MapQuest, Mobile, and the AOL Developer Network (CES Day Two)
Posted Jan 9th 2008 8:44PM by Laura Peterson
In addition to the software for AOL Desktop, AOL also offers numerous products for mobile devices. AOL is making it easy for developers to utilize APIs to customize existing AOL services, like MapQuest or Mail, for use with their third-party sites and products on mobile and web.
Here's an update on CES 2008 from the perspective of the MapQuest, Mobile, and AOL Developer Network teams:
MapQuest has seen quite a bit of interest in its Navigator 5.0 GPS application (pictured below). This product turns a GPS-enabled smartphone into a full featured voice-guided navigation device with Real-Time Traffic and AOL CityGuide ratings built right in.
Customers and competitors alike has been impressed by the integration of AOL City's Best ratings and and reviews, and appreciate the fact that traffic alerts are included. (Navigator 5.0 as well as the other MapQuest products for mobile are featured in more depth at http://www.mapquest.com/mobile/.)
On the Platforms side of MapQuest's business, there have been numerous inquires regarding the versatile mapping APIs that are on offer. The MapQuest OpenAPI is a free service that allows you to use JavaScript to easily integrate routing, geocoding and mapping into your website. With this feature-rich API you can create dynamic routing and mapping applications for personal or community use. (Learn more at http://dev.aol.com/api/mapquest.)
Unlike visitors attending CTIA, the wireless trade show, some at CES may just be learning about mobile. The team is showing people how to go to the aol.com portal, bookmark it, then sign in and check their email on their mobile device.
People new to mobile are also happy to know that they can go to aol.com on their mobile device browser to check their AOL mail, go to CityGuide, etc. They like the new AOL WAP portal design. It looks more like the web and not the old WAP 1.0 text based look and feel.
Case in point -- here's a screenshot of the money and finance page:
From a business perspective, many potential partners are interested in mobile media sharing / social networking. More sophisticated mobile data users are interested in getting the MyMobile downloadable app when it's available.
Tying aspects of MapQuest, Mobile, and many other AOL products together is an initiative called the AOL Developer Network, which encourages developers and third-parties to customize existing AOL services for their purposes through the use of open APIs. (Learn more about all the product APIs that are available, as well as how they can be applied for websites, mobile devices and more at http://dev.aol.com/.)
Below, Greg Keegstra (middle) and Naveed Anwar (right), representing the AOL Developer Network team, answer questions while manning the "Build Your Own" area of the AOL booth at CES 2008.
As phones evolve and become more capable, AOL's offerings on mobile match the technology, and the new WAP portal and other products are on show here at CES 2008.
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Terrie is the lead product manager on the AOL Desktop Affinity software. Terrie works to define new views of Desktop. Like the Asylum Desktop and LemonDrop Desktop. Take a look, they are neat!
Summer is a Sr. Manager for AOL Member Communications. While she has no ties directly to the product development team, she has been a contributor to many AOL blogs over the last few years and is excited to bring a non-product team perspective to the Desktop blog.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1. When will AOL MobileMail be ready for download on to a blackberry?
Posted at 1:52PM on Feb 18th 2008 by airto42
2. airto42,
If you are asking about an AOL Mail application that has the AOL look and feel (and access to all of your folders, etc), the plan is to launch this in the form of the AOL MyMobile application, which is currently in a limited beta for windows mobile, on Blackberries at some point this year.
In the mean time, you can already access AOL Mail on blackberries in two ways: Setup your AOL Mail account via the standard Blackberry setup, and access mobile webmail by entering http://m.webmail.aol.com from your blackberry browser.
To setup your AOL Mail account on a blackberry, simply select the Setup Wizard from your device's idle screen, then Email Setup, then select 'I want to create or add an email address' and click 'next'. This should take you to a mobile web page which will guide you through setup of your AOL Mail account on your blackberry.
Posted at 9:27PM on Mar 3rd 2008 by vinceoh1
3. I have just loaded AOL Desktop. The reason is I uninstalled 9.0 and 9.1 because I've been without my address book for months somehow I lost it. Now I have my address book back but lost my Personal File cabinet and all files which I need desparately. When I try all the fixes nothing works. The "Import AOL Filing Cabinet" is grayed out. Please help me I am about to abandon AOL after being a long time user.
Posted at 12:49AM on Mar 19th 2008 by dukepointer