{
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    "title" : "What Is Mobile Device Compatibility Testing? |Digital.gov",
    "description": "What Is Mobile Device Compatibility Testing?",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2015/08/14/what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing/index.json","item" : [
    {"title" :"What Is Mobile Device Compatibility Testing?","summary" : "In most instances, your hardware and software are developed independently but are expected to function properly together. For example, when a Web application is developed in HTML, it is expected to function properly on an Apple computer using Safari as well as a Windows computer using Internet Explorer. This sounds simple, but there are thousands","date" : "2015-08-14T11:10:12-04:00","date_modified" : "2025-01-27T19:42:55-05:00","authors" : {"david-fern" : "David Fern"},"topics" : {
        
            "mobile" : "Mobile",
            "user-experience" : "User experience"
            },"branch" : "bc-archive-content-3",
      "filename" :"2015-08-14-what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing.md",
      
      "filepath" :"news/2015/08/2015-08-14-what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2015/08/2015-08-14-what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2015/08/2015-08-14-what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing.md","slug" : "what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2015/08/14/what-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing/","content" :"\u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n    src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/_legacy-img/2015/03/600-x-400-Mobile-devices-scanrail-iStock-Thinkstock-ThinkstockPhotos-507329083.jpg\"\n    alt=\"Mobile devices\"/\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn most instances, your hardware and software are developed independently but are expected to function properly together.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor example, when a Web application is developed in HTML, it is expected to function properly on an Apple computer using Safari as well as a Windows computer using Internet Explorer.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis sounds simple, but there are thousands of combinations of browser types and versions as well as operating systems, and the number of combinations increases exponentially as we add in the \u003ca href=\"https://crossbrowsertesting.com/browsers\"\u003emultitude of mobile device makes and models\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"what-is-compatibility-testing\"\u003eWhat Is Compatibility Testing?\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDoes your application function as expected on your customers’ devices?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile \u003ca href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2015/03/19/getting-started-with-usability-testing/\"\u003eusability testing\u003c/a\u003e focuses on the look, feel and ease of use, compatibility testing focuses on determining if the hardware and software display and allow the application to function properly.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMobile compatibility testing is checking or validating that your application behaves as expected across the combination of mobile devices and browsers that your customers will be using to access your application.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"why-is-mobile-device-compatibility-testing-so-important\"\u003eWhy Is Mobile Device Compatibility Testing so Important?\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe spend a lot of time planning and developing our application, and we want all of our customers to have the same expected user experience.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTest cycles conducted through the Federal Crowdsource Mobile Testing Program have uncovered \u003ca href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2015/02/24/trends-on-tuesday-mobile-web-lessons-from-the-crowdsource-mobile-testing-program/\"\u003emany types of compatibility related issues\u003c/a\u003e that have an effect on user experience, including:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eContent—A full website usually does not fit on a small mobile device\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNavigation—Mobile navigation may require different navigation methods than the full size website\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSize—Smaller screens require font and objects to be sized appropriately\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFunctions and Feature—Component behavior is not always predictable on the different devices and operating systems\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2015/06/16/trends-on-tuesday-native-app-lessons-from-the-crowdsource-mobile-testing-program/\"\u003eNative applications bring even more issues\u003c/a\u003e, including:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eInstallation and upgrade issues\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMore dependence on the operating system than with responsive Web design applications\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDifferent versions are required for each operating system.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"what-tools-can-be-used-for-compatibility-testing\"\u003eWhat Tools Can Be Used for Compatibility Testing?\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe majority of time spent on mobile device compatibility testing is focused on the manual process of performing tasks as the customer would on different devices, operating systems and browser combinations and verifying that the screens and behavior is as expected.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat said, when using some automation tools, tests can be automated and executed across different devices, capturing screen shots along the way. But, in many cases, manual intervention is still required to interpret these results.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdditionally, there are many tools available, such as \u003ca href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2015/06/09/the-emulator-dilemma-can-mobile-device-testing-be-completed-without-mobile-devices/\"\u003eemulators and simulators\u003c/a\u003e, that reduce the need for physical devices for testing.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"how-do-you-ensure-your-mobile-application-is-compatible-with-all-of-your-customers-devices\"\u003eHow Do You Ensure Your Mobile Application Is Compatible with All of Your Customers’ Devices?\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n    src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/_legacy-img/2015/06/600-x-405-Responsive-Web-Design-Elements-macromediam-iStock-Thinkstock-535895521.jpg\"\n    alt=\"Illustration: Responsive Web Design Elements are shown on various screen sizes: television, desktop computer, laptop, tablet, smart phone, smart watch, and ring\"/\u003e\u003cp\u003emacromediam, iStock, Thinkstock\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Crowdsource Mobile Testing Program is ready to assist you in determining if your application is compatible with the mobile devices your customers are using.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis program gathers federal employees and conducts a test cycle that will perform scripted and exploratory testing on your application. These individual results will be consolidated into an actionable results report that your agency can use to improve your application. This process also provides a forum for the tester to collaborate and share knowledge with others.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor more information on being a tester or having your federal application tested, please \u003ca href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/about/\"\u003econtact DigitalGov\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"additional-resources\"\u003eAdditional Resources\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.guru99.com/compatibility-testing.html\"\u003eAll About Compatibility Testing\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://jobsandnewstoday.blogspot.com/2013/07/compatibility-testing-definition-types.html\"\u003eCompatibility Testing: Definition, Types, Tools Used\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.researchgate.net/publication/274370752_Compatibility_Testing_Service_for_Mobile_Applications\"\u003eCompatibility Testing Service for Mobile Applications\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n"}
  ]
}