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8/14/2019 Reading 4 Nokia Intellisync Whitepaper IntroToLOBMobApps v1 0 en

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Nokia for Business

paperIntroduction to Mobilizing

Line of Business (LOB) Applications

white


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Introduction to Mobilizing Line of Business (LOB) Applications June 2007

2 Nokia for Business

Abstract

This paper outlines the different types of mobile solutions, data collection, data distribution and data management. It also

outlines the variety of mobile devices available today and how they fit a specific purpose very often. Considerations for

choosing a device and building an application are covered. Finally, the case will be made for offline architecture when

building mobile solutions.

Nokia Intellisync File Sync and Nokia Intellisync Application Sync provide a secure, scalable and extremely flexible platform

to enable Line of Business (LOB) application usage on mobile devices.

Introduction

While the development of mobile devices has enabled mobile workers to access email and browse websites while

away from their desks, companies today are looking for mobility solutions beyond these basics. They want their mobile

workforce to have access to important business data and corporate applications while on the road.

It is rare today to see a delivery truck driver without a handheld computer. These devices usually have a barcode scanner to

identify each package scheduled for delivery, and a screen area where the customer signs to verify receipt. The software

application on the handheld device is part of a complete solution for tracking and managing the delivery of goods.

While logistics and proof of delivery were among the first mobile applications on handheld devices, mobile workers have

been carrying around applications on their laptop computers for many years. In fact, Nokia customers have been mobilizing

application data on laptops for over a decade. Thus, while the basic notion of mobilizing applications is not new, the

impressive growth of mobile email device use has led to an increased awareness of the possibilities for deploying real

business processes on handheld devices.

The first section of this paper provides an overview of Line of Business applications, as well as applicable mobile devices on

the market and their suitability to different purposes. It also covers how to build client applications using today's most

popular tools. A later section covers the architectural options for occasionally connected and online applications. Finally, we

provide an overview of Nokia Intellisync Mobile Suite and how to create applications that allow companies to manage theirbusiness information in the field.


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Types of Mobile Applications

One might assume that creating mobile applications is just about bringing desktop application functionality to mobile

devices. While it is possible to use this simplified approach, taking time before implementation to learn about application

fundamentals and design can save a lot of work and still improve the usability of the mobile application.

Application mobilization involves many critical considerations. Among the most important is the need to understand how

information is collected into the business process and how it is managed in a specific application. Informationmanagement can be divided into three categories: Data Collection, Data Distribution and Data Management.

Data Collection

Many business processes are dependent on information that exists outside the company. However, this information

becomes valuable only after it has been captured, analyzed and associated with existing company information.

An example of this process is marketing lead collection, where a marketing or sales person captures prospective customerinformation. This data is then associated with the prospect's specific interest in a product or service offering, and finally is

entered into the company information system. Another example involves automobile traffic analysis, where a road

authority captures and stores traffic flow parameters (number of vehicles, speed and traffic frequency) real-time on a

mobile device, for detailed analysis later in the back office.

There are certain interesting characteristics in this application type

Information is captured on a mobile device and briefly classified and analyzed, but the actual information processingusually takes elsewhere at a later time.

The information is stored temporarily to a mobile device. As soon as it is synchronized to company information systems,the original information becomes obsolete and may be flushed. The mobile device has to be connected only

occasionally; there is no need for permanent connection to corporate systems.

Capturing the information may be assisted with specific peripherals connected to the mobile device: a barcode or RFIDreader, camera and/or video recorder. The application is usually customized to a specific purpose and the user interface

is designed for quick and easy input.

The Nokia Intellisync Mobile Applications Starter Kit provides sample solutions including a lead collection application as

described above.

Data Distribution

Companies with widespread mobile workers need to deliver information to their employees without requiring them to visit

the office or connect to the network via their laptop. A snippet of a business update is usually delivered via email. However,

in order comply with regulatory standards, companies must ensure specific information reaches their employees and/or

customers whenever needed. General examples of such information are price lists, corporate security notifications, and

press statements. Technical organizations may also need to keep their audiences up-to-date with product notifications,

product security bulletins, and technical resolutions. Saturating the company internal mailboxes or email inboxes with this

information is not only impractical, but also inconvenient or irritating for the recipients.

Applications designed for data distribution are usually very straightforward, without any complex business logic on the

client side. Information may be in the form of web pages that can be browsed offline on mobile devices, via simple search

and browsing functionality. The information itself may be stored in a native office application format that can be viewed

and edited on the mobile device. The company can define the information to be pushed to employees and customers

whenever an update is made to the company files in the office.

In order to maintain an appropriate user experience and control data delivery costs, ordinary file management mechanisms such as copying and deleting files are not applicable for the delivery of information to mobile devices.

Nokia Intellisync File Sync allows you to create applications that automate company information delivery to mobile devices

and give users a convenient way to access the information they need. The sample applications in the Starter Kit will guide

you through configuration of the Nokia Intellisync Mobile Suite server and prepare you to further develop your own client

applications.


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Data Management

Compared to the other application types, the most distinguishing feature of data management is that information available

from company systems is combined with information captured by the mobile worker to create new information with more

value than either of the sources alone. In other words, data management is about processing information from the field

and the existing information systems.

The complexity of multiple data sources and the business processes created to manage that information sets new

requirements for data management applications and client architecture. It is no longer adequate to synchronize classifiedinformation in a unidirectional manner between company information systems and mobile devices; you now need to

manage data coherency and business process consistency in the entire system.

A superior way to implement data management in mobile devices entails creating a custom application that connects to a

local database, which is then further synchronized to a company information system. Other options involve the always-on

connection of a slim client directly to information systems in the company network.

