As we continue our focus on added value wireless related sites, Enable takes a look at www.wirelessdata.org. This site has something for everyone - from novice to expert.
Beginners will benefit from the site's wireless data primer. Developers will glean a lot of value from the developers green house section, and virtually anyone interested in the industry will be able to benefit from the free market research available on the site.
These and other features are described in detail below. This description is followed by a brief look at the organization behind the site - The Wireless Data Forum.
Wireless Data Primer
The last twenty years have seen an explosion in wireless communications and computer technology. The last five years have seen the explosion of the Internet. Standing at the center of this convergence is the wireless data industry. The primer provides a general overview of the industry and its key components.
The primer is in beta version, and is still not searchable. When I used it, the primer was bug free. However, be aware that some of the information is not exactly up to date.
Developers Greenhouse
This section is for those that want to join the Wireless Revolution. It provides a slew of resources to help you successfully develop applications for Wireless Data. This includes:
Market Research
In the section called Market Index, you can look up over 100 reports, forecasts, and articles about Wireless Data. You can search by categories like new applications, international, enterprise, or consumer - or simply by keyword.
You only receive short blurbs, but the information contained in the blurb provides you with enough background to get a general idea of the particular market, product, etc, that you searched for.
For example, when I searched the word "palm", the following (among others) came up:
"Future of Palm VII dim. [6/9/99]"
"Analysts at the Wheaton, Md.-based consultancy Herschel Shosteck Associates aren't so sure and say the future is not bright for Palm VII. They predict sales of 100,000 units in the first year, a mere fraction of the projected 3.9 million personal digital assistants that will be sold in the United..."
"IBM Makes Wireless Deal; Suggested: Wireless devices to outnumber PCs on Internet, IBM expects [1/24/00]"
"IBM will design, build and run a global wireless Internet portal for Vodafone AirTouch PLC, the world's largest mobile phone operator, the companies announced earlier this month. The portal, which will be launched in July in Europe, North America and Australia, is based on software from..."
When I clicked on the above link, this is what I got:
"Summary: IBM will design, build and run a global wireless Internet portal for Vodafone AirTouch PLC, the world's largest mobile phone operator, the companies announced earlier this month. The portal, which will be launched in July in Europe, North America and Australia, is based on software from the Sun-Netscape Alliance and InfoSpace.com Inc. It will give users of mobile phone and handheld devices from Nokia Corp., Ericsson Inc. and Palm Computing Inc. access to messaging and calendaring functions, in addition to travel information and financial services."
The Wireless Data Forum
The Wireless Data Forum is a new organization with a new focus. Dedicated to publicizing successful wireless data applications and customer communities, the WDF is composed of network service providers, wireless device and infrastructure equipment manufacturers and vendors, computer software and hardware developers, and information services content providers. New members are actively being recruited from the wireless telecommunications, mobile computing, and Internet industries. The Wireless Data Forum's leadership is committed to being an industry-building mechanism. The Wireless Data Forum's work will focus on consensus building and promoting the entire wireless data industry.
It seems that the Forum means well and its current site does provide added value. Enable will continue to check on any updates and will keep you posted on the progress of this site, especially the Primer.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on June 20, 2000.