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How do I position my m-pages within my site. I saw many pages puting I-mode versions in imode folder ex:
www.mysite.co.jp/imode
Is it widely accepted? Will user agent (mobile) request that folder automatically. Do I need to cloak or use other methods?
More important is, how do I promote such pages.
Are they any I-mode search engines.
I know that there is an "official" I-mode menu (default directory of pages) however it is very expensive to be included there, plus the guidlines are far to restrictive.
Can anyone tell if there is any working i-mode emulator. I ran across two web emulators and neither of them worked.
I hope someone can help me with that.
How do I position my m-pages within my site.I go for the shortest possible URL because it's a real PITA to type anything into a phone. Some of the best I've seen are like:
i.mydomain.com
www.mydomain.com/i/
Will user agent (mobile) request that folder automatically.Nope. It's a regular URL and it's up to the user to input it...or more likely follow a link.
Are they any I-mode search engines.There are a bunch of them but they really aren't used as much on the phone. A couple of big ones you may have heard of are:
Google [google.com]
Infoseek [iseek.infoseek.co.jp]
I know that there is an "official" I-mode menu (default directory of pages) however it is very expensive to be included there, plus the guidlines are far to restrictive.Getting on that menu is pretty impossible...Unless you have a huge budget, a super popular well known service, and a presence in Japan I wouldn't even bother trying.
put link to i.xyz.jp at the top of normal pages.
put the i-mode page at subdomain and hope that it will somehow appear at i-mode results.
cloaking - ntt provides ranges of ip addresses which are used for i-mode surfing - so maybe redirecting by IP to subdomain. However they do not guarantee that the IP are 100% accurate.
As a user - do you prefer pages with or without any graphics.
What doyou think?
From what I saw at Google i-mode search - the results are the same as on normal web search.The results may look the same, but Google takes things a step further. If you click on any of the SERPs Google actually reformats the target site to fit on your phone. It's a type of instant spidering only for the target page. It removes all the graphics, tables and other non-compatible markup and gives you text and links. So, technically, users of Google can see almost any website (as long as it has text). You don't actually have to make a specific iMode site if all you're targeting is Google and you don't mind them having control of how your page is displayed.
put link to i.xyz.jp at the top of normal pagesYup. Make sure it's the first thing on your page. A few years ago DoCoMo set the recommended page size (text and images) at 5KB. I always played it safe and designed pages within 2KB.
put the i-mode page at subdomain and hope that it will somehow appear at i-mode results.I would put the specific words "iMode / i-Mode" in your site so that people can find it. Then you have to promote it to niche directories and mail magazines. Guest book links are also good I hear. There are lots of iMode guest books out there. ;)
cloakingKeep in mind that DoCoMo's iMode is not the only fish in the ocean. In Japan you also have big players like KDDI and Vodaphone (formerly JPhone) among others. These people can view websites as well and are gaining in market share. Keeping track of all the new technological developments, IPs, and phone models can be a daunting task. If you can make a good plain cHTML site it will go a long way for you.
As a user - do you prefer pages with or without any graphics.I prefer text with little or no graphics. Unless you're promoting a photo gallery or wallpaper type service I don't see the need for images all that much. I normally only surf for news or information anyway. I've still got an old phone so I don't play with all the Java apps and new Flash games. (Yes, the new DoCoMo 505 Series phones support FLASH)
