Responsive Websites

Responsive Websites

Why should your website be responsive

In recent times, people have become more exposed to the internet and everyone now wants to be able to access the web. Unlike years ago when the only gadget for accessing the internet was a desktop computer and as such websites were created only with the desktop users in mind.

Times have changed, technology has made life and the internet more accessible to all. Different gadgets are being produced every now and then and so everyone now has access to the internet. Websites that are now being created must be responsive and accessible with all the gadgets being created.

Responsive web design is an important aspect of web development. It makes web pages render well on a variety of devices and windows or screen sizes. Content, design, and performance are necessary across all devices to ensure the usability of the product and the satisfaction of users. Responsive layouts automatically adjust and adapt to any device screen size, whether it is a desktop, a laptop, a tablet, or a mobile phone. Aside from making our website more accessible, responsive websites also create a new thinking pattern for developers putting the users in mind.

A responsive web adapts the layout to the viewing environment by using fluid, proportion-based grids, flexible images, and media queries.

• A fluid grid basically provides a visual way to create different layouts corresponding to devices a user displays the website on. The fluid grid concept calls for page element sizing to be in relative units like percentages, rather than absolute units like pixels or points. In fluid grids, we define a maximum layout size for the design.

The grid is divided into a specific number of columns to keep the layout clean and easy to handle. Then each element is designed with proportional widths and heights instead of pixel-based dimensions. Whenever the device or screen size is changed, elements will adjust their widths and heights by the specified proportions to its parent container.

• Flexible images are also sized in relative units, so as to prevent them from displaying outside their containing element. They respond to different viewport sizes and display resolutions.

• A media query allows us to target not only certain device classes but to actually inspect the physical characteristics of the device rendering our work. The query contains two components: a media type (screen), and the actual query enclosed within parentheses, containing a particular media feature (max-device-width) to inspect, followed by the target value (480px).

The min-width and max-width properties do exactly what they suggest. The min-width property sets a minimum browser or screen width that a certain set of styles will be ignored. The max-width does the opposite. Anything above the maximum browser or screen width specified would not apply to the respective media query.

As a web developer interested in users accessing the websites created, responsiveness of your web should take the same priority as every other thing you want to consider when creating it. You don't want to have a website that won't be accessible by your preferred users.