Mobile Monday Presentation: Responsive Web Design

Elements of
Responsive
Web Design

“So, I’ve been hearing about
Responsive Web Design.
What is it, exactly?”

“We can embrace the flexibility inherent to the web,
without surrendering the control we require as designers.
All by embedding standards-based technologies in our
work, and by making a slight change in our philosophy
toward online design.”

– Ethan Marcotte,
Responsive Web Design

We can use the fluidity of HTML, CSS and
Javascript to create designs that provide optimal
experiences by responding to device context.

“Ok, but why should I care about
Responsive Web Design?”

For years, we designed for this…

Responsive Web Design gives us the tools to handle
the ever-increasing number of devices in the wild in
a future-friendly* fashion.

http://futurefriend.ly/

“Well, how do I implement a responsive site?”

Elements of Responsive Design

1
Fg
2
Fi
3
Mq
Fluid Grids Flexible Images Media Queries

Here’s some basic, responsive boilerplate

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
</head>
<body>
…
</body>
</html>

Let’s add a simple grid
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="grid.css">
</head>
<body>
<div class="grid">
<div class="col-2-3">
…
</div>
<div class="col-1-3">
…
</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>

Hat tip to @chriscoyier and http://css-tricks.com/dont-overthink-it-grids/

And now some styles to make the grid work

*:before { -webkit-box-sizing: border-box; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; box-sizing:
ding: 1em 0 1em 1em }
{ content: ""; display: table; clear: both;}

l-'] { float: left; padding-right: 1em;}
width: 66.66% }
width: 33.33% }


Fluid grids scale to the device…

…but our layout doesn’t quite work.

Let’s use a media query to refine the layout.

after, *:before { -webkit-box-sizing: border-box; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; box-si
{ padding: 1em 0 1em 1em }
:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both;}

s*='col-'] { float: left; padding-right: 1em;}

a screen and (min-device-width: 480px ) {
col-2-3 { width: 66.66% }
col-1-3 { width: 33.33% }


And now the layout responds accordingly.

Single column below 480px Two columns about @ 480px and above

Now, let’s make our images flex.

*:before { -webkit-box-sizing: border-box; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; box-sizing: b
ing: 1em 0 1em 1em }
{ content: ""; display: table; clear: both;}

-'] { float: left; padding-right: 1em;}

dth: 100% } // yep, that’s it

n and (min-device-width: 480px ) {
{ width: 66.66% }
{ width: 33.33% }

And now our images can flex with the layout.

Single column below 480px Two columns about @ 480px and above

Of course, this requires scaling a single, larger
image.

There’s a lot of work going on to find better solutions
for flexible images, such as the <picture> element.

There’s a lot more to it, but that covers the basics* of
Responsive Web Design.

*Your mileage may vary. Support for IE quirks will require more work!

Buzz phrases to consider when thinking
responsively
Mobile First
Design for the constraints of mobile devices first and craft your
design to respond as capabilities increase.

Content Out
Design responsive sites around content needs.

Progressive Enhancement
Start with a simple core and add features when capabilities appear
on various devices.

Speed Wins
Design for the fastest display you can; eject everything you don’t
need.

“...the purpose behind “responsive design”—the concept
of what it strives to achieve—should be separated from
the specific techniques used to achieve it. As the
worldwide community embraces [Ethan’s] idea (and as
new methods of CSS layout become practical), the
techniques of responsive design will continue to improve
and, dare I say it, adapt.”

Jeffrey Zeldman,
Responsive Design. I don’t think that word means what you think it means.http://bit.ly/oP8eei

The original concept is fine, but it only addresses
some needs. We need to broaden our notion of
‘responsive’.

Other approaches to being responsive

Adaptive Web Design
http://www.lullabot.com/articles/responsive-adaptive-web-design

RESS: Responsive Design + Server Side
Components
http://www.lukew.com/ff/entry.asp?1392

Some Responsive Design Tools
Adobe Shadow
labs.adobe.com/technologies/shadow/

Aptus
In the Mac App Store

Firefox 15
getfirefox.com

Gridset
gridsetapp.com

ZURB Foundation
foundation.zurb.com

“Ok, I get it!
So all of my sites should be
responsive from now on, right?”

Ok, maybe not “always”.

Ask your doctor if an alternative approach
may be right for you.

George White
Principal Consultant, Mobile Practice Lead
george@cantina.co
@stonehippo

Mobile Monday Presentation: Responsive Web Design

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