Compiled by: Yohannes Yared

Email: johnyared2@gmail.com
Chapter 2

Mobile Computing

What would your life be like without your smartphone? This question holds a lot of significance
and demands a lot of reflection today, but just two decades ago, this question didn’t exist.

These dramatic lifestyle changes that occurred over the years are due to advancements in a
field called mobile computing. Creating portable devices that allowed network communication
changed the world in quite a big way.

Today, smartphones are ubiquitous, every other house has an Alexa, and laptops are getting
thinner and lighter by the day without compromising on processing power. Personal computers
are losing their popularity as the limitations of mobile computing are slowly becoming
overcome.

So from the early days of chunky laptops to the paper-thin screens of the present and future,
mobile computing is an evolving field of great relevance.

2.1 Fundamentals of Mobile Computing?

Mobile Computing is a technology that allows us to transmit data, audio, and video via devices
that are not connected with any physical link. The key features of mobile computing are that
the computing devices are portable and connected over a network.

Mobile Computing is an umbrella term used to describe technologies that enable people to
access network services anyplace, anytime, and anywhere.

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The major elements of mobile computing are mobile communication, mobile hardware, and
mobile software.

A. Mobile Communication:

 Mobile communication refers to the infrastructure put in place to ensure that

seamless and reliable communication among wireless devices.
 These would include devices such as protocols, services, bandwidth, and portals
necessary to facilitate and support the stated services.
o These devices are responsible for delivering a smooth communication
process.
 Media is unguided/wireless; the infrastructure is basically radio wave-oriented.

Mobile communication can be divided in the following four types:

1. Fixed and Wired

2. Fixed and Wireless
3. Mobile and Wired
4. Mobile and Wireless

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Fixed and Wired:

 In Fixed and Wired configuration, the devices are fixed at a position, and they
are connected through a physical link to communicate with other devices.

For Example, Desktop Computer in office.

Fixed and Wireless:

 This mode is used for installing networks

 In Fixed and Wireless configuration, the devices are fixed at a position, and
they are connected through a wireless link to make communication with other
devices.

For Example, Communication Towers, WiFi router

Mobile and Wired:

 In Mobile and Wired configuration, some devices are wired, and some are
mobile. They altogether make communication with other devices.
 Many of today’s laptops fall into this category; users carry the laptop
from one hotel to the next, reconnecting to the company’s network via the
telephone network and a modem.

For Example, Laptops.

Mobile and Wireless:

 This is the most interesting case. No cable restricts the user, who
can roam between different wireless networks.
 In Mobile and Wireless configuration, the devices can communicate with each
other irrespective of their position. They can also connect to any network
without the use of any wired device.
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For Example, WiFi Dongle,GSM.

B. Mobile Hardware:

 Mobile hardware includes mobile devices or device components that receive or

access the service of mobility.
 Devices are laptops, smartphones, tablet Pc’s, Personal Digital Assistants.
 These devices have capable of sending and receiving signals.
 These devices are configured to operate in full- duplex means sending and
receiving signals at the same time in wireless network.

C. Mobile Software:
 The most important software component is the operating system, which is the
brain of any computing system. For a laptop, this may be Windows, Linux or
macOS, and for a smartphone, it may be Android or iOS. The different
applications running on a device are also part of the mobile software.

 Mobile software is the actual program that runs on the mobile hardware.

 In other terms, it is the operating system of the appliance.

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 It’s the essential component that operates the mobile device.

 It deals with the characteristics and requirements of mobile applications.

2.2 Mobile Computing Devices

Usually, a mobile computing device would have a body- made of metal or plastic, a RAM, a
CPU, a hard drive, a motherboard, a keyboard and a mouse- which could be separate
components in the body or touch-based, a screen, a video card, an operating system, software
applications, and finally, a network connection.

