Website for iPad: a do or a don’t?

That is the question on many people’s lips these days, what with the upcoming iPad release on April3rd: Does my business need to change its website or create a special iPad version of it?

What the iPhone taught us

Those who were among the first to use mobile web surfing know that any mobile browser other than the one on the iPhone was painstakingly difficult to use. Platforms offered by Windows Mobile or Palm did not, in any way, offer a pleasant user experience on a mobile phone screen. The iPhone swooped in and shed new light on everything by making it fun to surf a site with no special formatting on such a small screen, in part thanks to its selective zoom functionality. Of course a site that is equipped with a customised iPhone version is even more effective for remote use, but this is in no way a prerequisite.

If Apple managed to comply with this challenge so brilliantly for the iPhone and its 3.5-inch screen and 480-by-320-pixel resolution, imagine how easy it will be to surf on an iPad 9.7-inch screen with 1,024-by-768-pixel res, this being the most common website resolution at this time.

Does this mean an iPad version is uncalled for?

No, but it will not be necessary in the very short term. For now, whatever you are doing for standard browsers will also apply to the iPad, which will however have its own distinctive features eventually. I think differences will grow with use, user needs and each site’s specs, e.g. whether it is an e-commerce site, a straightforward no-nonsense site, an entertainment site, a news site, etc. Because the range of use made of the iPad will be really varied, as will be its users- teachers, salespeople, artists and so on- it is by fusing personas-users and content offer that we will be able to properly identify user contexts that merit customisation.

Another good thing is that well-designed sites that use style sheets (CSS) will be easily and fairly quickly adaptable to small changes that may be necessary (for example using on/off sliders instead of radio buttons).

The Flash exception and its impact on online video

I did say that whatever you are doing for standard browsers will be valid for the iPad, but that excludes Flash. Indeed, all Flash components on a website will not be visible on the iPad. It seems that Apple is at war with this Adobe technology and refuses to have the iPad or iPhone display any of it.

This fact severely impacts online video, which is mainly Flash-based at the moment. Flash transformed online video in the way that the iPhone revolutionised mobile surfing. So since the majority of online video players operate with Flash and will not work on the iPad, changes are to be expected on this front.

If you ask me, the solution lies within HTML5, the new HTML standard that includes native video in web browsers with no need for Windows Media Player or QuickTime.YouTube already offers HTML5 support so users can choose the HTML5 player instead of the Flash player.

What about Kindle, Sony e-Reader and the like?

When walking around big cities in the U.S., it is obvious that Kindle and Co. are fairly popular already. Many people read books and newspapers on such platforms. However, they are still uncommon in Canada. My personal prediction is that the iPad will truly be THE digital reading tool that will take up the most space in Canada, because by the time Canadians are ready for it, the iPad will be available. It is in fact the iPad that will kick things off with Canadians.

This brings to mind MySpace and Facebook. MySpace, which is one generation behind Facebook in terms of functionality and especially user-friendliness, definitely got things going in the U.S. The social media wave hit Canada later, but Canadians turned to a product that was more advanced and mature- Facebook. Afterwards, Americans gradually switched over to Facebook, but the cost of changing (adding friends all over again, recustomising a profile, etc.) slowed the adoption process.I foresee a similar phenomenon for the iPad.

In conclusion, if your site is mainly HTML, don’t dismay! Observe first, spend later.