[Web4lib] Web technologies and public access

[Amy Drayer]

Dear Web4Libbers:

> My questions to the group are:
> To what extent do you believe that we should cater to patrons who may not have the latest and greatest hardware and software?  Do we need to kowtow to the lowest common denominator?  Should we include alternative pages that require no downloads?

I know we answered this question very well, but it isn't just the
"lowest denominator" anymore is it? What about mobile devices? I
admit, I haven't had a recent cell phone or PSP or PMP or
Blackberry/iPhone (but will soon! :D), but what are Flash/AJAX
compatibilities with newer tech? I know mobile device versions of
sites can be created, but do these devices have Flash or Javascript
support?

PS We have a very stripped down browser here (Army library) that
doesn't even work correctly with Google Maps. I imagine Flash is
completely out of the question. :P

-- 
In peace,

Amy M. Drayer
Web and Systems Librarian
amostrom at gmail.com
http://www.puzumaki.com