Designing for the future
We like to think of ourselves as a pretty knowledgeable, dedicated bunch here at oneagency.co (the words ‘specialists’ and ‘experts’ have been used one or two times to describe our talent pool of seasoned industry professionals and upcoming talent). So it should come as no surprise that, in the search for new and interesting blog material, we were told by our web design team about the affect the recent launch of HTML5 and CSS3 are having on the work we produce for clients.
HTML5 and CSS3 are so new to the web world that, when surfing the net to see who else is talking about them, there aren’t many; and the predominant question is not ‘who else is using them?’ but ‘when will they be launched?’. So that, of course, got me thinking: are we leading the way in taking web design to another level?
HTML5 and CSS3 are the future of interactive web design – fact. Adobe Flash seems to have had its day, especially when considered against its future availability on mobile platforms – and we all know how important they are. HTML5, it appears, is the way to go. As the next generation of the language that powers the web, it is the latest and one of the most vital tools in the discerning web designer’s armoury; along with CSS3, of course. Together, the 3D effects, animations, video and other in-browser graphics they create make all other platforms seem outdated.
For our clients it means there is greater scope for a more uniquely-crafted website – one that – especially at this moment in time – stands out from the crowd with its creativity and design capability. Now websites can be designed to increase sales and lead-generation using the HTML5 geolocation API, which accesses the visitor’s location enabling you to personalise content – for example, a list of stores in the local area – without having to ask for personal information. If that doesn’t encourage a click though and buy, what will?
Complementing this, CSS3 has full animation support, which means you can highlight key parts of the site with visual cues without needing to resort to Adobe Flash. Add to that the fact you can create websites and web applications that don’t need to be online to work (great for staff or customers on the move without internet connectivity) and you can see how this is the start of a new era for website creation.
Sound too good to be true? Well, there is one ‘but’: full cross-browser support isn’t in place quite yet – some people still use outdated browsers. Check to see if your browser is outdated here – ismybrowseruptodate.com. That said, the most recent versions of Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari and Internet Explorer support the majority of the specification.
“The web is still in its infancy, so to encourage growth and development we must embrace new technologies. Yes, there may be initial teething issues; websites will look slightly different across the range of browsers, but the earlier we start using HTML5 and CSS3 the quicker their wider adoption will be.”
Giles Talbot, web designer
In conclusion the web is about to experience a huge makeover thanks to the boom in mobile devices as well as the development of HTML5 and CSS3. Long gone are the days of a uniform, one-size-fits-all approach – the future is responsive web design. And we’re delighted to see that our web designers and developers are not just keeping up but leading the way. So with the technology side sewn up and our successful appointment of an online creative, oneagency.co really is designing for the future.
