AO3 has one of the most mobile-friendly user interfaces Iâve ever encountered and that along with the ability to download and open works in an app of my choice (iBooks because Iâm An Old) makes it honestly easier to use the site as-is than it is to use it an app (presumably).
I mean look at this login screen!
The navigation is responsive, but still complete on a mobile browser - a lot of sites strip options in mobile to simplify nav and I hate it. Theyâve built the site to be fully responsive in terms of widths, cleaning managing the breakpoints to prevent the dreaded horizontal scroll.
Although most menu options are links, theyâre simple and easy to click with your fingers despite there being a lot of them.
Itâs even easy to download on mobile! Iâve downloaded a lot of fics in the time it takes for me to get seated on an airplane and the doors close and I have to turn off my cell service.
Weâre trained to think apps are better. But thatâs because for companies - apps are another and better source of customer consumption data with targeted advertising! And websites are difficult to code to be so easy to use and responsive while also maximizing exposure to tracking and advertising that driving you into an app is a win-win for the company - better data and a happier customer.
In fact, most sites are actually designed with this in mind! Target, delta airlines, Amazon, etc they all want you to use their app to complete some transactions because youâre more likely to buy! It was developed to produce more profit for them, the convenience for you is simply a side-effect.
You know what AO3 doesnât have? Advertising and tracking. They donât need it because they arenât attempting to generate revenue from your browsing behavior. So what they can do is invest the time and energy into ensuring their site is mobile-friendly (I wouldnât be surprised if they even took a âmobile firstâ approach to new development, but Iâm not gonna look it up to see if they say they do or not). And the result is a page thatâs just as easy to use on a mobile device as it is on a desktop.
Love it and embrace it and then stop for a moment and think about how trained youâve become by capitalism to expect an app as âsomething users wantâ rather than something users have been trained to need.
(I feel inclined to point out that likely this was the plan all along or at least a decision made very early on, overhauling a site not planned for mobile use to be so mobile friendly is a massive undertaking so massive kudos to OTW for their foresight.)
tangentwithtanner
yousharknotpass
jbbartram-illu
dededos
annaxmalina
