Need to understand some things about mobile

katied772 · 28th Jan 2012, 01:58 PM

I am just starting to investigate the idea of learning to build mobile sites. Seems to be very popular right now. Still trying to understand exactly what can be done with a mobile site. I know a mobile site is meant to be viewed easily from a mobile device.
Can a regular site or blog be converted to mobile or is mobile meant as an additional, very basic site with contact, directions, etc? If a regular site can be converted, what is the best source to learn to do it?
Also, I notice that most things I am reading talk about html, not WP. If the blog is in WP, how is that done? Thanks.

BigFishMedia · 30th Jan 2012, 08:06 AM

You can do all kinds of things with a mobile website, almost anything you can do with a regular website. You just present it differently.

A mobile website is meant to take the content and functionality of a regular website and make it compatible and easy to navigate with a hand held.

So one key element of mobile is that it fits on the screen without zooming in and out, or scrolling left to right, to read.

You also eliminate non-compatible functionality such as flash.

You present text in easy to read bites whenever possible.

Use smaller images (in size and data size).

Your navigation menu will be different....

Whenever possible, use buttons or div spaces that are easy to click with a finger, rather than a list of tiny text-links that are more difficult to click.

If the site is built around WordPress there are some Wordpress themes specifically for mobile that you could use if you don't want to start from scratch.

Nail Yener · 30th Jan 2012, 09:34 AM

Mobile sites are all about providing a better user experience to mobile web visitors and establishing a better communication with them.

There are many options for creating mobile sites. You can modify a regular site or blog to make it mobile friendly i.e. responsive web design. This will not work on all types of sites perfectly, hence you may need to redesign the site. This will be my favorite option but making one design fit to all devices and preserving the usability is a difficult thing. Google "responsive web design" for some nice resources.

You can also use a third party software to build a mobile friendly version like GoMobi etc. (not my personal recommendation). For WP type sites, there are many plugins, free or paid, that you could use to mobilize a website. There are a couple of WSOs about WP mobile stuff.

If you don't want to use templates or hire someone to do custom designs, then you can create your own mobile sites from scratch with HTML and CSS. If you choose to do so, it is best to start with learning the mobile web standards: http://www.w3.org/TR/mobile-bp/

28th Jan 2012, 01:58 PM	#1
katied772 Advanced Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2009 Posts: 583 Thanks: 31 Thanked 26 Times in 26 Posts	Need to understand some things about mobile Share on: I am just starting to investigate the idea of learning to build mobile sites. Seems to be very popular right now. Still trying to understand exactly what can be done with a mobile site. I know a mobile site is meant to be viewed easily from a mobile device. Can a regular site or blog be converted to mobile or is mobile meant as an additional, very basic site with contact, directions, etc? If a regular site can be converted, what is the best source to learn to do it? Also, I notice that most things I am reading talk about html, not WP. If the blog is in WP, how is that done? Thanks.

30th Jan 2012, 08:06 AM	#2
BigFishMedia Warrior Member Join Date: 2012 Location: Saint John, NB Canada Posts: 2 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Need to understand some things about mobile Share on: You can do all kinds of things with a mobile website, almost anything you can do with a regular website. You just present it differently. A mobile website is meant to take the content and functionality of a regular website and make it compatible and easy to navigate with a hand held. So one key element of mobile is that it fits on the screen without zooming in and out, or scrolling left to right, to read. You also eliminate non-compatible functionality such as flash. You present text in easy to read bites whenever possible. Use smaller images (in size and data size). Your navigation menu will be different.... Whenever possible, use buttons or div spaces that are easy to click with a finger, rather than a list of tiny text-links that are more difficult to click. If the site is built around WordPress there are some Wordpress themes specifically for mobile that you could use if you don't want to start from scratch.
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30th Jan 2012, 09:34 AM	#3
Nail Yener You reap what you sow. War Room Member Join Date: 2008 Location: Sometimes you don't. Posts: 1,078 Thanks: 196 Thanked 411 Times in 243 Posts	Re: Need to understand some things about mobile Share on: Mobile sites are all about providing a better user experience to mobile web visitors and establishing a better communication with them. There are many options for creating mobile sites. You can modify a regular site or blog to make it mobile friendly i.e. responsive web design. This will not work on all types of sites perfectly, hence you may need to redesign the site. This will be my favorite option but making one design fit to all devices and preserving the usability is a difficult thing. Google "responsive web design" for some nice resources. You can also use a third party software to build a mobile friendly version like GoMobi etc. (not my personal recommendation). For WP type sites, there are many plugins, free or paid, that you could use to mobilize a website. There are a couple of WSOs about WP mobile stuff. If you don't want to use templates or hire someone to do custom designs, then you can create your own mobile sites from scratch with HTML and CSS. If you choose to do so, it is best to start with learning the mobile web standards: http://www.w3.org/TR/mobile-bp/