Responsive Web Design
The need
Until quite recently websites were served up at fixed sizes, appropriate to contemporary computer use. However, over the last few years it has become as likely your website visitor is using a mobile, tablet or laptop device as they are a PC.
As a result websites need to work at a variety of sizes to serve the most people. This can mean anything from a 1″ smart watch to a 60″ 4k display; it’s not just about being mobile friendly.
Assumptions…
Just because a user is on a mobile, don’t assume they are on the move or after only a limited amount of information. It’s a common mistake to assume users only use mobile in certain situations or for certain reasons.
For many people mobile is their primary access to the internet. You should be trying to serve them as well as possible regardless of device.
Fitting on the screen
The most obvious aspect of responsive design is the way the page literally responds to the device it is displayed on and fits on it neatly.
Performance
We also need to think about rich media like large images and video. Can we afford to have some of your users wait for this content?
Usability
Touchscreen is not the same as using a mouse. You can’t hover over buttons, but new options like multi-touch and swiping become available.