gregynog 2011
DESCRIPTION
SwTRANSCRIPT
www.swansea.ac.uk
www.swansea.ac.uk
A new website needs...
www.swansea.ac.uk
A shiny new team to build it!
www.swansea.ac.uk
ISS Web Team
• University Web Content Management System
• Academic Application Development (Assignment Toolkit, etc)
• XML Publishing (http://www.dafyddapgwilym.net)
• Anything else...
Using Open Source technologies such as PHP, Zend, Symfony,
JQuery, YUI, Python, Django, SVN, Trac, Oracle Berkeley
DBXML
Also MS .Net, MS SQL Server
www.swansea.ac.uk
...and JavaScript
‘my attitude toward JavaScript has changed completely in the
past few years. JavaScript has "grown up.“’
Mike Loukides (07/06/2011)
http://radar.oreilly.com/2011/06/time-to-learn-javascript.html
www.swansea.ac.uk
Writing code makes you look cool...?
With the advent of JavaScript libraries such as
YahooUI, JQuery it’s now easier to create great
looking user interfaces (UIs)
Or it just makes all our UIs look the same...
www.swansea.ac.uk
One ring to unite them all!
www.swansea.ac.uk
The bad old days...
Up to now all development has
been focused on the desktop,
however...
www.swansea.ac.uk
Google Analytics for May/June
Total visits: 530,182
www.swansea.ac.uk
Mobile Analysis
iPhone currently at 1% of all visits to
Swansea web site...
www.swansea.ac.uk
So what if...
...One day the internet changed from being accessed mainly on the
desktop to being accessed mainly on mobile devices, and no one noticed?
www.swansea.ac.uk
Mobile vs. Desktop Internet
…within the next five years “more users will connect to the
Internet over mobile devices than desktop PCs.”Mary Meeker 2010 (Morgan Stanley)
www.swansea.ac.uk
The Science...
www.swansea.ac.uk
Emerging Mobile Technologies
• Platforms: HTML5, iOS, Android,
ChromeOS, Windows Mobile 7
• Presentation: CSS3 – SCSS
• Frameworks: JQuery Mobile, Sencha
Touch, PhoneGap, OpenMobile
www.swansea.ac.uk
Web Apps vs. Native Apps?
Web Apps
Molly – Mobile Oxford, University of Oxford
http://mollyproject.org – Python, Django – bespoke
Native Apps
CampusM™ - http://www.ombiel.com/campusm.html
www.swansea.ac.uk
Web Apps
Pros:
• Can leverage existing skills within development teams
• Much cheaper and quicker to produce than using a 3rd party
• Generally work on all mobile platforms
Cons:
• Not able to leverage specific platform functions such as gyroscope,
camera, internal storage
• Device detection in HTML5 still problematic
• Less personalised experience, e.g. lacking integration with iTunes
app store
www.swansea.ac.uk
Native Apps
Pros:
• Tight integration with hosting platform
• More control of UI
• Continuity of end user experience
Cons:
• Requires many different builds per device type
• Can be expensive compared to developing Web apps
• Constantly moving target
www.swansea.ac.uk
Mobile First!
‘Progressive enhancement’ strategySteven Champeon of hesketh.com
• Semantic Foundation – basic content accessible to all
browsers and users
• Build up the user experience one technology layer at a
time
www.swansea.ac.uk
Progressive Enhancement
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/understandingprogressiveenhancement
www.swansea.ac.uk
Going mobile at Swansea
• eStream campus ‘YouTube’ style video to mobile
H.264/FLV
• MS SharePoint built in mobile view
• Blackboard
Quick Web Apps and Info for mobile users: PC availability,
Library Opening Times, Course Search...
www.swansea.ac.uk
SUMO!
www.swansea.ac.uk
A happy place
Progressive enhancement for all Swansea
University web pages...?
•Buy-in from all content creators (100+)
•Establishment of strict protocols
•Hard thinking
•Pain
www.swansea.ac.uk
Credits
Alexander Roberts
a.l.roberts at swansea.ac.uk
Geraint Hywel
g.s.j.hywel at swansea.ac.uk