The Most Exciting Thing About Web Standards Is … umm …
Written on April 7, 2009 by Trevor Thornton
Here is a quick overview of some of the new guidelines we’re putting in place:
Markup
XHTML 1.0 Strict will be the standard Document Type Definition for all generated web pages, and all pages should validate. All content will be structured using semantic XHTML markup, with layout and presentational properties specified in external CSS files (see below). Presentational markup (e.g. use of <b>, <i> <u>, etc.) will be avoided. Class and ID names applied to content elements should be descriptive of the element’s function and not specific to presentational attributes (”title” or “subtitle” rather than “bold” or “red”).
CSS
All CSS rules will be defined in external files – use of embedded and inline styles should be avoided where possible. To best support users accessing the site with Internet Explorer 6 (currently about 25-30% of our overall traffic), use of CSS2 and CSS3 selectors and declarations will be avoided where practical as these are not supported in IE6. CSS2/3 can be used to enhance certain aspects of the design for browsers that support it, but care will be taken that the overall design and user experience is not significantly compromised in IE6. Browser-specific rules and hacks will be avoided whenever possible.
Javascript
Javascript will be utilized only in cases where its use provides a significant improvement to the user experience. Where it is used, Javascript should be unobtrusive, with scripts contained in external files and implemented in such a way that there is no loss in basic functionality for users with Javascript disabled.
Accessibility
Many of the guidelines above, in addition to representing best practices for web development, also serve to ensure that the web site is accessible to users with disabilities. Our goal is to fully comply with Priorities 1 and 2 of the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. In this effort we are fortunate to have the input of the staff and patrons of the Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library, who have provided very useful insight into practical issues faced by users who rely on screen reading and enlarging software to view web content. While the W3C guidelines are important, having insight into real user behavior is invaluable.
Filed in: CSS, Code, Content, Design, Javascript, Planning, Semantic Web, Usability, drupal, interfaces, users.
that is totally cool that you are taking the user experience of people with disabilities so seriously! kudos.
What’s the plan for dealing with the Content-Type issue when serving XHTML Strict?
The content type issue is tricky. While XHTML should use the application/xhtml+xml content type, XHTML 1.0 CAN use the text/html content type if the markup conforms to the W3C’s XHTML/HTML compatibility guidelines (see http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml-media-types/#compatGuidelines), which is our plan.
The problem with the application/xhtml+xml content type is (you guessed it) IE6 – not exclusively, but it’s annoyingly high browser share makes it the most conspicuous of the browsers that don’t support it. There are some workarounds that would allow us to serve pages as application/xhtml+xml to friendly clients and text/html to the rest, and we might look into these for Phase 2. Still not a perfect situation, but committing to serving pages with well-formed markup now sets us up for a smoother transition to XHTML 1.1 (and XHTML 2) when the time comes.
I find best practices very exciting. Nice!
[...] Most Exciting Thing About Web Standards Is … umm … [web link]NYPL Labs (07/Apr/2009)“…and 2 of the w3c web content accessibility [...]
I just took the usability survey (linked). Inferring from the questions asked, this new blog & event A/V thing in the works will probably be lost on the main NYPL navigation, and probably needs it’s own identity. Libraries are understood as archivists of knowledge, not producers of new knowledge. I’m not sure what to think of posting a comment like this about the library on this blog.
I appreciate that the university system experienced it’s own transformation in this regard, but this transformation will not occur in the minds of patrons overnight. The survey made it seem like this was just a matter of adding a link to something like “Made at NYPL.” I see a fundamental change in the mission of the library that needs to be more prominently reflected in the entire site design in order to be understood.
Regards,
Sean
(your friendly neighborhood software developer, project manager, and library patron)
Thanks for the insightful suggestions, Sean! It’s true that the transition from being perceived as a repository of content to a producer and processor of content is not a simple one. We’ve been producing our own materials and publications since even before the Internet, but the rise of digital technologies has greatly expanded that palette (with blogs, video, etc).
The new NYPL web site we’ll be launching this summer will be built around the sharing of content across the system, and will allow for the kind of integration of content that you’re suggesting (events relating to people relating to blogs relating to…). And I’d like to hope that the “fundamental change in the mission” you’re suggesting is already underway. Blogging, in particular, is gaining wider acceptance by staff at all levels, both internally and externally, decentralizing and democratizing the voice of the Library.
That said, even if NYPL-produced content is woven nicely throughout our site, we still feel that there is a need to highlight it in its own location. The questions we’re asking on the usability site are specifically targeted at testing the language on individual links, and shouldn’t be construed as an endorsement of any strategy whatsoever. In fact, the opposite is true… we use the usability test as a “scratch pad” to quickly test ideas that often turn out to be impractical failures. But even the failures–especially the failures, actually–help us gain insight into the best experiences for our visitors.
We sincerely appreciate the close attention, though. Thanks for keeping us honest!
Are you planning to stick with XHTML 1.0 Strict even though W3C is shifting away from xhtml to html 5?
[...] The Most Exciting Thing About Web Standards Is … umm … | NYPL Labs labs.nypl.org/2009/04/07/the-most-exciting-thing-about-web-standards-is-umm – view page – cached NYPL Labs provides a window into the overall digital experience of The New York Public Library. Take a look as we generalize our best practices into processes and tools and start experimenting with new applications and — From the page [...]