Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ???

kmalikis · 30th Aug 2012, 02:06 PM

Hello Warriors,

I came across something that i need help in understanding. I came across a website that has a normal URL address e.g like .anywidget.com
Accessing this site from a mobile phone... it went to a mobile version of the site.

Now, i thought that a mobile version of a website would have a m. subdomain address or .mobi extension???

My question is how is this done technically? ...that a normal website url goes to a mobile version of the site...but the URL still remains/shows like a normal desktop site? ( anywidget.com]

I'm not technically knowledgeable enough to know how this is done?

Thanks,

Kam

HostWind · 30th Aug 2012, 02:40 PM

I cant look at it now, but it could be either URL rewriting or a responsive theme.

abyssofseo · 30th Aug 2012, 03:35 PM

That it easy, main PHP script response depends on HTTP_USER_AGENT header, that shows, what device (mobile phone or desktop visited website).

Originally Posted by kmalikis

Hello Warriors,

I came across something that i need help in understanding. I came across a website that has a normal URL address e.g like Anywidget || Software.

Accessing this site from a mobile phone... it went to a mobile version of the site.

Now, i thought that a mobile version of a website would have a m. subdomain address or .mobi extension???

My question is how is this done technically? ...that a normal website url goes to a mobile version of the site...but the URL still remains/shows like a normal desktop site? ( Anywidget || Software )

I'm not technically knowledgeable enough to know how this is done?

Thanks,

Kam

swagga212 · 30th Aug 2012, 06:05 PM

i personally prefer m., its more professional

WillR · 30th Aug 2012, 06:19 PM

As someone pointed out above, they could be using a responsive theme which means it's technically the same website for all devices however it's set up to automatically shrink and stretch depending on the screen width of the device viewing it.

Good ole' HTML5 baby!

Sid Hale · 30th Aug 2012, 06:29 PM

LOL - I don't necessarily agree with you, as m. is just another subdomain, but regardless of what I think...

Originally Posted by swagga212

i personally prefer m., its more professional

Your visitors probably won't have an opinion, one way or the other - especially those on a mobile device.

To them, a different URL naming convention is not more professional. It's just weird!

Daus · 30th Aug 2012, 07:26 PM

I also think m. is much more better

shoopt · 31st Aug 2012, 05:27 AM

Hey dear
The URL of the website does not makes any difference if the appearance and services provided are up to the exceptions of the user.
Personally I do not prefer mobile version of to open at m.domainname, as when smart phone user enters the URL it redirects the website at mobile version and it will take small amount of time in redirecting and opening the page, while if your mobile site opens on your domain name it will open itself without redirecting and user do not have to wait for the extra second.

silko · 3rd Sep 2012, 02:39 AM

Originally Posted by kmalikis

Hello Warriors,

My question is how is this done technically? ...that a normal website url goes to a mobile version of the site...but the URL still remains/shows like a normal desktop site? ( anywidget.com]

Google quotes : Dynamic serving is a setup where the server responds with different HTML (and CSS) on the same URL depending on the user agent requesting the page.

So its dependent on User Agents.

lint631 · 3rd Sep 2012, 06:00 PM

I'd like to see if it's a responsive design. If not then I would be interested to see how they would do that. Post the URL if you can, thanks.

WillR · 4th Sep 2012, 05:40 AM

Originally Posted by lint631

I'd like to see if it's a responsive design. If not then I would be interested to see how they would do that. Post the URL if you can, thanks.

It doesn't just have to be a responsive design. You can use htaccess files for this type of thing as well.

lint631 · 4th Sep 2012, 05:54 AM

Originally Posted by WillR

It doesn't just have to be a responsive design. You can use htaccess files for this type of thing as well.

Yeah I'm not sure why I thought that it would only work with a responsive design. I'll have to play around with it, thanks.

murad12s · 4th Sep 2012, 06:23 AM

- A .mobi domain has to be a strong indicator of relevance for a mobile search
- They look good in mobile search results – whenever you do a search from your handset and see a .mobi, you immediately know they have a site designed for you

Kevin Z · 6th Sep 2012, 06:59 PM

Originally Posted by kmalikis

My question is how is this done technically? ...that a normal website url goes to a mobile version of the site...but the URL still remains/shows like a normal desktop site? ( anywidget.com]

I'm not technically knowledgeable enough to know how this is done?

Thanks,

Kam

Most likely using a responsive theme that is why you are seeing the same address. You can create a CNAME redirect and use an m. if you had a stand alone mobile site setup.

JohnE · 13th Sep 2012, 08:07 PM

Originally Posted by kmalikis

Hello Warriors,

I came across something that i need help in understanding. I came across a website that has a normal URL address e.g like .anywidget.com
Accessing this site from a mobile phone... it went to a mobile version of the site.

Now, i thought that a mobile version of a website would have a m. subdomain address or .mobi extension???

My question is how is this done technically? ...that a normal website url goes to a mobile version of the site...but the URL still remains/shows like a normal desktop site? ( anywidget.com]

I'm not technically knowledgeable enough to know how this is done?

Thanks,

Kam

From a technical standpoint, the overwhelming majority of local small business websites do not necessarily need a separate URL (m.company.com) to have a separate mobile version; these websites are not that complicated. Both versions, standard and mobile, can live in the same file, or URL (company.com).

The very same way a redirect script is used to redirect the viewer to a separate mobile URL (m.company.com), a script can be used to display the mobile version with its code in the same file as that of the standard site.

A redirect script operates as follows:

If viewer is on mobile device, then redirect viewer to mobile version URL (m.company.com), otherwise display standard site (company.com).

The same if statement can be used as follows:

if viewer is on mobile device, then run mobile version code, otherwise run standard site code.

Both sets of code can reside in the same file thereby alleviating the need for a separate URL.

