Websites can use the well as so-called personalized approaches, which are becoming increasingly

popular. A personalized service makes use of information about the user to tailor the service
specifically to them. As a result, the user provides the service with a profile; This profile can
include any number of variables, including:
• The user's identity • The user's current location • The device that will be used with the service The
profile enables the service to compute a personalized result. Content and representation both have
the ability to be customized. In principle, it is possible to personalize any kind of service, but it is
especially helpful when displaying web pages on mobile devices. Based on personalization, there
are the following options available:
• From the requested website, a number of smaller sites are provided by the web server. These
smaller sites are sorted according to the user's priorities so that the sites with the most relevant
information are found first. Additionally, a website's components are defined and then arranged
according to their frequency of use. A search function or a directory listing, for instance, can be
used to locate products in an electronic store. If it is determined from user statistics that he only
uses the search function, this can be given priority over the directory listing. Figure 9.6 depicts the
various web page components that can be rearranged or removed to provide a customized solution.
• A representative is contacted through the mobile device. This representative modifies the entire
HTML website in order to display it on a mobile device.
9.3 Mobile Apps 181 Figure 9.6: Design elements of an e-commerce store 9.3.4 Location-
Dependent Services As previously mentioned, a mobile device may, in certain circumstances,
Techniques for determining position determine its current location and use this information in an
application. This feature has the potential to provide interesting applications. There are various
methods of positioning:
GPS. The US Department of Defense was in charge of creating the Global Positioning System
(GPS). 24 satellites in various orbits around the Earth serve as its foundation.
The distance to a satellite can be calculated with a mobile device. Additionally, the amount of time
it takes for a signal to reach the mobile device from the satellite is measured.
After measuring this time for three satellites, two possible positions for the mobile device can be
calculated, one of which is the actual position. There is no need to use four satellites because
accurately calculating the distance is a difficult task in this case (each device would need an atomic
clock because even the smallest time difference could result in significant errors). Because the
calculated position is typically accurate to a few meters, GPS has the advantage of being worldwide
serviceable and accurate.
GALILEO. GALILEO is a European system that is currently in development and is similar to GPS,
but it promises to be even more accurate than GPS. It will make use of 30 satellites, which is more
than the GPS. Notwithstanding, as indicated by current plans, it
won't be prepared for use before 2013.
GSM location. Positioning can also be done with the GSM network. This service enables all cell
phones to determine their current positions. This can be traced all the way back to Ericsson, who
gave this system the name "Mobile Positioning System" (MPS). The signal travel times are used to
measure the distances to three base stations with it, just like with GPS. It is possible to request a
mobile device's position in MPS as well as a mobile device's current position (for the purpose of
locating the thief in the event of a theft, for example). However, because they may violate data
protection laws, such actions are contested.
Examples of how location-dependent applications can also be used for new applications if a mobile
device can determine its current position:
• An application for cars that looks for the closest supermarket, gas station, or service station.
• An electronic city plan or route planner that determines the quickest route from the current
location to a destination.
• A tourist information system that informs mobile devices of the closest places of interest.
• A recreation park or museum information system that sends multimedia information to the closest
objects.
• If the mobile device has a digital camera, the location of the camera at the time a photo is taken
and the time it was taken can both be recorded. The necessary fields are present in the JPEG (Joint
Photographic Experts Group) standard, which is already in use on the majority of cameras. Because
the search can now be conducted in accordance with both the time and the location, it becomes
simpler to locate particular photos. For instance, the date of the last city celebration in Fribourg
could be entered as a search parameter to obtain all of the photos, as could the location, Fribourg
and its surroundings up to a distance of 1 km, as a second search parameter. However, this would
need to be supported by the picture search engine.
• An individual emergency call system (detailed in Sect. 9.3.5).
9.3.5 Uses of Mobile Devices in Medicine Medical applications of mobile devices are also
numerous. In the accompanying,
a portion of these applications are momentarily introduced.
9.4 Literary References 183 The Mobile Visit There are applications for mobile devices that can
help a doctor visit. These give the doctor information about how the disease is progressing. The
mobile device helps the doctor because a checklist is made for each patient based on how his
disease is progressing. On the other hand, the physician can directly enter new patient information
into the mobile device, which is then automatically transferred to an information system.
Personal Emergency Call Systems Personal emergency call systems have undergone tremendous
development over the past few years, and there are currently numerous commercial products in this
field. Personal emergency call systems can be integrated into cell phones. In the event of an
emergency, the owner of a personal emergency call system can request prompt assistance. Older
people who don't want to move out of their familiar surroundings (to live in an elderly home) might
be interested in this. Since anyone can get hurt, the personal emergency call system can also be used
by other people. Because of this, the Japanese government made it a law that every mobile phone
must have a GPS receiver by the year 2007. In the event of an emergency, the person in distress's
current location is communicated so that an immediate response can be sent.
Personal emergency call systems of today can be found in the form of specialized systems, such as
wristwatches, or adapted mobile devices, such as cell phones.
A manual emergency call can be made with any personal emergency call system by pressing a key
on the device. There are also gadgets that send out an emergency call on their own. A person's
normal physiological parameters, such as blood pressure or heart rate, are also monitored. When
these
boundaries stray from typical, a crisis call is consequently shipped off a
resource. This could be a reputable emergency call center, but it could also be a neighbor or family
member. An SMS message, the telephone network, or something else can be used as a means of
communication.