Less than a quarter of the Australian Government's regular websites can be considered smartphone or mobile-friendly, according to a survey conducted by iTnews.

A survey by the ITNews concludes that government Websites fail mobile access tests. Actually, lets be specific:

• They surveyed 21 Australian federal Australian government, plus the mobile version of USA.gov.
• They used two specific testing tools, a W3C tool based on standards developed in 2008 and another that looks like it was designed to test to baseline of phones like the Nokia 6680 (from 2005).

Personally I think this makes the test results pretty limited, but worth discussing.

(A more recent evaluation tool is Google's Ready to Go Mo, although I'm not entirely clear what standards it is based on.)

Now, there are some very good examples of government in Australia using mobile. One example that comes to mind (because I used it the other day) is NSW's live traffic reports site - it comes in desktop, mobile and iOS versions.

Sticking with transport, in some states it is now possible to renew your car registration electronically using a smartphone. So clearly, mobile is being actively utilised as a channel by government. Front-end Websites are just one aspect of government communication and service delivery.

Being realistic about government budget cycles and priorities, I see a couple of issues:

Firstly, the Federal government is currently focused on updating their Web channels to be WCAG 2.0 compliant. One thing I would like to highlight is that WCAG 2.0 is technology agnostic - its actually all about the end-user:

"mobile accessibility is making web content accessible to people with disabilities in the mobile context. This includes users with visual, mobility, hearing and cognitive impairments as well as older users."

Second, the rise of mobile and demand from consumers (i.e. citizens and other stakeholders) for mobile access in all spheres of life is moving much faster than government planning and technology development cycles - see the latest Australian data from Google [PDF].

So what should government do? Be strategic about mobile:

The agencies and departments that should be thinking about this most are those that have a service delivery element or are involved in public education. The new work in the area of eHealth immediately comes to mind. In the US, the Pew Internet & American Life Project reports there that:

"Among smartphone owners, young adults, minorities, those with no college experience, and those with lower household income levels are more likely than other groups to say that their phone is their main source of internet access."

I'm sure we would see similar patterns here. Just within my family and social circle I know lots of young adults outside of my industry that only use wireless mobile devices for Internet access a home.

Do you need an app? Do you need a mobile Website? What do mobile users need from your agency? Do your e-government applications work on mobile?

However, at all levels of government they need to start thinking about the impact of mobile. I'm worried about government sites that have just been redevelopment or are about to be redeveloped. They need to think about medium term strategies for mobile.

Also, when setting budgets, the allocation between 'desktop' and 'mobile' need to be re-evaluated. A mobile first strategy for some departments could actually be a source of savings in the long term, as they focus on content that really counts.

This is a challenge and government needs to respond. But lets look at this in a smart way. I mean, does it really matter in the short term if the mobile experience of treasury.gov.au isn't that great?

In the much longer term, I'd like to see government move towards a completely different Web mobile. But that's a subject for another post!

UPDATE: A great example from the National Library of Australia, who have adopted a proactive strategy - they say in their introduction:

Where opportunity exists, conceptual leaders stand ready and eager to innovate. The mobile web provides superb food for innovation, as evidenced by the immersive Ludwig II app by the Bavarian State Library, which includes augmented reality features like 3D pattern recognition so that historical digital objects appear on the mobile screen, triggered by the physical location of the user.

It’s also demonstrated by NASA, who created a mobile portal to learning about space through their latest images from space, video, news and social media activity. The Eyewitness app acts as a showcase for the best photography featured in the Observer and the Guardian. It showcases the 100 most recent and topical images and includes ‘pro tips’ from the photographers. And it’s seen in Biblion, the New York Public Library scholarly journal reborn as a “multi-linear immersive experience” for the iPad. The inaugural edition (2011) delivers manuscript material, images, films, audio, and essays on the 1940 New York World’s Fair.

Importantly, the achievements of these institutions have been realised against a backdrop of economic hardship and a substantial reduction in funding for cultural and research institutions around the world.

Hat tip to Craig.

