XKCD Mobile

[LittleChrist]

EDIT:

There is an xkcd mobile site: m.xkcd.com

I have an iPod Touch. I have friends who own various devices that use a mobile browser. Unfortunately for us, 50% of each XKCD comic is visual and 50% is in the alt text. Using a mobile browser prevents us from reading the alt text. Don't say, "Well, go to the comic forum!" I simply suggest http://www.xkcd.com/mobile (or m for short) so that users with mobile browsers can read the alt text. It would look very similar to the standard xkcd page, but with addition of alt texts below each comic. Just add a link to the full page for access to everything else. What say the xkcd fora members to this idea?

(Sorry it was in General. I didn't think it to be a Site issue.)

[TheTankengine]

I agree. I don't know if it'd be usable on my phone, since the screen res is something below 200*150 or so, but it'd sure help on my Nokia 770. I know that digg's mobile site works really well on my phone, and it redirects (i suppose, since my bookmark is for http://www.diggriver.com) through the google mobile search. I don't know if it helps, but the address is : http://m.google.com/gwt/n?mrestrict=xht ... =*website*
Could that sort of thing be done automatically when going to m.xkcd.com or whatever?

[pieaholicx]

I agree. I don't know if it'd be usable on my phone, since the screen res is something below 200*150 or so, but it'd sure help on my Nokia 770. I know that digg's mobile site works really well on my phone, and it redirects (i suppose, since my bookmark is for http://www.diggriver.com) through the google mobile search. I don't know if it helps, but the address is : http://m.google.com/gwt/n?mrestrict=xht ... =*website*
Could that sort of thing be done automatically when going to m.xkcd.com or whatever?

I would think it would check your browser's User-Agent to find out if it's a mobile device. Granted, it would be hard to include a check for all devices, but I think a search for iPod, iPhone, and "Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1" should get most of them. Apparently the last one is included in most mobile phone's UA strings (unsure of how true this is though, source).

[LittleChrist]

I'm not necessarily worried about the mobile page opening automatically. I would have it bookmarked so that I could load it instead of the main page. I'm sure those kinds of kinks could be worked out in time.

[Random832]

Also, explicit height/width should be specified on images, since mobile browsers will often resize images without these to fit the screen.

[Moo]

Related but not really, and just an observation, but I occassionally try to access the fora on my mobile and without fail it says "Large page content not completely displayed". Most of the available space gets taken up by the banner at the top, various otherwise handy links and info's at the top like "Last visit was:" and the "Topics | Author | Replies | Views | Last post" table headings. I can usually read around three or four posts on a page.

Consign this to the "future wishlist" section, rather than a complaint or request, but a mobile friendly forum page would be awesome.

[hermaj]

Can you not change the zoom? I view the forums on my mobile at 50% and I don't really have issues. I don't enjoy it, because I much prefer to type, but I can manage okay.

[Moo]

It's not about size on screen, sadly. It doesn't download the whole page, because it complains about the size.

[Hammer]

It's not about size on screen, sadly. It doesn't download the whole page, because it complains about the size.

What if you turn off sigs and avatars?

[Moo]

Although it would mean not seeing sigs and avatars everytime I'm on the PC, which is more often, or switching every time I log off, that is a perfectly sensible suggestion given my poor and limited description.

It does it even on the index page so it is clearly a problem with more than just images.

What I will do is to get a better phone in the near future.

However a mobile xkcd and mobile xkcd fora page is still a future pet project someone might be willing to undertake? Esp since I pay per MB for browsing so unnecessary graphic table headings and lists of smileys and colours when composing and such means a dedicated mobile version would still be beneficial, as well as reducing loading time on networks and devices not designed to optimize for browsing. However the pay per MB aspect once again makes Hammer's suggestion a good one, so thanks and noted.

[davean]

Find someone to do a cut-down almost-only-text version and I'll happily add it after a review.

I can't do it, I have no mobile browsing device, I just got a laptop that is about the same weight but a real computer.

[Moo]

Many projects and other things keeping me busy right now + lack of any knowledge of the relevant technologies means this is going on my maybe future projects list; but it is on there. Thanks davean, if I do it I will contact you about getting it up.

[icorey]

it looks like there's an iphone app for xkcd, but for those of us without iphones, I created an xkcd mobile page.

http://www.icorey.com/xkcd

it takes xkcd.com and strips everything but the images, titles, hover text, and links (first, prev, random, next last).

let me know if it doesn't work for you. one issue might be the content-type, which is application/xhtml+xml (i'm pretty sure internet explorer doesn't like this, but idk about mobile ie...is there a mobile ie?). also, let me know if you have any suggestions.

(sorry if there already is an xkcd mobile page everyone knows about. if there is, I couldn't find it.)

EDIT:
I also have a version that displays the last 5 comics on one page (via parsing the xkcd atom feed). if you wanna give that one a whirl, i'll put it online.

[Arantor]

Appears to be broken; the PHP is simply throwing a parse error.

I would have posted over on the icorey site, btw, but the comments link just gives me a 404.

[tcaruth]

This post had objectionable content.
~No self-promotion before five posts. Post will be returned to original state if post is guaranteed to not be self-promotion.

[icorey]

Appears to be broken; the PHP is simply throwing a parse error.

I would have posted over on the icorey site, btw, but the comments link just gives me a 404.

it works now. around jan 7 when you posted this, my hosting expired. it was supposed to renew automatically, and it did, but they decided i didn't need my .htaccess file anymore.

[psy0rz]

For everyone interested in a mobile xkcd website, i made one. I'm using it to read all xkcd comics on my mobile phone. Tested on windows mobile and android, the site will remember which strip you've read last in a cookie.

http://www.vettebak.nl/xkcd .

Just click List and select strip 1 to read them all.

I hope you enyoy reading xkcd on your mobile device everywhere you go as much as i do. (in bed, on the road, in the woods)

So anyway, is Megan Randalls girlfriend?

Edwin Eefting

--

"Imagine all the people Sharing all the world" -- John Lennon

[joshz]

Reposting link so it won't get taken down (seems legit enough, but technically no links are allowed before 5 posts): http://www.vettebak.nl/xkcd

[TheGrammarBolshevik]

psy0rz, it would be sweet if you would add titles to that page (or am I overlooking it)?

[psy0rz]

No real titles (yet), because the xkcd filenames always nicely correspond closely with the actual title. (as if the comic was created by a programmer )

If people really want it i will add it.

[Azrael]

http://www.xkcd.com/mobile
this link has 404 error.

Interestingly, there is also an error for http://www.xkcd.com/that-is-not-the-mobile-address

That address was a suggestion by a user waaay back when that there should be a mobile site. Now there is one, but not there.

Locked before further confusion.