This is around the same as the components of a personal computer, which isn't a mobile device.
But mobile devices may have other components too, to make them portable, and certain
characteristics that make them different-

 Size: The portability of mobile devices demand a smaller size. Reduction in size
without reducing capabilities have also always been a challenge when developing
mobile devices.

 Power Source: Mobile devices are usually powered by rechargeable batteries.

Improving the battery life of mobile devices is another significant area of research.

 Operating System: Laptops run on more or less the same OS as PCs, but for
smartphones and other devices, the OS is significantly different. They are powerful but
scaled-down and made specifically for particular devices.

 Connectivity: Mobile computing devices have capabilities that allow access to the
internet. Also, mobile devices like smartphones have access to mobile broadband
networks that allow you to make and receive phone calls.

 Applications: Applications meant for mobile devices are specifically designed for
running on a particular OS. These applications are what extends the capabilities of
devices beyond just connecting to the internet or making calls.

Other features generally found in mobile computing devices include GPS capability,
accelerometer, compass, microphone, camera, and so on.

Mobile computing devices have evolved greatly over time. A lot of the devices that
existed in the past have been phased out, like the Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). We
live now in the age of the smartphone, but there are several other categories of mobile
computing devices -

 Laptop: Laptop computers are portable personal computers. It is meant to offer the
same functionality as a PC, so the same OS, applications, and files can run on this.

 Smartphone: A smartphone is a mobile phone with powerful capabilities. They

typically have a touchscreen interface, have internet access, can run various
applications, and include features like a camera and GPS.
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 Tablet computer: Tablets have touchscreens and virtual keyboards, and are often
thought of as an intermediary between a laptop and a smartphone. They have better
processing power, functionality, and screen resolution than smartphones. Some models
may also have a stylus meant for navigating the touch screen better.

 Wearable: A more recent addition, wearable computers like smartwatches offer

limited features similar to a smartphone within a watch.

 E-reader: E-readers are devices that are similar to tablets, but their main purpose is to
read digital documents.

Other devices include scanners, carputers, handheld gaming consoles, advanced digital
cameras, smart speakers, and so on.

2.2.1 Advantages and Limitations of Mobile Computing

The mobile computing revolution has doubtlessly been advantageous for the whole world. But
there are disadvantages, limitations, and possible risks that mobile computing poses, and it is
important to study both the pros and the cons to make the best out of technology.

So here are the advantages and limitations of mobile computing-

Advantages of mobile computing

 Portability

Mobility is the biggest benefit that mobile computing devices offer. With the advent of
mobile computing, it became possible for people to carry around computing devices with
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great capabilities. There is no need to go to a physical location to access the internet or
work with a particular software.

 Affordability

With each passing year, mobile computing devices are becoming cheaper and offer more
capabilities. Even those who are economically struggling can easily invest in a
smartphone. With affordability comes accessibility, and eventually, this would also
result in closing the digital divide.

 Data Access

The internet opened up a trove of an incomprehensible amount of data, and mobile

computing devices made that data accessible to everyone.

 Increased Productivity

The above benefits facilitate a great increase in productivity. People can work from their
homes at any and all times. They have access to large amounts of information and can
teach themselves anything and do anything.

 Entertainment

A lot of us would’ve reached the breaking point during the lockdown periods if it weren’t
for Netflix and Amazon Prime. Access to a wide variety of movies, educational and
informative content is now simple. Thanks to the availability of relatively inexpensive
high-speed data connections, you can live stream anything anywhere.

 Cloud Computing

Advancements in cloud computing have greatly increased the capabilities of mobile

computing. The limitations in physical capabilities that mobile computing devices face
can be overcome by storing information and accessing applications in the cloud.

2.2.2 Mobile operating system

A mobile operating system, sometimes called a mobile OS for short, is an operating system
that runs only on mobile devices. Consider it the backbone of all of your favorite applications
and programs. It's basically the system on top of which everything else sits. It also is the basis
for all of your settings, such as how you connect to the internet, the way you text and how you
keep your calendar appointments.

