Device-aware desktop web page transformation for rendering on handhelds

Abstract

This paper illustrates a new approach to automatic re-authoring of web pages for rendering on small-screen devices. The approach is based on automatic detection of the device type and screen size from the HTTP request header to render a desktop web page or a transformed one for display on small screen devices, for example, PDAs. Known algorithms (transforms) are employed to reduce the size of page elements, to hide parts of the text, and to transform tables into text while preserving the structural format of the web page. The system comprises a preprocessor that works offline and a just-in-time handler that responds to HTTP requests. The preprocessor employs Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) to set default attributes for the page and prepares it for the handler. The latter is responsible for downsizing graphical elements in the page, converting tables to text, and inserting visibility attributes and JavaScript code to allow the user of the client device to interact with the page and cause parts of the text to disappear or reappear. A system was developed that implements the approach and was used it to collect performance results and conduct usability testing. The importance of the approach lies in its ability to display hidden parts of the web page without having to revisit the server, thus reducing user wait times considerably, saving battery power, and cutting down on wireless network traffic.