"Congratulations” I said to a friend as they revealed to me their new website. Web design(being near and dear to my heart) was the gateway to my journey into technology. Website reveals are exciting! Yet, due to the web developer ( aka coder) in me, it didn't take me long to look at the website from a different device. When I looked at the design from my iPad I immediately discovered something different. It looked as if the design was cut off, in comparison, to the full effect on the desktop version. I didn't see the full design scale down into my iPad and if it didn't fit on my iPad, I questioned how it would look on my phone. Now don't get me wrong, the design was absolutely amazing but I was curious to see if it would carry over into various other devices. And from the looks of it, it didn't. My heart sank because it appeared that the web designer left out a very important factor...the website’s device responsiveness.
So that leaves me with the question…. is your website device responsive?
I’ll be honest just because a design looks great on a desktop, does not mean it will carry over to the iPad and phone. If you are not designing with a device responsive mindset.
Beyond the Design Side
While earning my certificate in software development, this technological concept was drilled into our heads of “mobile response first”. So anything we programed, tested or produced had to to be imagined from the UX (that is user experience) with a phone. If you did not create from this perspective first it was back to drawing board or in this case prototyping-wireframing board.
When creating an app with my team called YogaRx, we had to consider this necessary technological design concept of creating our app with mobile considerations first, as most online traffic comes from mobile users, So we implemented media queries a code that detected your device and automatically adjusted our app to accommodate, whatever device (desktop, ipad or phone) in use. Now at the dawn of smartwatches, tech resources I’ve read to keep my edge, are saying that designs should even be considered for smartwatch viewing and interaction as well. (That’s a whole new blog discussion in itself)
Hold the Phone!
This is “device responsive” concept that is vital in my web designing process. It it should be the foundation of all who are in the business of web designs from the novice to the expert. This must be taken into consideration before building the most beautiful or graphically dynamic website. I find that some designers, especially new ones, are often so excited about the design. However, don’t forget to consider how the design will scale to fit various devices, especially for mobile. An article in 2014 gave a data report that 60 percent of the internet is accessed through a mobile device* You can only imagine what the numbers are five years later.
Before you DIY a website or have one created for you be sure that you take into consideration the necessity of a device responsive website.
Hi, I am Jael! I’ve had experience in computer programing, software testing (QA) web development and web design. Book a free 30-minute discovery call with me. Let me create your website and brand with you!
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