Your Desktop is Now Just Another "Device" like a Tablet, but Bigger

Can you remember, back before the computer was the main item on our workdesks, and sending an "email" was a new thing you weren't quite sure about? It wasn't that long ago.

I thought about that today as I was listening to a webinar about "responsive web design." That term means to design your internet communication to respond to any size or shape device the human is using to see or read it.

The speaker said, "Back in the desktop era . . ." What?

Yes, the "desktop" era is actually ending. Last year, when more phones and tablets came bursting on the scene, and people also started hooking up their keyboards via bluetooth to play on large wall television sets as monitors, the desktop just became one more "device" . . . somewhere in the middle. This is quite a stunning transition.

When someone goes to see your online offerings . . . They may do it on a phone. They may do it on a wall screen. They may do it on a one inch web wristwatch. They may do it on a tablet. And, yes, they may still do it on a 15 or 19 or 21 or 26 inch monitor standing on their desk. The percentages of people who use one "device" over another is shifting so fast we can barely publish the numbers before they are outdated.

What does this mean for you or for your business?

For you, well you can see anything anytime anywhere. I was trying to view something on a large tablet today, and I realized it needed wifi, oh! I have gotten so used to having a tablet with built in web service just like my phone, that I forgot I could not just go online instantly in the middle of the table at the Northgate mall to make my point in a conversation. We literally can see anything or do anything just about anywhere. I bought something from a food vendor. They swiped my card on their tablet with a square swiper, and it emailed me my receipt. Even a mall vendor is now paperless.

What does it mean for your business website?

Well, actually, do you even know who sees that? People will go to your "URL" or website address from anywhere on anything. They may never see a thing that looks like a page, the thing you put a lot of work into making look just right with images and ads and good articles. They will see it at 2 inches, or 21 inches, or 6 inches. The idea of a desktop website is now outlived by all the ideas that have come after it. It is time to change the way we produce our online information.

No more "pages". Those who built web content now are making it portable content chunks that can be styled to display beautifully anywhere. It feels odd to watch times changing so fast, doesn't it? Our adult invention of this wonderful computer has already morphed into another style of living. It is time all of us, and our business and marketing communications became ready to be served on just about any device . . . even sometimes a desktop computer.

Is your website ready? Oh, do we even call it a website anymore? Um, sorry, let's say, "your web address." Is your "web content" ready for this new style of living?

Image credits: online pictures of "Apple's rumored curved-glass wrist computer mockup" and "Samsung flexible AMOLED display" from their prototype videos.

Pepper Oldziey is a graphic designer who has been in busisness for 43 years, a web coder and developer, a trainer and educator, a search engine optimization specialist and a corporate web strategist. Her company is Peppergraphics Design Studio. She is available for consultation on your company's web strategy.

Tags: Pepper Oldziey, computer, desktops, device, peppergraphics, tablets, web design, wrist computer

3 members like this

Comment by Drew Becker on March 15, 2013 at 2:22pm: Thanks for posting this great article!

Comment by David Newton on March 16, 2013 at 9:01am: Thanks Pepper. I think this is so important for everyone, but especially those just starting out. Potential customers may do a little more work to find you if you have a "name" already, but if you are a new small business, it better be easy.

I am working on this right now.

Comment by Robin Thomas on March 16, 2013 at 2:08pm: Looks like I need to talk to you and let you check out my blog site. So what do people over 50 do about all the squinting at the smaller tablets? I use my phone a lot, but the small size of the screen can bother me after a while.

Comment by Yoga w/ Olga on March 17, 2013 at 7:51pm: You are absolutely right. The first point the Norie & Martin made in our Social Media Management is to get used to the constant change!

Comment by Rick Nipper on March 22, 2013 at 7:19pm: Pepper, a great article! Some of us are of a certain age that our minds were blown back when desktop computers became the norm in business. It's a great reminder to step out of my own comfort zone and think about the world from others' perspectives whether that be mobile phone, tablet, big screen or even desktop.

Comment by Pepper P Oldziey on March 23, 2013 at 10:35am: Thank you Rick and Olga and Robin and David and Drew. Yes there are a few of us that still remember the days before computers. We are witnessing change of that magnitude, but it is sneaking up on us, or those of us that are established and not noticing the antics of the younger three generations.

I worked on the drafting board for 26 years producing print publications before trusting the computer production enough to move the magazine I was publishing to it. I started my design career when I was handsetting pieces of metal type for letterpress printing. (aka the dark ages)

Let's just say when we get to the ripe old age of __ we have seen enough change that we may not notice as small things warp around us. For us . . . a wakeup call that most people younger than fifty are using "devices" for their many web purposes. And as of last year, they outnumber us old desktop users, at least for "on the fly" communication and for sure for email opening. People don't sit at their computers to open email anymore and that just changed the email marketing industry.Wow.