Responsive layouts, adaptive layouts, media queries and viewports are terms that are no longer new to the tech savvy generation of today. There exists a burgeoning trend where websites are creating mobile friendly versions to adapt to the relatively smaller mobile screens. Responsive web design (RWD), thus proves to be an emerging user interface design approach which may play an important role in the coming years.

RWD increases the adaptability of applications enabling them to run on various platforms (smartphone, a tablet or a laptop/desktop). It maintains code base and automatically re-engineers the layouts to suit the device used. This helps reduce duplication of efforts and maximizes productivity and operational efficiency. (more…)

This post is in continuation of the earlier post on HTML5. Before looking into the day-to-day benefits HTML5 will offer, let’s do a quick sanity check:

• HTML5 is monolithic, but browsers are not. It is misleading to divide browsers into “Supports Vs Not”.  Instead, individual HTML5 feature support should be evaluated in terms of browsers.
• HTML5 is fully backward compatible. You can simply upgrade your doctype to HTML5 without changing any underlying code; the page is still valid and will still work. There is no need to panic or to throw away any page! (more…)

HTML5 is W3C’s shiny new offering promising interoperability, speed and maintainability – almost everything, it would appear, but vacations in the tropics! It is going to live in ‘Webville’ for a while so let’s really get to know it. Sure, we can break the ice talking about the weather worldwide, but then, let’s really dig down and investigate HTML5’s personality and find out exactly what it can do. Chances are you may have already used HTML5 without realizing it, and chances are, you loved it – e.g., the file drag-and-drop feature in Google Docs. HTML5 was preceded by its reputation; now let us see if it delivers!

HTML5 will make web pages portable across devices, platforms and form factors – an idea that supports convergence with the proliferation of tablets and smart phones. Problems of varying resolutions can be artfully handled through use of related technologies like Scalable Vector Graphics (SVGs). The fact that all browsers will support HTML5 represents the holy grail of page styling and interface design – i.e., cross browser compatibility, which means no more hacks, browser-sniffing or code-branching. (more…)