# What does "responsive design" mean?
**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357
**Category:** Support
**Created:** [June 23, 2016, 5:25pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357 "2016-06-23T17:25:14Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Idan](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Idan)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 5:25pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/1 "2016-06-23T17:25:14Z")
I’ve read this on Sitepoint and I check my installation. So from my understanding, Discouse has two themese, one for mobile and one for Desktop, am I understanding it right? and if so, do you have any plans to add responsive design?
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### Author:  [@dax](https://meta.discourse.org/u/dax)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 5:37pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/2 "2016-06-23T17:37:27Z")
There is an option on admin panel for disable the mobile theme. You can add your personal stylesheet responsive theme.
So I don’t think the Discourse team have plans for responsive design in the near future.
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### Author:  [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 7:07pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/3 "2016-06-23T19:07:25Z")
The desktop design is responsive, try changing browser width and watch what happens.
The reality is that you can’t be “responsive” down to teeny-tiny iPhone 4 size, though – and there is no concept of hover on a phone, like there is on a desktop.
So this is really a pointless terminology argument about the definition of words.
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### Author:  [@Idan](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Idan)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 7:09pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/4 "2016-06-23T19:09:49Z")
I don’t optimize for iphone 4 size, but for 480px width.If the desktop design is responsive, why there is a need for mobiel theme? Can you please explain Jeff. Thanks.
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### Author:  [@cpradio](https://meta.discourse.org/u/cpradio)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 7:10pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/5 "2016-06-23T19:10:59Z")
Can you also point to the Sitepoint topic, as I’d like to get some context to the question.
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### Author:  [@Idan](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Idan)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 7:14pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/6 "2016-06-23T19:14:41Z")
Yeh, sorry, here’s [the discussion](https://www.sitepoint.com/community/t/making-discourse-fluid-responsive/115089/5). I always built my website with content that adapt to the size of the screen (aka responsive design) for my latest websites. I just don’t understand the need for a separated mobile theme, maybe I am lack of that knowledge, but please help me understand.
I already installed discourse and ready to go, but some things made me think twice whether to continue with it, that’s why I am asking lots of questions, sorry for that.
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### Author:  [@Falco](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Falco)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2016, 7:56pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/7 "2016-06-23T19:56:51Z")
In a responsive design you can go as far as `display: none` something, but the markup and data will be there as well.
Using a backend enabled mobile version you can not send the data and markup at all.
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### Author:  [@JammyDodger](https://meta.discourse.org/u/JammyDodger)
#### Post date: [June 8, 2024, 12:45pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/what-does-responsive-design-mean/46357/8 "2024-06-08T12:45:29Z")
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