Today, we'll give a brief overview of Wireless Application Protocol (WAP).
WAP represents an industrywide approach to bring Internet and intranet services to mobile appliances. The protocol got its start in 1997 when the industry created the WAP Forum to assure greater interoperability between the major players such as Nokia, Ericsson and Motorola.
Since WAP was designed to enhance the capabilities of small wireless terminals (like mobile phones) it uses a " microbrowser. "
WAP applications are written in Wireless Markup Language (WML), a subset of XML. While WAP has its genesis in IP, User Datagram Protocol and HTTP, only " skinny " versions of these protocols are used. That's because wireless transmission rates are typically slower than wireline rates, the processing and memory capacity of a handset is low compared to a PC, and the screen of a handset is smaller than a PC screen.
WAP also provides connectivity in much the same way as typical wireline services, using a network-based remote access server and PPP sessions as part of the communications link. A WAP gateway offers connections to the Internet, translating between the skinny versions of the WAP protocol and the full-fledged versions.
Version 2.0 of the WAP specification supports the Multimedia Message Service (MMS) we covered last week. MMS " rides " on WAP. Covering a variety of interfaces, WAP 2.0 provides a protocol between the " client " (like a handset) and the high-level architecture used by MMS clients and servers.
RELATED LINKS
Steve Taylor is President of Distributed Networking Associates and Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Webtorials.Com. For more detailed information on most of the topics discussed in this newsletter, connect to Webtorials.Com, the first Web site dedicated exclusively to market studies and technology tutorials in the Broadband Packet areas of Frame Relay, ATM, and IP.
Larry Hettick is an independent consultant, with 19 years of experience in telecommunications and data communications marketing and product management for service providers and equipment vendors. He can be reached at larry@larryhettick.com
You can reach the authors at taylor@webtorials.com or larry@larryhettick.com.
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