Pocket PCs, sporting high quality images that can zoom in on specific detail without becoming distorted, may soon be part of the bigger picture.
Until now, the graphics for pocket computers have been poor, but with the popularity of personal digital assistants (PDAs) increasing, clearer graphic displays are in the pipeline.
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is targeting the pocket PC platform with its recently developed software that implements a format emerging as the major standard for Web graphics - Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.0.
An open industry standard based on XML, SVG images remain clear and detailed no matter how much you zoom or rescale them and it has the backing of industry big wigs including, Adobe, Sun Microsystems and Kodak.
"We will start to see sophisticated Web graphics and animation using SVG," CSIRO's senior computer scientist, Ross Ackland, told ZDNet.
"It provides high quality graphics that you can pan and zoom without losing image quality. It also makes interaction possible - you can pan around a street directory, zoom in to see more detail and then click on a location, such as a hotel, for information about rates and availability."
The CSIRO software works on Windows CE based handheld devices and has sparked interest in Europe and the US, although "we would very much like to talk with more Australian industries," Ackland said.
The CSIRO claims to be in discussions with an Australian utilities company.
"This is an area where we see mobile opportunities becoming very popular," Ackland said. "Builders could check house plans on site, electricity workers could view complex network diagrams."
PDAs displaying SVG images will be available in the next six months, according to Ackland.
"Personal Digital Assistants really seem to be taking off now," Ackland said. "And we're already seeing SVG on desktops."
