If you’ve read my earlier post, you’ll now know a little bit more about ‘responsive’ web design, and catering for mobile devices.
‘Going mobile’ might not suit every type of site – if your site is particularly content and navigation heavy, you might not consider the upgrade. I don’t think every website has to be mobile enabled, just the sites that are traditionally navigated on a mobile!
One bug-bear of mine I don’t mind admitting is the Arriva Buses website.
A site I often visit on my mobile for Leicester or Loughborough bus times and one that makes me swear each time I visit it.
The site is pretty nicely designed and when using a computer is OK to navigate. The one and only area of the site I visit though is the timetables section and this is what lets it down.
It’s a bit tricky with the dropdowns shooting up and down on a desktop computer, but you get there.
Use a mobile device to perform the same task and you’ll be greeted with the exact same site, just shrunk down to the size of your phone. Queue lots of zooming in and out with your fingertips trying to get to the relevant timetable.
Why can’t this section be mobile enabled, if nothing else? Needless to say there’s no Arriva app on the market, so the best way I’ve found to keep times handy is to bookmark a web page on my phone’s desktop.
It’s times like this that make me wish mobile-friendly sites would become more the norm!
Here’s a link to my local Mountsorrel timetable, if you’re interested in seeing the annoyance in full glory…
