Mobile Web: What is it?

When people talk about the mobile web, what is it that they are specifically talking about? Well it’s simple actually. They are just talking about the web. That’s right, just the web! There is no mobile web. Similar to how there is no desktop web or laptop web. The web makes up all devices (stationary or mobile) and all environments.

If we want to put a label on it, I think a more appropriate name would be “Universal Web”. A universal web must work with any form of information and content whether it’s text, image, video or any other rich media, and must be accessible from any device such as desktops, tablets, phones, or even glasses.

Tim Berners – Lee said it best. “The primary design principle underlying the Web’s usefulness and growth is universality.”

So, Who’s Responsibility is it?

Web designers and developers are responsible for ensuring the future of a universal web. Remember when developers were using tables to layout websites? Unfortunately I think some still are. But, everyone who was looking at the future, decided to shift paradigms and start using style-sheets and table-less design. Now over the last few years we have seen another shift, although a little more subtle, to “universal” design.

Because the future of the web is unknown, it’s becoming increasingly important to continue (or start if you’ve been lazy) designing and developing a better user experience with forward compatibility.

Featured image courtesy of www.lukew.com