Mobile juggling act

Remember the promise of mobile computing? The corporate database would serve a multitude of mobile computing devices via different wireless and wired networks.

You, the mobile-computing worker, would be free from your desk but still have access to all the vital data located on your network. All hail the ubiquitous, single data store in the sky.

The good news is that as an industry, we haven’t lost sight of the dream. The bad news is that players in the pervasive-computing sphere seem independently focused on three parallel tracks of development: handheld devices, networks, and application platforms. Ultimately, users aspire to the tight integration of these three tracks. And the source of that demand is the desire for a handheld replication of the computing experience we have in the office.

A scan of the keynote speakers scheduled for the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association’s CTIA Wireless 2003 show this week in New Orleans illustrates my point from a macro perspective. The first day’s speakers hail from the handheld device world: LG, Intel, Motorola, Nokia, and Texas Instruments. The telco and network guys take the stage on the second day: Sprint, Nextel, T-Mobile, EarthLink, O2 UK, Qualcomm, Alltel, and NTT DoCoMo.

It’s not until Bill Gates’ keynote kicks off the Microsoft Mobility Developer Conference 2003 (held concurrently with CTIA) late Wednesday that the platform and mobile application development discussion enters the agenda.

Now, this is not meant to be a deliberate plug, but here’s a controversial idea: Why isn’t someone like Bill Gates headlining CTIA?

While I don’t want to overlook the problems caused by its Windows-centric view of the world, Microsoft is one of the few companies tackling the challenge of how to deliver all manner of enterprise applications to a variety of mobile clients.

It has this idea that a common (XML) data store can leverage applications written to the .Net Compact Framework that runs on mobile clients.

From a user’s perspective, the .Net Compact Framework is important because it helps simplify the development of applications that run on multiple devices, regardless of the type of network. And a common data store will unify file systems such as e-mail, applications, and databases, making searching and collaboration more powerful.

So Microsoft represents a company looking to bring about the seamless integration of mobile devices, networks, and applications.

I am a fairly typical example of a mobile worker looking for the fruits of such lofty pursuits. I have a notebook, BlackBerry, PDA, and cell phone. I spend most of my time using desktop productivity apps, the corporate directory, my address book and calendar, and the browser.

The great thing about my mobile world is that each device is network-centric. The downside is that each device struggles with the fact that it also stores data locally (BlackBerry is the only notable exception).

As a result, the sheer complexity of trying to manage my data across each device is akin to a juggling act from Cirque du Soleil. A simple update to the calendar, address book, a Word document, or database file should be instantly populated across both servers and clients.

So the message for device manufacturers, network providers, and platform developers is simple: Don’t rely on the user to bridge the gaps between your worlds. When I’m on the move, my data should follow me, not the other way around.