Chapter 1Becoming Responsive

The longer you spend working with the Web, the more you come to realize the truth in the adage that change is the only constant. We’ve seen changes in our programming languages, design patterns, and browser popularity; more recently, the devices that connect to the Web and our applications have evolved. And it’s this last change that has caused the need for Responsive Web Design (RWD)—an approach to web design that places the user firmly as the focus.

Changes in devices aren’t new, of course; it’s the pace and breadth of the change that’s new. It was only a short time ago that our biggest challenge was whether our sites should make what seemed the giant leap from 800px to 1024px wide. Making the change, we thought ...

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