I’ve never been much of a futurist, which you might find odd since I spend a lot of time talking about new fangled ideas like ‘social business’ and ‘government 2.0’. From my perspective, none of this is futuristic – it is happening right here, right now if you look around. Reflecting on this week’s Intranets2012 conference and Dion Hinchcliffe’s visit to Australia, I thought it might be worthwhile identifying some of the ideas and trends that I see impacting intranets right now and into the immediate future.

Cross posted from the Headshift Asia Pacific blog. I talk about three points in more detail: Social intranets, mobile and the role of design thinking.

What impact are new design practices and changing technology having on not just the physical office but also on the way we think about work itself? Is the idea of the individual office a thing of the past? In this program we explore the physical, social and cultural trends affecting the changing nature of the office and the way we work in the 21st century.

Another great episode from Future Tense. I was recently talking about activity based workplaces (ABWs) and this podcast provides a good overview of Macquarie Bank's Shelley Street building and the overall trends in open plan office spaces. Again, the role of technology is highlighted as a key factor but balanced by the need for the new leadership skills in the workplace, particularly as workplace demographics change. The show also discusses the impact on worklife-balance and our relationship with the people we work with.

Some nice design fiction from Google. You might enjoy the parody version too.

via youtube.com

Layer of course is famous for its augmented reality platform, but they've introduced a new recognition tool. The best way I would describe it is that it works like a QR code, but without needing the QR code. Try out the demo yourself. What do you think?

"The mobile experience we have today is basically designed for tech-savvy businessmen," says designer Amid Moradganjeh. This is a mistake, he thinks. There is another group of people out there, a bigger group. They have an "average digital life," meaning that they don’t have to process hundreds of emails a day while running from meeting to meeting. While many of them do have a rich digital existence on the desktop, they see little need to stay fully connected when they go outside. One explanation for this is that smartphones simply haven’t become cheap enough and that, inevitably, we’ll all come to own one. Moradganjeh wonders if for many people an iPhone/Android smartphone is too complicated and too much power. For his thesis project, he engaged in a program of research and speculative design which resulted in Rimino, "an attractive, invisible and more integrated experience."

Rimino - A Human Touch on Mobile Experience from Amid Moradganjeh on Vimeo.

The Rimino concept might not be exactly right, but shows why thinking about user experience design from the perspective of different users is so powerful.

In a story in the SMH this weekend about the role of location-powered social apps like Grindr, Blendr, Roamz and Foursquare I read:

'While critics lament the next generation's inability to make friends without a computer screen, Joel Simkhai, the American creator of Blendr and Grindr, thinks that in five years we may have twice as many friends because of his apps.

''I don't think a hello and a handshake will become redundant. We come before that, so now it's easier to initiate the conversation and then go say hello,'' he said. ''In terms of breaking the ice, it goes a long way.''
Users have proved willing to accept the danger of people misrepresenting themselves in order to find friends in a society that has become busier, less sociable and, according to Mr Brechney, ''more boring''.

''I honestly think you get a richer experience talking about your life and typing away on your phone than you would in a loud club,'' he said. ''The downside is that you have a lot of churn in your life with friends. It can become a bit of an eBay for love.'

The opening credits of the 1969 French film, Mississippi Mermaid (watch the trailer above) feature a reading of personal classified ads. I can't but help think that the "eBay of love" has been around for quite some time, as well as the risks.

But in saying that, there is also a concept of Dignity of Risk:

Dignity of Risk refers to the right of all people to undertake some tasks that have a level of risk. It can be risky to go surfing as accidents can occur, but if you are a good swimmer, surf with a friend and check surfing conditions it is a reasonable risk to take.

All human activity has risk. Social media doesn't necessarily change that and if people want to meet using an app rather than a classifieds ad, I'm not sure what the difference is?

The Box, a shared-car concept for inner-cities, was the inspiration for my latest post over on the Headshift | Dachis Group Asia Pacific blog.

There are some great related posts on the Shareable blog too. Also check out the Brook & Bone site (the designers behind this concept car) - look under projects.