Why have a Progressive Web App?

5 January, 2018: 250 words, 1-minute read

All our websites and apps have been implemented as Progressive Web Apps (PWA) since 2016. The concept is new so clients rarely ask for a PWA, but it seems irresponsible not to add the technologies. The benefits are considerable:

• users can easily find and add your site/app to their mobile or desktop home screen
• performance is improved because files can be cached on-demand or in advance
• sites/apps can work offline, synchronise data, and send notifications
• PWA technology can be applied to existing web sites and applications
• they can be updated like normal web applications without App Store complexities
• PWAs can be hundreds of times smaller and more efficient than native mobile apps
• functionality works everywhere - even when a device doesn’t support PWA technologies.

PWAs use standard web development APIs and are supported (to differing levels) in Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Vivaldi, Edge and Safari.

Web agency support

Unfortunately, few web development agencies have adopted PWA techniques. Clients don’t know it’s an option and developers often lack appropriate knowledge. However, the core concepts are simple:

1. Enable secure HTTPS (preferably HTTP/2) on your system.
2. Create a web app manifest with information about your app’s name, icons, colours etc.
3. Create a service worker. This is the root of PWA complexity but even an empty file will enable some functionality.

Please contact us to discuss how:

• your site or application could become a Progressive Web App, or
• your developers could benefit from a few hours PWA training.