Blog

I started off this tutorial series on mobile value picker with a discussion about some key differences between desktop browser development and mobile browser development. One of the key differentiators I discussed was connectivity. That was why this series has so far focussed on an approach that predominantly used Client-Side JavaScript and avoided interaction with the server as much as possible. But when I first discussed the approach with David Leedy many weeks ago, his requirement was somewhat different. The users of his mobile application would always be connected; they would not be roaming; so connectivity was not an issue and ...

To support the tutorial on Mobile Controls and client-side value pickers I created a video, which David Leedy has kindly published on NotesIn9. If you would like to see the full video, follow the link above.

From some feedback to yesterday's post, that code works fine if all you want to do is create a new document. So, I've gone away and come up with some amendments and improvements. First of all, I've moved the New User button into the Page Heading control's action facet. Again I use the Move to Application Page simple action, setting targetPage to "user" and setting forceFullRefresh to "true". It's important to do this. Otherwise, the user will be editing the previous contact instead of creating a new one. The code for this button will look very familiar:

In Part One I talked in generic terms about the differing approaches when developing for mobile browsers compared to desktop browsers. Screen sizes make dialog boxes for pickers less desirable than in desktop browsers. Connectivity concerns mean typeahead and partial refresh functionality could perform worse on mobile devices and impact the user experience. Smaller resolutions can also make it harder to select from a standard Edit Box with typeahead enabled or ComboBox. In this part I will demonstrate a predominantly client-side approach, picking options from a view. But the same technique could equally be used to select from a static ...

Over the last week I've come across a couple of requests for some sort of typeahead or Name Picker or Value Picker for mobile. There was a question on Stack Overflow and another query came from an alternate discussion. I will outline my preferred option in my next post, but first I want to add some background on what I consider are the differences between browser and mobile browser development methodologies. Pickers and typeahead functionality work well in a browser environment, which is heavily reliant on server-side functionality. Partial refreshes abound in XPages and one of its major strengths as ...

Last week, when preparing for the XPages Mobile Controls session at BLUG, Eamon Muldoon introduced me to a useful tip when testing on iOS. The problem is that many browsers such as Firefox and Safari use, by default, webkit styling, so use Android stylesheets. But Safari has an option to change the user agent. The first step is to enable the Develop menu. Go to Edit - Preferences. Then on the Advanced tab, check Show Develop menu in menu bar. This will enable the Develop menu. From here you can go to the User Agent submenu and change the user agent to e.g. ...

A couple of weeks ago I got a review copy of XPages Portable Command Guide. Being eager, I had already bought the electronic version. First, a couple of points about the differing media. The electronic version is great for bookmarking and searching. Plus, because I always have my iPad with me, I always have PCG with me. But one of the nice additions on the paper version is quick reference material on the inside covers. This allows you to quickly find where to go to in the book based on certain needs. As for the book itself, it's aimed specifically at those ...

Some years ago I wrote a whitepaper on maximising the benefits of XPages in 8.5.x. About a year ago that was updated for 8.5.2. (I remember, because it was on the train to BLUG 2010!) I've now updated the whitepaper to bring it up to date with 8.5.3, just in time for the imminent release of Fix Pack 1 later this month. The whitepaper draws on years of experience with XPages and an insight into the Extension Library controls delivered in Upgrade Pack 1. Maximising The Benefits of XPages in 8.5.3

Next Thursday and Friday I will be speaking at BLUG 2012. This will be my third BLUG and it's always a very enjoyable experience, with great speakers and content. I will be presenting two sessions: Ready, Set, Go! How IBM Lotus Domino XPages Became Mobile Eamon Muldoon and I will be presenting a session updated from Lotusphere covering all things mobile in the XPages Extension Library. There are some great controls available for providing users with a mobile browser experience that is automatically consistent with their device's UX. The Eureka Moment: The JSF Knowledge You Need to Understand XPages There's a really scary word ...

One of my sessions for BLUG, The Eureka Moment: The JSF Knowledge You Need To Understand XPages, has led me to investigate XPages optimisation and partial refresh processing to an extent I haven't in the past. Much of the evidence gained has been illuminating for me too and has given me an understanding which will make me and my team think more when developing our XPages applications in the future. The JSF lifecycle and its quirks, seems to be a topic more developers have been delving into recently or hitting the impacts of: Tony McGuckin has posted an XSnippet ...