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WAP rage

Tags:
WAP,
CB,
CeBIT,
SMS

Guy Kewney AnchorDesk

Published: 29 Feb 2000 14:45 GMT

It was, two decades ago, an illegal (in the UK) form of wireless two-way radio. Americans chatted to each other in their pickup trucks as they bored their way from one Mid-West town to the next; they bounced signals off the upper levels of the ionosphere into the next state, and they warned each other about traffic police. So popular was it that people began importing them, illegally, into the UK, and operating them, illegally. In the end, the UK government had to free up a part of the spectrum to allow people to take advantage of this wonderful part of modern civilized life.

And today, nobody does it. We have mobile phones, which means when you chat to your favourite human, you don't have fifty other giggling participants to the conversation.

There's no direct relationship between WAP and CB, except that at the moment they are both something I regard as a fad. That is, something which can take off, be a lot of fun for a year or so, but is ultimately pointless. Really, what is the point of ordering a chocolate bar over a phone? I can nip downstairs and buy one almost anywhere in any city or town. And I'm definitely not going to pay for the delivery charge; nor am I going to be sitting by my front door for three days, waiting for it to arrive and be signed for.

What is the point of accessing Internet sites which only work over WAP phones?

Well, I suppose it must be fun. There is the obvious advantage over a notebook PC, of having the thing in your pocket. You can, after all, play games on your modern phone (see last week's column) and really, the only reason for running your phone batteries down like that must be that you are as bored as a church timber beam; it can't be the excitement of the game.

But ultimately, a WAP phone service is only going to be useful if it tells you things you need to know. Like, where is the nearest chocolate bar vendor.

To do that, you really need a WAP service that knows where you are...