Question: Should I have a complete mobile version of my website?

Answer: It is certainly an inconvenience to create a whole new version of your site, but the facts show that more people are accessing website from their mobile devices. For some people, this may even be their only method of regularly getting on the Web.

If your website is specifically geared for desktop users, then maybe making a mobile site is not so important or even not possible. But if your site provides information or a service, it is crucial to make sure people who access it from mobile devices will be able to use it.

There are a few Web companies that will create a mobile version of your site, and there are also plenty of tutorials that teach you how to streamline the conversion process. Moreover, W3C even has a mobileOK service that checks your website to see how mobile-friendly it is. Unfortunately, there is really no mobile standard. Screen sizes differ, as well as operating systems and browsers. Since you cannot test all mobile phones, try to create a site that is mostly text and is of variable size. Your visitors/customers will thank you.

Photo Source: Flickr

Continue reading: Mobile versions of website

When stepping into the world of web hosting, you will be inundated with abbreviations, acronyms, and recursive acronyms. Three that you should definitely know are: HTML, XHTML, and CSS. HTML is as old as the Web itself. It stands for Hyper Text Markup Language. It is the primary language of the Web. All websites use at least some of it, and a web browser’s primary function is to read it. Web servers, such as Apache HTTP Server, are designed to primarily to publish HTML-based websites.

XHTML is the extended form of HTML that was officially recommended in 2000 to clean up some of the issues with HTML 4, while also preparing for HTML 5. It has gradually become the standard for websites, and web purists insist on it. In XHTML, the structure of the site is handled in the markup, while the style is handled by CSS.

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets, and is a language in itself that handles all of the style (colors, sizes, text weight, borders) of the elements on a web page. All modern web browsers support CSS, and it is very useful for sites with multiple pages, as you can quickly and easily apply new styles to multiple pages without having to edit each page individually. All three languages have standards established and maintained by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

Photo: Flickr

Continue reading: HTML, XHTML, and CSS

Last month we discussed the current state of HTML 5, particularly regarding its video component. Not only were the major browser makers, Mozilla, Google, Apple, and Opera, all duking it out over what should be considered standard, but the largest browser maker, Microsoft, had barely contributed to the debate at all.

Now Microsoft has begun to open up to the HTML 5 development mailing list, indicating that they are interested in joining the discussion. Their latest browser, Internet Explorer 8, includes some HTML 5 features, although it is far behind Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Google Chrome, and Opera. Microsoft clearly wants to be involved now, a move that more than likely is the result of website owners embracing HTML 5 even in its development state and Google’s willingness to adopt it, with its huge Web presence.

HTML or hypertext markup language, is the technical language of the World Wide Web. It is standardized by the World Wide Web Consortium or W3C. Much of the HTML 5 development, however, has come from an outside organization called Web Hypertext Application Technology Working Group (WHATWG), which the major browser makers established as a reaction to their disappointment with XHTML 2.0. There has been a highly publicized debate about embedded video standards, whether to use Ogg Theora or H.264. Until now, Microsoft has been largely silent.
Source: ZDNet Asia

Continue reading: Microsoft joins the HTML 5 discussion

The makers of three major web browsers, Opera, Apple, and Mozilla have been working to ensure that the next version of HTML will include many advances in audio and video integration, something that has become the mainstay of Adobe Flash. The trio forms part of an organization called Web-Hypertext Application Technology Working Group (Whatwg), formed to encourage the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to engage in a more progressive development of HTML 5.

Opera CEO Jon von Tetzchner said that the new version of HTML will support rich media (audio and video), rendering Adobe Flash redundant. Those who wish to keep their websites in compliance with web standards will be able to provide users with the same rich media content and features currently only available with the proprietary Flash plugin.

“You can do most things with Web standards today,” von Tetzchner said. “In some ways, you may say you don’t need Flash.”

He believes people will continue to and should have a choice between Flash or the new HTML 5 integrated media, but those concerned with web standards and the closed nature of Flash will now have an alternative.

Source: ZDNet
Photo: Flickr

Continue reading: Opera CEO: HTML 5 will make Adobe Flash unnecessary