Press Release
Sophia Cradle Incorporated
Sophia Cradle Implements the World's First XML parser for BREW
The world's first XML parser for BREW to support DTD and XML schema, which defines the structure of an XML document
Abstract
KYOTO — March 15, 2006 — Sophia Cradle Incorporated (Headquarter: Kyoto; CEO: Kazunori Sugiyama), an innovative developer of mobile phone software, today announced that it has implemented a new XML [*1] parser [*2] "pself" that supports not only DOM [*3] and SAX [*4] but also DTD [*5] and XML schema [*6], which are used to define XML documents, on BREW [*7]. Sophia Cradle will demonstrate a sample BREW application for Mobile Web 2.0 [*8], in which the XML parser technology is applied, at the 5th International Keitai Forum on March 15 and 16 in Kyoto.
Full Story
Since 2004, software technologies and services like blogs, SNS and RSS — the so-called Web2.0 — have been increasingly gaining popularity in the world of Internet services.
Major websites such as Amazon, Google, and Yahoo! provide Web services [*9] for Web2.0. In Web services, data is distributed in a certain standard namely XML.
Currently, users enjoy Web services using personal computers as client terminals. However, if mobile phones are equipped with a system for manipulating and processing XML, there will be a wider variety of Internet use on mobile phones because users will be able to view and handle vast amounts of XML data from the Internet.
For the first time in the world, Sophia Cradle's XML parser for mobile phones "pself" supports DTD and XML schema, which are used to define XML documents, on BREW. It also supports DOM and SAX while keeping the program size small.
By using String and Collection classes included in SophiaFramework [*10] and by programming in C++, the amount of coding for an application that enables Web services on BREW handsets is reduced to one-third.
In addition, "pself" is developed according to the specifications of Microsoft XML Core Services (MSXML) 4.0, the standard XML parser for C++, so that BREW developers can develop applications very easily.
Pricing and Availability
Sophia Cradle will demonstrate a sample BREW application for Mobile Web2.0, which uses the new XML parser technology, at the 5th International Keitai Forum that will be held at the Kyoto Pulse Plaza on March 15 and 16.
* The sample BREW application for Mobile Web2.0 is the one that sends an ISBN automatically recognized by a mobile phone's built-in camera to the Amazon website, receives back the book data in XML, manipulates it and shows the book information on the phone's screen. The application including all the basic procedures of Web services was implemented with "pself" in only two weeks.
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Reference Websites
Press Release URL:
/english/news/pressrelease/2006/20060315.html
Source codes of the sample BREW application by "pself" is available at:
/products/sophiaframework/pself/
The 5th International Keitai Forum:
http://www.itbazaar-kyoto.com/forum/index_e.html
Microsoft XML Core Services (MSXML) 4.0:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/xmlsdk/html/b24aafc2-bf1b-4702-bf1c-b7ae3597eb0c.asp
Main Features of XML Parser "pself"
- Accessing XML parser: DOM (Level 2) and SAX (Version 2)
* Support for SAX on BREW handsets is made possible for the first time by Sophia Cradle. - Support for all DTD functions
* Support for DTD on mobile phones is made possible for the first time by Sophia Cradle. - Supported XML node:
Attribute, CDATASection, Comment, Document, DocumentFragment, DocumentType, Element, Entity, EntityReference, Notation, ProcessingInstruction, Text - Supported functions of XML schema:
- Defining complex type and simple type (sequence, choice, all)
- Declaration of element and attribute
- List type
- Union type
- Defining anonymous type
- Complex type that includes simple type content
- Mixed content
- Attribute group definitions
- Model groups with names
- Adding model groups
- Abstract element
- Substitute element
- Derived element
* Support for XML schema on mobile phones is made possible for the first time by Sophia Cradle. - No limitations on XML documents to be manipulated other than a memory limit of a handset
- Easy implementation of functions to access Web services such as SOAP, WSDL and UDDI with support for DTD and XML schema
- Accurate processing for XML data to refer to DTD, external entities and XML schema
Terms
[*1] XML (EXtensible Markup Language)
A self-defining language that uses a certain strings called tags.
Software that reads an XML document, identifies all the XML tags and passes the data to the application.
[*3] DOM (Document Object Model)
A specification for a programming interface that allows programs and scripts to update the content, structure and style of HTML and XML documents. By using DOM, constructing an XML document on a program and obtaining, adding, modifying and deleting elements and contents become easier.
An application programming interface (API) for accessing the contents of an XML document. It scans the document sequentially and presents each item to the application only one time. If the application does not save the data, it is no longer available. Both SAX and DOM are popular APIs for manipulating XML documents.
[*5] DTD (Document Type Definition)
A language that describes the contents of an XML document. It improves accuracy and security when manipulating XML data.
The definition of an XML document, which includes the XML tags and their interrelationships. Residing within the document itself, an XML schema may be used to verify the integrity of the content. An XML schema can be a definition of a data type or name space, which are not supported by DTD.
[*7] BREW (Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless)
The standard of mobile phone software developed by QUALCOMM Incorporated, released in January 2001. BREW applications work fast no matter what the underlying system software in the handset is. A user can download a compiled BREW application from the Internet and use it with any BREW-enabled handset. The worldwide spread of BREW is so remarkable that there are currently 62 network operators in 29 countries (as of March 2006) that provide BREW services, including Japan's KDDI that started offering it in February 2003.
An umbrella term for the second wave of the World Wide Web. Web 2.0 implies an information and computing platform rather than a content storehouse.
Web-based applications that dynamically interact with other Web applications using open standards that include XML, UDDI and SOAP. Amazon and Google websites provide Web API for accessing their Web services from a program.
An object-oriented development environment for BREW applications released by Sophia Cradle Incorporated in August 2002. It includes various program modules called classes that are needed to develop any kind of BREW applications, such as user interface, communication, graphic drawing and string processing. The technology of SophiaFramework is now being used in many of the business BREW applications and official KDDI applications that are top-sellers in Japan.
More about SophiaFramework: /english/products/sophiaframework/
About Sophia Cradle
Sophia Cradle Incorporated is a mobile phone software developer which currently specializes in BREW C++, GUI middleware and mobile Java. Founded in 2002, Sophia Cradle aims to render services to the improvement of everyone's quality of life by creating innovative mobile Internet technology. For more information about Sophia Cradle, please visit www.s-cradle.com/english/.
Press Contact
Natsuko Hasegawa
Marketing Center, Sophia Cradle Incorporated
Tel. +81-75-754-5155 Fax. +81-75-754-5156