So, this could also explain why the URL remained unchanged.

SJJPFTW · 13th Sep 2012, 08:21 PM

I would say its probably a responsive theme OR it just redirects to a mobile page that lives on the web root i.e when it detects a mobile browser it redirects from www.site.com/index.html to www.site.com/index2.html.

Neither is difficult to do.

Responsive themes (I generally loath them) do the work for you and the other method just requires a bit of Javascript in the header.

iaeo · 14th Sep 2012, 09:21 PM

An easy way to keep it on the same URL is to use a viewport query to check the viewport size, then just separate the desktop and mobile versions of the site into different <div>'s (excuse me- "sections") and then display the relevant one according to the viewport size (and hide the other one, of course).
That's what I usually do.

John Ayling · 16th Sep 2012, 06:05 PM

A better way to keep it on the same domain name is to use a virtual folder that houses the mobile site.

I would not advise putting mobile and desktop content in the same file - keep it separate so that it is dedicated to mobile viewing and the code is more maintainable.

iaeo · 16th Sep 2012, 09:43 PM

Originally Posted by John Ayling

A better way to keep it on the same domain name is to use a virtual folder that houses the mobile site.

I would not advise putting mobile and desktop content in the same file - keep it separate so that it is dedicated to mobile viewing and the code is more maintainable.

This actually sounds like a much better approach. Keep it in separate files and load the proper content with PHP or something. Going to be applying this to my sites in the future.

30th Aug 2012, 02:06 PM	#1
kmalikis HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2011 Posts: 120 Thanks: 95 Thanked 15 Times in 10 Posts	Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: Hello Warriors, I came across something that i need help in understanding. I came across a website that has a normal URL address e.g like .anywidget.com Accessing this site from a mobile phone... it went to a mobile version of the site. Now, i thought that a mobile version of a website would have a m. subdomain address or .mobi extension??? My question is how is this done technically? ...that a normal website url goes to a mobile version of the site...but the URL still remains/shows like a normal desktop site? ( anywidget.com] I'm not technically knowledgeable enough to know how this is done? Thanks, Kam
	Last edited on 31st Aug 2012 at 06:47 AM. Reason: mistake

30th Aug 2012, 02:40 PM	#2
HostWind HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2010 Location: Tulsa, OK Posts: 343 Thanks: 25 Thanked 45 Times in 45 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: I cant look at it now, but it could be either URL rewriting or a responsive theme.
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30th Aug 2012, 06:05 PM	#4
swagga212 Warrior Member Join Date: 2012 Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: i personally prefer m., its more professional
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30th Aug 2012, 06:19 PM	#5
WillR Digital Marketer War Room Member Join Date: 2010 Location: Australia Posts: 12,475 Thanks: 1,984 Thanked 8,187 Times in 4,079 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: As someone pointed out above, they could be using a responsive theme which means it's technically the same website for all devices however it's set up to automatically shrink and stretch depending on the screen width of the device viewing it. Good ole' HTML5 baby!
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30th Aug 2012, 07:26 PM	#7
Daus Active Warrior Join Date: 2012 Location: Malaysia Posts: 47 Thanks: 1 Thanked 8 Times in 7 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: I also think m. is much more better

31st Aug 2012, 05:27 AM	#8
shoopt HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2012 Location: USA Posts: 174 Thanks: 7 Thanked 21 Times in 19 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: Hey dear The URL of the website does not makes any difference if the appearance and services provided are up to the exceptions of the user. Personally I do not prefer mobile version of to open at m.domainname, as when smart phone user enters the URL it redirects the website at mobile version and it will take small amount of time in redirecting and opening the page, while if your mobile site opens on your domain name it will open itself without redirecting and user do not have to wait for the extra second.
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3rd Sep 2012, 06:00 PM	#10
lint631 MobileWebRockstar War Room Member Join Date: 2011 Location: New York Posts: 253 Thanks: 41 Thanked 52 Times in 37 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: I'd like to see if it's a responsive design. If not then I would be interested to see how they would do that. Post the URL if you can, thanks.
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4th Sep 2012, 06:23 AM	#13
murad12s PEZ in training! Join Date: 2010 Location: www.seopez.com Posts: 181 Thanks: 2 Thanked 6 Times in 6 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: - A .mobi domain has to be a strong indicator of relevance for a mobile search - They look good in mobile search results – whenever you do a search from your handset and see a .mobi, you immediately know they have a site designed for you
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13th Sep 2012, 08:21 PM	#16
SJJPFTW HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2012 Location: Australia Posts: 191 Thanks: 26 Thanked 71 Times in 38 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: I would say its probably a responsive theme OR it just redirects to a mobile page that lives on the web root i.e when it detects a mobile browser it redirects from www.site.com/index.html to www.site.com/index2.html. Neither is difficult to do. Responsive themes (I generally loath them) do the work for you and the other method just requires a bit of Javascript in the header.
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14th Sep 2012, 09:21 PM	#17
iaeo Mobile Developer Join Date: 2012 Location: Huntsville, AL Posts: 48 Thanks: 9 Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: An easy way to keep it on the same URL is to use a viewport query to check the viewport size, then just separate the desktop and mobile versions of the site into different <div>'s (excuse me- "sections") and then display the relevant one according to the viewport size (and hide the other one, of course). That's what I usually do.
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16th Sep 2012, 06:05 PM	#18
John Ayling HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2009 Location: Australia Posts: 225 Thanks: 41 Thanked 47 Times in 36 Posts	Re: Mobile website URL without m. or .mobi ??? Share on: A better way to keep it on the same domain name is to use a virtual folder that houses the mobile site. I would not advise putting mobile and desktop content in the same file - keep it separate so that it is dedicated to mobile viewing and the code is more maintainable.
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