There seems to be a prevailing school of thought when it comes to creating apps derived from URLs. The majority of these links have not been optimized for mobile and that causes them to not display as the app maker expects when they are viewed on your mobile device. In a bid to combat that, this article today is going to delve deeper into why this is so and how a mobile website can be created to meet the requirements set by mobile devices and for Android apps. Creating an android app using a web link does not have to be a difficult undertaking anymore.
Define a mobile website
What a mobile website is, is simply a site that has been created and optimized to be used on any mobile device like a smartphone or a tablet. Typically, a mobile-optimized webpage is accessed through the app so long as there is an active internet connection.
It is plausible to develop an app without having to convert and optimize it for mobile, however, the result might not be quite easy to navigate or read when using a mobile device. This is why we continuously advocate that every website is made mobile friendly.
How can an app become mobile optimized?
There are actually quite a number of tools to convert and optimize your website. The majority of them such as Wirenode, imcreator, and Onbile can be found online.
Wirenode is a wonderful choice for SMEs. There is a free version that comes with seamless ways to make a website. There are even some large corporations that have utilized Wirenode to create a mobile-optimized site in conjunction with their regular site.
Imcreator enables you to select from a host of a mobile-optimized template when developing your website from the beginning. This can perhaps be the most seamless option as it enables you to develop a website alongside an optimized one concurrently.
Onbile comes with a plethora of templates which can be seamlessly customized to develop a mobile site. The moment the site has been created and is mobile-friendly, Onbile provides you with a script that can be placed on the website. The job of the script is to automatically recognize if the visitors are accessing the site from a mobile browser.
This just goes to show that when trying to learn how to make an android app that links to a website, you have to make sure that the weblink has been optimized for mobile so as to achieve the best possible design for the app.
How to make a current website become more mobile-friendly
The previous section of this article spoke a lot about how an existing website could be transformed into a mobile-friendly one, however, it does not speak about the benefits of taking the time to plan your sites from scratch. Doing so ensures that your web design has been optimized for every type of device from tablets and laptops to smartphones and even flat-screen televisions. Typically, there are two ways one can adapt a website strategy for mobile devices. You could choose to either alter your already existing site to fit whatever needs the mobile world requires, or you could simply develop a mobile-friendly site that runs parallel to your original site.
How to adjust an already existing website?
The first step you would have to take is to simplify your design. For example, if you can view your site on a mobile device or by utilizing GoMOmeter by Google, you will be able to know if your site requires design changes. If changes are necessary, they tend to be in the following areas:
- Pages require a large font
- Pivotal and integral information should be viewable at the top part of the site
- Buttons should be large so that those with larger fingers can seamlessly navigate your site on their mobile devices
As stated earlier, you will have to develop a mobile-friendly version of your site. This can always be done by developing a wholly new website that leverages a mobile-friendly template found on imcreator, Onbile, or Wirenode. Doing this creates a parallel URL for the site and it starts with an “m.” subdomain. While this method is the most seamless and perhaps cheapest method there is out there, it can be quite difficult to find using a search engine. On the positive side, it does let any prospective mobile browser visitors know that they are not being ignored.
Creating an adaptive website
To define an adaptive website is to define a site that can seamlessly detect what device the site’s visitor is viewing the site with and then automatically create a page that is optimized to the device’s setting.
A responsive site
A responsive site can be defined as a site that auto-adjusts to properly display content on any device regardless of the device’s screen size. What this means is that the design will instinctively properly display the content ensuring that your website audience receives the very best view. If you happen to be utilizing a template-based design when developing your website, you have to ensure that whatever theme you select is one that is also labeled as responsive. This means that it can automatically resize itself to suit your mobile audience. In the event that you are not creating the website yourself, be sure to check in with the designer and ensure that they know what a responsive site is. Creating a website link to the android app is probably the easiest aspect of the entire process.
What are the advantages of creating a website link to the android app?
Android, as an open-source mobile operating system which has an extremely large user base coupled with a simplified mobile app development process. numerous app makers and enterprises alike are leveraging android to create a custom mobile app that can suitably solve the problems that customers have.
High Return On Investment and Low Investment
Android has a low entry barrier given that android freely provides its SDK or Software Development Kit to developers. This helps to minimize the costs associated with licensing and development. The development costs are typically grouped into three stages with the first stage being Application development: the second Testing and the third Hardware costs for deploying and testing the application.
Open Source
There is a large advantage of being open source. This means that there are no royalties or licensing fees to be paid and the most effective technology framework is offered by the community. Given that the Android SDK architecture is open source, you are able to interact and engage the community for proposed android mobile app development. It is for this reason why the Android platform is extremely attractive for not just developers but OEMs and wireless operators.
Easy Integration
If you are searching for a complicated technical integration and customization of a weblink application or simply an already existing app, then learning how to make an android app that links to a website can be advantageous. The whole android platform is suitable for customization and you are able to integrate and adjust the mobile app to suit your needs. When it comes to finding the most efficient mobile platform between processes and application architecture, you need not look any further than Android.
Numerous Sales Channels
Compared to other mobile operating systems, the application development services by android can be deployed in various ways. This means you do not have to worry about the sole market to publish and distribute your app. Third-party application stores such as Google Playstore can be utilized, in conjunction with your brand’s own sales and distribution channel which can be perfect for vertical markets in order to create new application stores whilst also publishing the app on your branded website.
Seamless Adoption
Applications for android are typically scripted using Java language alongside a vast array of libraries. Just about anyone is able to build android applications by having a knowledge of Java. One of the many reasons is that Java is not only easy to adopt but it can be quite beneficial to code it into a script suitable for android mobile applications.