Mobile Operating System Types

There are several mobile operating systems on the market today, but two of the most widely
adopted are the iPhone's OS, Apple iOS, and Google's open source OS, Google Android. These

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two mobile OSes take different approaches to the mobile operating system and end-user
experience.
iOS

 Apple's very own operating system, iOS runs the company's iPod, iPad, iPhone, and
Apple Watch devices. It is only available on Apple products and responds to commands
from the user's fingertips. iOS features iTunes for music and the App Store for
everything else. One of the benefits of the Apple operating system is its built-in video
chatting and Apple Music capabilities.

Android OS

 Android's OS is owned by Google and is considered open-source to Apple's closed

system. With an open-source system, software developers can build applications and
programs to their heart's content and users reap the benefits of tons of free software.
Most Android lovers cite the operating system's openness, which leads to more
personalization options, as the reason they're hardcore devotees.

Windows Mobile OS
 The window mobile OS is a mobile operating system that was developed by Microsoft.
It was designed for the pocket PCs and smart mobiles. Harmony OS
Harmony OS
 The harmony operating system is the latest mobile operating system that was developed
by Huawei for the use of its devices. It is designed primarily for IoT devices.

Android OS

Android is an open-source platform that designed for different devices, especially tablets,
Smartphone, and watches. It is based on the modified version of the Linux kernel and other
open-source software.

This operating system was developed by a developer known as Open Handset Alliance, and
later it was owned by Google Company. Android is the most powerful OS, which supports
millions of applications and games. It was developed using C, Java, C++ and other languages.
Google launched the first version of Android in 2008, and the latest stable version of Android
is Android 12. It is provided completely free of cost.

Some specific developers do not operate it like other operating systems. Still, it is an open-
source feature allowing developers from all over the world to develop. Android OS was easy
to use compared to other operating systems and supported by most devices worldwide. Google
Play Store offers you millions of applications and games for free.

Features of Android OS

The number of apps available in the store is one of its attractive features, and the ability to do
extra activities such as rooting also makes it much attractive. Apps like Flash Transfer are very
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helpful for sending different types of files in Android. The main problem of low-end Android
devices is their poor performance when performing multiple tasks. Below are some more
features of Android OS:

 Beautiful UI: Android OS basic screen provides a beautiful and intuitive user interface.
 Multi-touch: Android has native support for multi-touch which was initially made
available in handsets like the HTC Hero.
 Multi-tasking: The user can jump from one task to another, and various applications
can run simultaneously.
 Resizable widgets: Widgets are resizable, so users can expand them to show more
content or shrink them to save space.
 GCM: Google Cloud Messaging (GCM) is a service that lets developers send short
message data to their users on Android devices without needing a proprietary sync
solution.
 Wi-Fi Direct: A technology that lets apps discover and pair directly over a high-
bandwidth peer-to-peer connection.
 Android Beam: A popular NFC-based technology that lets users instantly share, just
by touching two NFC-enabled phones together. Most Android devices support Near
Field Communication (NFC), which allows electronic devices to interact across short
distances easily.

2.3. Mobile Computing Issues and Challenges

Due to technology growth distances become short, communication becomes easy, data transfer
is enriched, but there are so many issues and challenges in the domain that need to be researched

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and addressed to make mobile computing more secure, robust and reliable. Some important
issues are discussed here.

Low bandwidth

Mobile internet access is slower than the fixed desktop connection

Lower security

When working with mobile people are completely dependent on the public network which
can be easily tracked and hacked by hackers. There is a big problem with the security of data
while transferring from one mobile device to another device. Therefore to protect the data
from eavesdropping there is a need for strongly secured algorithms of authentication and
security.

Transmission interferences

Radio transmission cannot be protected therefore there is higher transmission interference

due to electric engines, lightening, high buildings, mountains, weather conditions, etc., all
this results in a higher loss of data rate and bit errors.