Developers who plan to create a data management application face the following challenges, at a minimum:

Authentication: Implement user identification throughout the entire application Secure connectivity: Ensure data confidentiality and integrity during data transfer Efficient transport of deltas: Detect changes made on both the mobile device and company information system, and

transmit with the least network effort) Conflict resolution: Determine which of the changes that occurred to the same piece of information is more valid Data partitioning: Determine which elements of data are required by which users. Transactional integrity: Apply changes made in all copies of the information to achieve consistent results User interface adopted to business logic: How to best present the information to the user and achieve adequate usability

and functionality


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Mobile Devices

There are many varied devices in the market today, with different sets of features and characteristics. The Nokia E90

pictured above is small yet powerful, with a full qwerty keyboard and built-in camera. It is also a telephone and satellite

navigation unit. The Dolphin 9550 from Handheld Products has a barcode scanner, touch screen, pistol grip for easy

scanning operation, and is built for rugged use.

For an insurance company mobile sales force or a team of real estate surveyors capturing images and GPS locations, the

Nokia E90 would likely be the appropriate device choice. For warehouse management or parcel delivery, the Dolphin device

is probably more suitable

Identify a Shortlist of Devices

The first step in mobilizing an application is to determine the specific types of data to be captured in the field. A typical list

might include

Pictures GPS location Barcode Signature Sound and video Answers to multiple choice questions A number A passage of textNext, match each requirement to the features of the device under consideration. For example, if text must be entered, then

a qwerty keyboard is a requirement. If not, then a simple number pad may be enough.

Other factors that may impact the selection of appropriate devices include:

Battery Life: It is not essential to have very long battery life if the device is to be mounted in a vehicle, where it will becontinually charged. Do not weigh battery life highly if it is not an issue!

Operating System: The most popular mobile operating systems are Symbian, Palm OS and Windows (XP or CE). Selectingother systems may lead to difficulties in developing the application or managing the device. Development skills within the

company may also influence choice. For example, if IT staff are skilled in building Java applications, then Symbian may be

the best choice due to the built-in J2ME support. But if Microsoft development skills are more prevalent, then Windows OS

may be the better choice.

Memory: How much data needs to be stored on the device?


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Network Connectivity: How will the devices connect to the corporate network: Cradle, Wireless LAN, Cellular?


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Creating the Client Application

The developer's choice of how to create the client application should be driven by the skills within the company or the

partner chosen to deliver the solution. Microsoft Visual Studio offers an extensive mobile development environment.

Wizards make it easy to build database applications using SQL Server Compact Edition. The Eclipse project offers a plugin

called Mobile Tools for Java (MTJ) for building J2ME applications. Sun's Netbeans also offers a J2ME plugin.

Some believe that mobile client development is a complex process requiring application generation tools. This is not the

case. Microsoft, Eclipse and Sun's tools use wizards to generate much of the code required for the application. Once the

application requires more sophisticated functionality, there is no substitute for writing new code.


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Client Architecture - Always Online?

Contrary to popular belief, Internet access is not yet universal. Places without wireless Internet availability include:

Underground trains Airplanes Most of Africa Most of South America Most of Russia Anywhere at seaSome parts of the United States do not yet have cell coverage. To state that mobile applications should work online

only is clearly a tremendous mistake. The fact that not a single popular wireless email solution on the market today uses an

always-online model should be proof enough.

What data needs to be available for offline usage? How much data should be kept on the device? How should the data be

transferred to and from the device? The first two questions will be answered by the requirements of the solution. The third

requires a discussion of the options.

Database Replication

Replication was designed to allow multiple database servers to mirror each other's data in order to spread load and/or risk.

While the replication process was never intended for mobile clients, technology has evolved enough to make this use case

worth considering. However, in practice, replication is difficult to configure and manage, does not scale well and requires

the client database to be the same as the server database, which is not always desirable.

Home-grown Synchronization

While it is possible to build the data synchronization along with the solution, this seems like reinventing the space shuttle!

Building synchronization software involves consideration of many difficult problems:

Authentication Secure connectivity Efficient transport of deltas Conflict resolution Data partitioning Transactional integrityEven simple applications that store data in files rather than relational databases must consider these issues. Writing code to

move files via ftp does not constitute secure middleware in today's enterprise environments.


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Nokia Intellisync Mobile Suite

It seems logical to use one server to address all corporate mobility needs, wireless email, device management and LOB

application deployment. Nokia Intellisync Mobile Suite provides a single-server approach: one server, one communication

client, one secure channel, one authentication step, one user log, one administration console, one system to load balance

and configure redundancy. The four modules in the suite are:

Nokia Intellisync Wireless Email Nokia Intellisync Device Management Nokia Intellisync File Sync Nokia Intellisync Application SyncLearn More - Try the Mobile Application Starter Kit

The Starter Kit contains sample applications that can be easily installed and configured in a test environment, using either

Nokia Intellisync Application Sync or Nokia Intellisync File Sync to demonstrate the simplicity of the solution.

Find more information, documents, training and contacting Nokia experts, please register and go to

www.forum.nokia.com/mobileware.


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Work together. Smarter

Nokia Inc.102Corporate Park Drive, White Plains, NY 10604 USAAmericasTel: 1 877 997 9199Email: [email protected] PacificTel: +65 6588 3364Email: [email protected] ChinaTel: +86 10 65392828www.nokia.com800 810 [email protected], Middle East, and AfricaFrance +33 170 708 166UK +44 161 601 [email protected]/business

Nokia 2007. All rights reserved. Nokia is a registered trademarks of Nokia Corporation. Other trademarks mentioned are the property

of their respective owners. THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT WARRANTED TO BE ERROR-

FREE, NOR IS IT SUBJECT TO ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES. Operations and some features are network, device or application

dependent. Nokia operates a policy of continuous development and reserves the right to make changes and improvements to any

products without prior notice.

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