Re: names/attribute standards/protocols

Guy Simcox wrote:
> I have just read the document 'http://www.w3.org/TR/cpc-req/' @ w3.org 
> hopping to discover if there are any formal standards protocols for 
> device manufactures and web server developers to adhere to regarding the 
> names/attributes for devise capabilities. If a phone requested a screen 
> size of 800 x 600 what would you place in the http request? How is this 
> done on the phone? And how would a server no how to interpret this in 
> order to facilitate the devices request? "Screen-size" and 
> "size-of-screen" are completely different to a computer! (we need a 
> standard or protocol I guess! ).

The W3C Device Independence Working Group has just started work on a
proposed standard for Core Presentation Characteristics that will satisfy
the requirements for unambiguous attributes we identified in the document
you cited.

For existing examples of device vocabularies, have a look at the OMA's
UAProf (User Agent Profile), the IETF's Media Feature Sets, W3C's CSS Media
Queries or W3C's SMIL System Test Attributes. The first two of these also
have associated protocols for conveying device profiles as part of an HTTP
request, but neither are widely supported on servers to date. All are
referenced in our CPC Requirements document http://www.w3.org/TR/cpc-req/
or in our earlier Delivery Context Overview document
http://www.w3.org/TR/di-dco/ .

You have correctly spotted an area that is ripe for further development.

Regards,

Roger Gimson
-- 
roger_gimson@hpl.hp.com | HP Labs, Bristol BS34 8QZ, UK | +44 117-312-8167

Received on Tuesday, 1 July 2003 09:30:30 UTC