Shared medium

Radio access is a shared medium because it is just impossible to give dedicated radio access
to all the users. However, different techniques are deployed still so many questions are
unanswered such as how to provide quality of service to each user sharing radio access.

Ad-hoc networking

Wireless and mobile computing allow ad-hoc networking without a prior set of infrastructure
between senders and receivers. This creates several challenges and issues before the network
administration such as the reliable and secure connections between sources to destination.

Dynamic topology again a challenging issue for a reliable connection from one point to
another point.

Regulations and spectrum

Due to technical and political reasons, very limited frequencies are available. This is also a
serious issue in mobile computing that need to addressed and researched.

Power consumption

When a power supply is not available mobile devices totally depend on battery power. There
is a need to use some resources that can provide power supply at a cheaper cost and with
ease.

Potential health hazards:

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People use a mobile phone and other mobile devices while driving that again creates
problems and prone to accidents. Moreover, mobile devices are found injurious for health if
not used carefully. Therefore there is a need to research and develop mobile devices which
are perfect for health whether you are in mobile or in rest.

2.4 Mobile Computing Applications

The importance of Mobile Communication has been highlighted in many

fields. Some of which a few are described below:

1. Business:
o Managers can use mobile computers say, critical presentations to major
customers. They can access the latest market share information. To enable the
company to keep track of all activities of their travelling employees, to keep
databases consistent etc. With wireless access, the laptop can be turned into a
true mobile office, but efficient and powerful synchronization mechanisms are
needed to ensure data consistency.
2. Infotainment:
o Now a days there is a huge market of Entertainment for humans while they are
on move. Watching movies, listening music and playing a game is become a
part of life for entertainment. In this case mobile computing performs a major
role to provide uninterrupted internet connection to digital devices.
3. Replacement of Wired Networks:
o wireless networks can also be used to replace wired networks. e.g., remote
sensors, for tradeshows, or in historic buildings. Due to economic reasons, it is
often impossible to wire remote sensors for weather forecasts, earthquake
detection, or to provide environmental information.
4. Credit Card Verification
o At Point of Sale (POS) terminals in shops and supermarkets, when customers
use credit cards for transactions, the intercommunication required between the
bank central computer and the POS terminal, in order to effect verification of
the card usage, can take place quickly and securely over cellular channels using
a mobile computer unit. This can speed up the transaction process and relieve
congestion at the POS terminals.
5. Emergencies:
o An ambulance with a high-quality wireless connection to a hospital can carry
vital information about injured persons to the hospital from the scene of the
accident. All the necessary steps for this particular type of accident can be
prepared and specialists can be consulted for an early diagnosis.
6. Tourism:
o Tourism is the largest industry for all the countries. Mostly tourism places are
at remote location from the developed cities. In this case wireless
communication performs a vital role in connectivity for people who are
enjoying their tour. They are continuously in contact with the family and friends
and searching for travel services, hotel services food services etc.
7. E-Governance:

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o Governments are using many communication services to update their rural
areas. To provide health, education, safety , farming , weather forecast and many
other related information to governance, governments are connecting rural areas
with head quarter offices for monitoring.
8. Education:
o 2020 COVID Pandemic teach us a great lesson to provide distance education to
all who can not reach to the college or schools. Wireless communication and
digital devices are the backbone for such distance learning concept. Now all
private and public industries are moving towards the online education with help
of good wireless connectivity.
9. Manage Personal Records :
o Some mobile applications allows user to manage their personal records such as
day to day activities, some useful notes, etc…
10. Social Media and Group Message :
o Some mobile applications allows user to keep in touch with their friends and
relatives by sending messages, images, audio and video clips.
11. Transaction :
o Some mobile applications allow the facility of transaction such as recharge
mobile, pay bills etc…

2.5 Mobile Computing Architecture

Mobile computing architecture refers to the definition of multiple layers between user
application interfaces, devices, and network hardware. A well-defined architecture is necessary
for systematic calculations and access to data and software objects.

