Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

i think the best way if you want to use app which need data from web is to make web application for maemo with touch options.
when we talking about soccer and stuff around soccer i think its better to make web application than maemo application. because its too much data to transfer it every time when you need something.

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

I am the developer of the QSportsEvent app also know as the 'FIFA app' (btw., that's unfortunate as it is not limited to the FIFA World Cup or football either). Could I have made it a web app? Sure! But for me the dedicated app works better than navigating between bookmarks. In future versions of the app I hope to have even more features where I think a dedicated app will do a better job.

In the end it's just a matter of taste. You prefer the browser? I'm happy with that! I just provide one more option. :)

Btw... I plan to have v. 0.0.5 of the app to hit Extras-Devel later today. Don't install any previous versions from Extras-Devel (I wish I knew how to pull them out of there...).

EDIT: 0.0.5 is in Extras-Devel, but still has dependency issues. If you want the app, either wait for PR1.2 :), or download it manually from the thread that deals with QSportsEvent.

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

If all you wanted is to post your status you can just use SMS for that. It is even easier than writing an app or widget :)

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

then what happens to the people without unlimited text messaging?

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

Along with what Bratag said... the future of coding is largely Software as a Service (SaaS), which means lots of use and reuse combined with app wrappers where it makes sense but defaulting to a browser experience for the most part. Browsers may work differently too, configuring the UI/UX on the fly based on content and context.

Developers really need to rethink their normally-siloed approach to coding. In 10 years what we do now will be seen as quaint... and that includes a lof of the utility apps on mobile devices.

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

Another good example of the usefulness of apps just occurred to me. I need to check my account but i didn't want to open the full website. I whipped out my iTouch and checked it with the Bank of America app. Sure, the BOA app is not as extensive as the website. But it is a lot faster to use for the simple things.

Kinda ironic since that is the Apple approach to things. Make the simple things fast and forget about the rest until we can make it simple. The n900 should be able to give users that choice.

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

I was just offering a real solution. If you have a status update that is so urgent you can't wait for the web page to load, you can weigh the benefit against the cost and do whatever you want.

Seriously, on my N900 these sites load in 2 seconds or less:

http://m.twitter.com
http://m.facebook.com

And the full versions only load in 1 or 2 seconds longer than that. I don't think that's "the hard way". If you don't have N900 then maybe it's harder. I haven't used previous internet tablets so I don't know how fast or slow their browser is.

I'm not saying all applications are useless, and I'm sure if you have a widget or app that does integrates with the phone and does exactly what you want it'll improve your user experience. I'm simply saying you have options and the lack of a facebook or twitter program on N900 doesn't mean you can't use facebook or twitter on N900. You can use web, mobile web, SMS or e-mail, right now, without waiting for anybody to create anything.

Google apps are the one that sticks out to me. Most of their websites do not interact well with the N900 web browser at all (screen area is too small. we need a larger virtual screen size in the web browser!). From my N95 I miss the google voice search with gps-assisted local results, google maps. And the Android versions look delicious... Now that Google is in the phone business I don't expect them to give other platforms any attention, though. I'll be shocked if we ever see those apps for N900.

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

Maemo always has given us a choice because of the ease with which you can locally store and browse HTML.

>> http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=28221

The Doppler app found in that^ thread is all presented with locally stored HTML that grabs common images and data found on the net.

Just last night I put together something useful for me on the N900 in about an hour and a half.

For the last couple of weeks I have been using Sygic Maps on my N900 in the car. I prefer portrait mode because it adds another mile or so to my "look ahead". The trouble was, any bookmark that I have for travel info is formatted for landscape. I also wanted an easy way to access all the information with as little effort as possible from Sygic so I put together this by changing one of the templates also posted in the above thread:


(More images and what it does can be found >> HERE <<)

The whole process from dreaming it up on they way home from work yesterday afternoon to actually using it on my N900 on my way in to work this morning was less than 24 hours. I'm not a programmer, I just used common HTML mark up language to construct the pages that I (and anyone can) learn by using the "View page source" feature found on just about every desktop browser when we see a page layout we like.

As a bonus, we also have this outstanding community. As I was finishing it up I thought it sure would be sweet if I could access it from the new Quick Launch app found in testing so I cruised on over to the thread on talk.maemo.org to ask the actual dang developer. >> http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=46321 (something I doubt is as easy with any other phone OS)
It was a no go but I did learn how to move the status menu items so Quick Launch would appear sooner. :)

And then Bingo! I remember a post from qwerty12 from back in the N800 days where he helped me do something similar. It took another half hour of searching and some trial and error but I did get something functional. (Again, the forums are a valuable, historic resource that few others offer.)



So, let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up:

The Internet is like a huge feast with every kind of food imaginable. Right now you can choose to partake in one of three ways:

Table d'hôte:
A complete meal of several courses, with limited choices,charged at a fixed price.

À la carte:
Items are priced and ordered separately.

Or the all-you-can-eat buffet:
Where you can make your own choice of what an how much of any or all of the food that is offered. Sometimes you can even talk to the Chef or Saucier as your food is being prepared and can make special requests. However, it does require a little extra effort.

I'm a buffet kind of guy and the N900 serves my needs well. YMMV

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

@stlpaul

I'm not sayng apps>Web
I'm saying apps are needed as much as the web. Witter is a lot better than mobile Twitter.

Re: Applications vs Web Pages
 

Or.. you would just something like Pixelpipe, I can update my status in Facebook and Twitter just by sending an IM (not an SMS) to Pixelpipe. Even faster than opening an app =P.

The N900 does give you the choice. Whether an application exists on the other hand depends on the company to provide the application or if it's possible to do from an independent developer POV then interest from the developer in doing it. For example, something like the Bank of America app probably requires BOA to create an app. But it's not like your forbidden from using an app if one exists.