Wow! Many of our readers will say, "I had no idea that this wireless stuff was so significant. I have been using cell phones for years, but I never viewed cell phones as vehicles for connecting to the Internet and browsing the Web. Now, all of a sudden, I learn the amazing statistic that the number of people accessing the Web through wireless devices by 2002/2003 will be larger than the number who access the Web through desktop computers! Who could have imagined this?"
So here you are—following the explosive development of the Internet fostered by the World Wide Web. Yes, the world got a dose of reality in 2000/2001 as the stock market lunacy of 1999-2000 discovered gravity and fell back to Earth. For speculators—of which there were far too many in 1999-2000—this was a devastating crash. People "got hurt." But for people following the long-term trends, it is absolutely clear that an increasing portion of business will be done on the Web, and more of your personal lives will become Webcentric. Young people have not seen the ebb and flow of business cycles. Their view is shortterm. Older folks have experienced business cycles. We see forecasts that e-business will be $5-$6 trillion by 2004/2005; more than eighty percent of that will be business-to-business (B2B) transactions.
This book has been a true labor of love. Although there are four authors on the cover, probably 30 people at Deitel & Associates, Inc. made significant contributions. We attended many trade shows to be sure we were current with what is happening in the wireless field. Four of us—Harvey and Abbey Deitel, Kate Steinbuhler and Matt Kowalewski—spent a week at the CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association) trade show in Las Vegas. What a wonderful educational experience for us all—and a fun time. We visited every one of the 1000 (!) exhibitors at the show. While we were there, though, we noticed something unusual—there were no publishers exhibiting their books, nor was there a book store as there normally is at a major trade show. The realization reinforced our commitment to this book.
We see a global explosion in the so-called "wireless Internet," but we do not see books geared to preparing computer-science students, information technology students and professionals for the wireless Web revolution. Wireless Internet & Mobile Business How to Program is intended for the student or professional who sees the enormous potential of this exploding field.
