Improve Mobile Support With Server-Side-Enhanced Responsive Design

n many ways, responsive Web design deserves a big share of the honor for making the Web more usable on non-desktop devices. This trend of letting the browser determine more about how a Web page should be displayed makes sense, especially now that mobile browsers are slightly more trustworthy than in the old days of mobile.

However, a responsive website is not automatically a mobile-friendly website. Amid the buzz of trendy Web development techniques, the good ol’ Web server doesn’t get the spotlight it deserves. Modern Web development should be about finding the right balance between server-side and client-side implementation..

There is no one right answer to what should be done on the server and what should be done on the client side. That depends on the website in question. It is clear, however, that an either/or approach would fail to meet expectations. Jon Arne Sæterås will use a real-life project that his company is working on, with real requirements and pain points, as a reference. We are taking a pragmatic approach to the Web, starting with a blank sheet of paper to find the best solutions for both the technical and business requirements.