The latest installment in our Ask a Dev series explains some methods that developers can use to translate their responsive websites into independent apps.
Clay Benson, a web director, says that developers can use Apache Cordova or PhoneGap to package web code and deploy it to the app stores.
See also: 85 Top Responsive Web Design Tools
However, while these tools are simple, they do require sites to be in HTML, CSS or Javascript. That means that websites that use other web protocols will have to be re-architected before they can be deployed to the app store.
In the video above, Benson also discusses how cross-platform frameworks can be a substitute for media- or content-heavy applications. He says that the effectiveness of the frameworks will depend on how the applications are architected and suggests testing performance with an emulator.
"But always remember to, in addition to testing early and testing often, test on the device," he says. "The device will give you an accurate picture of how the app will perform in the real world."
Our developer experts are from Mutual Mobile, a leading development and design firm that builds mobile strategies for top companies such as Audi, Google and Citigroup. The team is eager to answer your questions about mobile, so ping us with your top queries on Twitter, using the hashtag #AskaDev. Don't forget to check out our Ask a Dev YouTube channel and subscribe.
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