Previewing publications on mobile and tablet

 

The easiest way to preview your publication on mobile is to publish the publication online and load the publication URL in your mobile browser. If your publication isn't ready to go online just yet, or you don't have a mobile device at hand, here are three ways you can preview what your publication looks like on touch devices.

1. Logging in on the test device

Offline publications can only be viewed when you are logged in on your Publitas account. You can go to app.publitas.com on your test device, log in and click on the preview button/thumbnail. 

Please note that not all options in the CMS support touch screens (e.g. hotspot editor). Click here to learn more about supported browsers.

2. Using Chrome's developer tools

The Chrome browser offers a way to emulate a mobile or tablet device:

  1. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl Shift J (on Windows) or Cmd Option J (on Mac) to activate the Developer tools.
  2. In the top-left corner, click on the touch device icon.
  3. At the top of the webpage, select the type of device you want to emulate.
  4. Refresh the page

Using Chrome to emulate the mobile Reader:

CleanShot 2021-01-22 at 12.13.53

In reality, the Publication Reader is less tall as the internet browser takes up space at the top and bottom. These elements do not show in Chrome.

3. Using online test tools

There are many tools available online that allow you to test webpages on a virtual device of your choice. A few examples you can check out are BrowserStack and CrossBrowserTesting.

Screenshot from a live session in BrowserStack:

mceclip0 (1)

 

Reader comparison

The Reader's interface and options are optimized for the device that is used to view the publication. Here's an overview of the main differences between the device-specific interfaces:

  Desktop Reader Tablet Reader Mobile Reader
 Navigation Clickable arrow buttons next to and below the pages Swiping gestures Swiping gestures
 Zoom options Page clicks; Menu option Pinching gestures Pinching gestures
 Menu availability Visible on the left Visible on the left Activated via a hamburger icon
 Menu Items Home; Zoom; Page overview; Fullscreen; PDF download; Print; Search; Share; Privacy Policy Home; Page overview; PDF download; Search; Privacy Policy Home; Page overview; PDF download; Search; Privacy Policy
 Share options Menu option; Product hotspots Native share (via the browser) Native share (via the browser)
 Product hotspots Pop-up window with a sidebar when multiple products are present Pop-up window with a sidebar when multiple products are present Slide-in window, showing a product overview first when multiple products are present