The creation of applications designed for use on mobile devices, leveraging web technologies as a foundation, constitutes a significant area of software engineering. One common approach utilizes a standardized markup language optimized for the web to construct user interfaces and application logic that function across diverse mobile platforms. This method contrasts with native app development, which relies on platform-specific languages and tools.
This approach offers several advantages, including cross-platform compatibility, potentially reducing development costs and time. A single codebase can be deployed across multiple operating systems. Furthermore, skills commonly associated with web development can be readily applied. Historically, this methodology evolved to address the limitations of native development in reaching a broad user base and simplifying the maintenance of multiple application versions.