more I think, the more it "feels" that this may not be the right thing
> for the XSCE project, but still would like to have an understanding of the
> challenges involved.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> --
> Anish
>
> P.S. this email is a result of talking to a few people over the past few
> weeks and hearing from them again and again the sheer availability of mobile
> phones. At the same time, I'm sure many people would have already tried to
> figure out this space (maybe I'm trying to do just that).
>
> _______________________________________________
> Server-devel mailing list
> Server-devel at lists.laptop.org
> http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/server-devel
>



-- 
David Farning
Activity Central: http://www.activitycentral.com