For me small is beautiful so I'm using this technique:
In CSS file:
/* Smartphones ----------- */
@media only screen and (max-width: 760px) {
#some-element { display: none; }
}
In jQuery/JavaScript file:
$( document ).ready(function() {
var is_mobile = false;
if( $('#some-element').css('display')=='none') {
is_mobile = true;
}
// now I can use is_mobile to run javascript conditionally
if (is_mobile == true) {
//Conditional script here
}
});
My objective was to have my site "mobile-friendly". So I use CSS Media Queries do show/hide elements depending on the screen size.
For example, in my mobile version I don't want to activate the Facebook Like Box, because it loads all those profile images and stuff. And that's not good for mobile visitors. So, besides hiding the container element, I also do this inside the jQuery code block (above):
if(!is_mobile) {
(function(d, s, id) {
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/pt_PT/all.js#xfbml=1&appId=210731252294735";
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));
}
You can see it in action at http://lisboaautentica.com
I'm still working on the the mobile version, so it's still not looking as it should, as of writing this.
Update by dekin88
There is a JavaScript API built-in for detecting media.
Rather than using the above solution simply use the following:
$(function() {
let isMobile = window.matchMedia("only screen and (max-width: 760px)").matches;
if (isMobile) {
//Conditional script here
}
});
Browser Supports: http://caniuse.com/#feat=matchmedia
The advantage of this method is that it's not only simpler and shorter, but you can conditionally target different devices such as smartphones and tablets separately if necessary without having to add any dummy elements into the DOM.