Furthermore, JS Places can be used directly from a webpage without the need to proxy your traffic through backend servers. JS Places API works with desktop browsers as well as with mobile HTML5 browsers and frameworks like PhoneGap. Our API is global in terms of coverage and its availability in almost 30 languages, with an option to autodetect language via the user’s browser.

Nokia made sure this API is simple and logical to use. And at the same time, it’s robust enough to allow the flexibility and richness of the content to shine through. Nokia developed JS Places for three main types of users:

1. Bloggers: We understand that coding and the technical aspects of using an API may not be your thing, but that shouldn’t stop you from integrating ours into your blog – we’ve got you covered. We show you step-by-step what you need to do to use our UI API (User Interface API), and give you a widget code generator that creates the code. All that’s left for you to do is to copy and paste the code into your page. To simplify this process even further, we are preparing a WordPress plugin which automatically embeds places/map widgets into a blog entry.

1. Web Developers: We offer you an advanced customization option where you can write your own code, customize the look & feel, customize the color scheme, and decide what information to use for your Places API. This option requires you to use standard HTML /CSS along with our intuitive template engine jsMotif.

1. Hardcore JavaScript Developers: For those of you who really know what you’re doing, we provide you with our Data API which allows you to access places-related data directly if you would like to use different template engine or use our library on your backend with, for example, Node.js

Our JavaScript Place API is not only a lot more visually appealing, it also provides a lot more scope for customization and for using interactive elements to display places data than our competitors (ahem, Google), so why not give it a try and see it for yourself. You can view a few examples of what is possible here.

Tell us what you think of it in the comments below!

No better opportunity, then, to record a video with my black Nokia N8 and reveal what Rovio Mobile has prepared for the new Symbian^3 Nokia smartphones:

Click here to view the embedded video.

In fact, Angry Birds is now available for Nokia N8 on the Store and soon you will be given the opportunity to extend the game with different levels and use the shiny new Mighty Eagle Can’t wait? I know how it feels like…

The guys at Rovio Mobile are enthusiastic to start selling more games and levels on the Store too!
If you’ve recently read Pocketgamer.biz you can find out that significant revenues are expected from the Store.
And if this reason to publish games on the Store is not enough, they give you 10 more

Mr. Peter Vesterbacka, where did the idea of Angry Birds come from?
We developed the game from a designer perspective. We considered different types of games but we knew exactly that we wanted birds in it: all our designers loved birds
We also didn’t want to repeat the usual set up of good vs bad, which is why we introduced the hungry birds who are angry because their food has been stolen.
This explains in few words the epic battle on the birds’ island. If you want to know more just watch this video.

This game is a huge success, why do you think this is?
Angry Birds is one of the first game completely developed for touch screen devices. We didn’t import any previous game, we started from scratch and we have been very meticulous in order to deliver a perfect touch screen experience.
The game look n’ feel was also very important during the development and so the music and sound effects.
All these details make of Angry Birds one of the best games in the world.

In fact the game community is passionate about Angry Birds, how do you communicate with your fans?
We decided to avoid traditional marketing and build a relationship with our followers exclusively via social media, like our blog or Twitter profile. We always reply and we love to see how engaged our fans are.

Mmm, this sounds familiar Would you like to explain why you introduced the Mighty Eagle here at Nokia World?
Sometimes, when you play a game, you get stuck in a level for days and it’s frustrating not being able to go to the next one.
This is why we introduced the Mighty Eagle, that you can use only once. It’s not a way to cheat then: only if you go back to that level and you complete it, you are able to use the Mighty Eagle again.
This particular bird will be soon available on the Store.

One last question: how easy is to develop a game for Symbian^3?
Symbian is definitively getting better: this last release is the best and most polished so far.

My name is Udo Szabo and I work with the Ovi & web developer offering at Nokia. I spend a big part of my days to understand how the web and mobility evolve and the opportunities this brings for developers, publishers and local businesses to connect people in new and better ways.

If you think about amazing web experiences, Adobe Flash is the first that comes to mind. This is why Nokia teamed up with Adobe last year on the Open Screen Project Fund.

The Open Screen Project is a 10 USD million development fund that offers grants to any developer and publisher who want to create amazing apps based on Flash technologies. These apps will run on Nokia devices, as well as desktops and other consumer electronics. At Nokia we have been busy getting more than 300 million Flash-enabled devices in the hands of consumers up to date, and with the increasing appetite for apps we believe that this is a great opportunity. Connecting developers, publishers and consumers through amazing apps is the goal of the Open Screen Project Fund.

With 12 months into the project we are happy to tell you that the response has been great. To date, over 60 grants were given to developers on six continents, which resulted in a flow of new apps, available in the Store today. The apps range from large global publishers like CNN and Reuters to small, local companies like Eros International from India who received funding for a fantastic app called Eros Bollywood.

The Eros Bollywood video app cleverly combines the rich media capabilities of Flash with the flexible formatting capabilities of web technologies into a spectacular experience. Now millions of Bollywood fans have easy access to exclusive videos including trailers, behind the scenes footage, interviews with the biggest stars, and clips from the latest Bollywood movies. The app works best with Nokia touch devices like the X6 or N97 mini, and is available for free in the Store – check out the preview below!

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Open Screen Project Fund will continue to support Flash developers large and small around the world until December 2010. So if you have an idea or even a first prototype make sure to visit the fund’s website.

This is just one of the activities we will have for Web developers this year. Join us today and shape the conversation @OviDeveloper on Twitter.

-Udo