DD: Device Support

Operating Systems

The website should be operating system agnostic, that is it should not matter what operating system the user is using. Do not use proprietary Microsoft or Apple technology. Stick to plain HTML or XHTML.



Browsers

Test your website in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari. Internet Explorer has ben the major browser on Windows versions up to 8, and is pre-installed, so most people use this browser however Internet Explorer no longer exists on Apple Mac computers. Firefox is a newer browser which is growing in popularity. It is too important to ignore as it is used on Windows, Mac and Linux. Safari is the major browser on the Mac. All three browsers are available for Windows. And now, as of Windows 10, there is also Microsoft Edge. You should also be aware that there are text based browsers, such as Lynx.



Mobile Phones

Whilst there is no explicit requirement to support browsing on mobile phones, the latest technology, for example Apple's iPhone, should have no problems with well-designed sites. And be aware that most people on the doorstep, and in the pub, will find their phone's browser the most convenient point of access for checking policy, branch meeting details etc.



Printers

Many people, particularly older people, prefer to print off website pages to read them. Therefore it is important that you test this out. If the page prints acceptably, then you do not need to do anything further. If the page is difficult to read or is jumbled up, use a print style-sheet to improve it.