Curious simplifies mobile application development
By Roberta Holland, eWEEK
January 8, 2001 1:40 PM ET
Curious Networks Inc. is expanding its online service by enabling developers
to write applications just once for a variety of devices and systems.
The Chicago-based company has teamed up with TellMe Networks of Mountain View,
Calif., to expand Curious' online workshop by including voice-recognition capabilities.
Using the free site, developers can build applications that run on personal
digital assistants, text pagers and WAP-enabled phones without having to build
separate versions for each device.
"We are solving the problem of developing applications for multiple devices,"
said Michael DelCiello, Curious Networks' vice president of business development.
'Most innovative channel' since Palm
DelCiello said the addition of voice-recognition capabilities is important
for the company.
"In our opinion, voice is the most innovative channel to come out since the
wireless Palm a few years ago," he said.
The workshop site uses Curious Networks' own brand of XML, called MAXML
(for Multi-Channel Access XML), to allow the applications to work on various devices.
The company says that eliminates the need for developers to learn other emerging
languages like the Wireless Markup Language, Voice XML and the Wireless Access Protocol.
Currently, the online workshop has about 500 users, DelCiello said. Developers
can use the site to build applications ranging from email to stock quotes.
The workshop is a free evaluation version of the company's Continuum product,
which Curious Networks is launching sometime in the first quarter. Pricing has not
yet been announced.
The company has brought in dozens of developers over the past few months to
experiment with MAXML. Dwight Taylor, an independent developer based in Chicago,
was one of them.
"I saw a business need for it," Taylor said of the Curious Networks service.
"The handshaking between businesses and portability between different devices is
in high demand. There are a lot of Web sites out there, and there isn't a lot of
interoperability. This is a bridge."
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