3-Tier Architecture of Mobile computing

A 3-tier architecture is an application program that is organized into three major parts,
comprising of:

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1. Layer-1 : Presentation Layer (UI)

2. Layer-2: Application Layer(AL)
3. Layer-3: Data Access Layer(DA)

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Presentation (UI) (Tier - 1)

 The layer of applications that run on the client device and offer all
the user interfaces.
 It is responsible for presenting information to the end-user.
 Users receive information through: screens, speakers, vibration.
 Users send information through: keyboards, pens, touch screens.
 It includes web browsers, WAP browsers, customized client
programs.
 It should be context-aware and device-independent.
 This layer presents data to the user and optionally permits data manipulation and
data entry, also this layer requests the data form Business layer.
 This layer accomplished through use of Dynamic HTML and client-side data
sources and data cursors.

Application Layer (Tier - 2)

 It performs business logic; processing user input, obtaining data,
making decisions, and transcoding of data for rendering in Tier-1.
 It includes technologies like Java, JSP, .Net services, PHP.
 Presentation and database-independent.
 Decisions on rendering, network management, security, datastore
access, need for different middleware software.
 The business logic acts as the server for client requests from workstations. It acts
according Business rules fetch or insert data through the Data Layer.
 In turn, it determines what data is needed (and where it is located) and acts as a
client in relation to a third tier of programming that might be located on a local or
mainframe computer.
 A middleware can be categorized into:
o Transaction Processing Middleware: Provides tools and environment for
developing transaction-based distributed applications. It includes management
features like restarting failed processes, dynamic load balancing, and enforcing
consistency of distributed data. It optimizes the use of resources.
o Database Middleware: runs between app and DB, ex: DB connectors as
ODBC,JDBC.

Data Access Layer (Tier - 3)

 It is used to store data needed by the application and act as a

repository for both temporary and permanent data.
 Data can be stored in any form, ex: relational DB, text files.
 The third tier of the 3-tier system is made up of the DBMS that provides all the
data for the above two layers.
 This is the actual DBMS access layer.

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Mobile computing architecture

Middleware and Gateway for Mobile Computing

What is Middleware?

Middleware is Software that provides a link between separate software applications. It is a

layer that lies between the operating system and applications.

Use of Middleware:

 Provide interaction with another service or application.

 Filter data to make them friendly usable.
 Make an application independent from network services.
 Make an application reliable and always available.
 Add complementary attributes like semantics.

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Types of Middleware:

1. Communication Middleware : Communication Middleware is used to connect one

application with another application. For Example connecting one application with
another application using telnet.
2. Message Oriented Middleware: It supports the receiving and sending of messages
over distributed applications. It enables applications to be disbursed over various
platforms. It makes the process of creating software applications across many operating
systems. It makes network protocols less complicated. It holds many advantages over
middleware alternatives and is one of the most widely used types of middleware.
3. Object Oriented Middleware : Object Oriented Middleware is also known as an
object request broker. It provides the facility to send objects and request services via an
object oriented system. In short, it manages the communication between objects.
4. Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Middleware : It provides the facility to calls
procedures on remote systems and is used to perform synchronous or asynchronous
interactions between applications or systems. It is usually utilized within a software
application.
5. Database Middleware: It provides direct access to databases and direct interaction
with databases, There are many database gateways and connectivity options and you
simply have to see what will best work for your necessary solution. This is the most
general and commonly known type of middleware. This includes SQL database
software.
6. Transaction Middleware : This type of middleware includes applications like
transaction processing monitors. It also encompasses web application servers, These
types of middleware are becoming more and more common today.

What is Gateway ?

Gateways are required when the networks between the device and the middleware having
different set of protocol.

