Browsers are faster than ever, smartphones and tablets are in the hands of more people every day and getting information on the go is now the norm in the U.S. and across the globe. And one of the key elements in the surge of usability is the continuing forward momentum of responsive and adaptive web design.
So what does next year promise? Read on.
- Of course responsive design and adaptive technologies aren’t going anywhere, as they proven to be cost-effective in terms of content management across the mobile device spectrum. And it’s predicted by leaders in the development industry that because of the adaptive designs more emphasis can now be placed on typography and content. This means jpeg-heavy designs may give way to CSS3 and font families. Aesthetics won’t suffer however: just expect more clean lines and subtle patterns that put content front and center.
- Big buttons are making a comeback. Designers now have to account for touch screens, which are nearly impossible to merge with hover menus. And skinny navigation techniques are aggravating for users. So, enhanced touch navigation across all devices is the next big thing.
- Developers will be placing more importance on animations through HTML5 and CSS3, which are aesthetically pleasing and don’t monopolize file space. Box shadows and gradients are go-to choices, and 3D-effect technology is picking up speed.
- Utilizing HTML5’s “onpop” state, developers can change broswer urls without reloading pages, creating a site than no longer navigates from page to page but from content to content. This saves loads of http requests and document handling times, which some developers believe will increase page speed by 20-40 percent in 2014.
