If you want to build an app, one of the first questions you should ask yourself is whether to build it on the web or "go native," meaning write it specifically for iOS or Android.
Our developer this week, Jake Riesterer, says the best performance is likely to come from designing the app with a particular operating system in mind. Both iOS and Android provide frameworks to make writing the app easier; your app will probably look better than anything designed through the web because you can use the graphics processing unit that comes with the hardware Android and iOS devices use.
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If you go the web route and use web graphics library, a type of JavaScript that lets you render 3D and 2D graphics with any compatible browsers, web tools might be right for you. But Riesterer cautions that web graphics library isn't compatible with iOS devices.
But let's backtrack — do you need to build an app at all? Depending on your user base, a mobile site may be sufficient.
If you already attract a lot of traffic to your mobile site, an app might not be worth the trouble. But apps are great for discoverability, and if you want users to get to your brand quickly, it could be worth it, Riesterer says.
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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Image: Flickr, Ian Lamont