For Example: an IVR Gateway is used to interface voice with a computer. WAP Gateway is
used to access internet on mobile phones

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Design considerations for mobile computing

The mobile computing environment is constrained in many ways. Mobile elements themselves
are resource-poor and unreliable. Their network connectivity is often achieved through low-
bandwidth wireless links.

These severe restrictions have a great impact on the design and structure of mobile computing
applications and motivate the development of new computing models.

These mobile computing models must provide efficient access to both existing and new
applications which is a key requirement for the wide acceptance of mobile computing.

An important design consideration is the type of functionality assigned to mobile hosts.

Mobile units are still characterized as unreliable and prone to hard failures, i.e., theft, loss or
accidental damage.

Thus following requirements must be considered for mobile computing environment:

1. Type of Application (Native or Mobile Web) :

o Before designing mobile application you need to determine type of application.
o If your application requires local processing. access to local resources than
consider designing a native application.
o A native application is hard to maintain. requires separate distribution and
upgrade infrastructure, are compatible only with target device/platform,
requires more effort (sometimes huge) to port on different devices.
o A mobile web application is compatible with all devices with internet
connection and a browser
2. Target device :
o Target device and platform (OS) plays a key role throughout design decisions
making process.
o Design decisions are influenced by target device’s screen size, resolution,
orientations, memory, CPU performance characteristics. Operating systems
capabilities, device hardware, user input mechanism (touch/non-touch), sensors
(such as GPS or accelerometer etc.
3. User experience:
o User interface should be rich, intuitive and responsive. While using mobile
application user is often distracted by external or internal (e.g. incoming call
when user is in middle of a wizard) events. These events have to be factored in
design.
o Screens should be identified with consideration that user is often focused on
discrete individual task. Long data entry forms may irritate user and should ask
for absolutely required data/information.
4. Resource Constraint:
o Every design decision should take into account the limited CPU, memory and
battery life. Reading and writing to memory, wireless connections, specialized
hardware, and processor speed all have an impact on the overall power usage.
o One cannot afford a long running process in application.
o In some cases, application processing should be offloaded from the device to
avoid excessive resource consumption e.g. using notification or app directed
SMS instead of polling to monitor a value/flag on server.

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5. Multiple Platforms:
o There is high technology fragmentation in Mobile world. It is very unlikely that
an application will target only one platform or only one device. In near future,
requirement like same code base should support iPhone and iPad or Android
Phone and Android tablet will arise. Architect should consider portability as
important architectural goal.
o If you are developing for more than one device, design first for the subset of
functionality that exists on all of the devices, and then customize for device-
specific features when they are detected.
6. Security:
o Devices are more vulnerable than desktop, primarily due to lack of awareness.
Moreover device can be lost easily. Ensure that the device – server
communication is secured and server accepts request only from authentic source
(device).
o If you are storing any confidential application or configuration data locally.
ensure that the data is encrypted.
7. Network Communication:
o Network communication on device is slow and costly. Reduce network traffic
by combining several commands in one request e.g. committing added, updated
and deleted record in one request instead of firing separate request on each
add/update/delete.
o Compress large text / XML data to lesser network traffic. Design for
asynchronous communication.

Mobile elements are also resource poor relative to static hosts. For these reasons, there are
approaches that treat the mobile unit as a dumb terminal running just a user-interface.

Besides the partition of data and computation of mobile applications between mobile and static
elements, two important considerations in designing software system for mobile computing
are: what is on appropriate model for mobile computing systems, and whether mobility should
be mode transparent to applications.

Future of Mobile Computing

With high-speed connections probably becoming ubiquitous in the future, the accessibility and
popularity of mobile computing will only increase further. With new innovations like Li-Fi
technology, you can get internet access through the light of all things.

Newer mobile computing devices are figuring out how to pack high processing power into the
smallest of packages. Samsung launched a new line of foldable smartphones recently, which
are lightyears ahead of the flip phones of the early 21st century.

Technologies like Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things are also propelling mobile
computing forward in new and innovative directions.

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