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Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition

CFSAN Web Hints (aka "webstuff")

Accessibility | Usability |
HTML and Internet Basics
HTML Elements and Features
Organizations (W3C)
Software and Additional Resources

FDA Web Site Guidelines Revised November 25, 2003
OMB Recommended Policies and Guidelines for Federal Public Websites June 9, 2004

Web Accessibility

Fulfilling America's Promise to Americans with Disabilities White House, March 15, 2001
Access Board
- Section 508 Final Rule Federal Register, December 21, 2000
- Acquisition of Electronic and Information Technology Under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act: Frequently Asked Questions April 25, 2001
- Technical Assistance to Ensure Successful Implementation
- Web-based Intranet and Internet Information and Applications (1194.22) June 21, 2001
- Section 508 Training
U.S. Department of Justice Section 508 and 508 Overview
- Workforce Investment Act of 1998 - Section 508: Electronic and Information Technology
- Reno: IT accessibility will challenge agencies Government Computer News, April 24, 2000
FDA Accessibility Guidelines and FDA Staff Manual Guide (Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility ...)
NCI's Web Accesibility Plans Responding to Section 508
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative
- Curriculum for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0
- Checkpoints: Web Content Accessibility Curriculum
- Web Accessibility Initiative Guidelines W3C Recommendation, May 5, 1999
Bobby checks web pages for accessibility
- Make sure ... colors contrast well ...
  Also see Color Blindness tester (requires IE) and Color Vision
- Do not use the same link phrase more than once when the links point to different URLs
WebAIM Web Accessibility in Mind
- Screen Reader Simulation
Access to the Internet, Web, and Windows Blindness Resource Center, NYISE
AWARE Center Accessible web authoring resources and education center (HTML Writers Guild)
Campaign for a Non-Browser Specific WWW
- Accessible Site Design
Browser Chart Webmonkey - describes which features supported by which browsers
Designing More Usable Sites Trace Center at U of Wisconsin
Designing for Accessibility and Universal Accessibility Disabilities Information Resources
(Includes links to pertinent information at W3C.)
GSA's Center for Information Technology Accommodation (CITA)
How to Make Your Web Pages ADA Compliant CSUN
Access.adobe.com

Web Site Usability (and "Mistakes")

Usability.Gov
Web Site Design and Usability Guidelines NCI Usability Office
AlertBox: Current Issues in Web Usability Dr. Jakob Nielsen
- Writing for the Web
- Web Pages Must Live Forever November 29, 1998
- Top Ten Mistakes of Web Management June 15, 1997
- Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design May 1996
- "Top Ten Mistakes" Revisited Three Years Later May 2, 1999
- Top Ten New Mistakes of Web Design May 30, 1999
- Top Ten Web-Design Mistakes of 2002
- Saying No: How to handle Missing Features January 23, 2000
- Flash: 99% Bad October 29, 2000
More "Mistakes"
- Multimedia Mania Leaves Me Cold (e.g. Flash) Washington Post, January 25, 2001
- Good, Bad, and the Ugly Web Sites PC Week
- Trapped in a Web of Bad Design Information Today, April 2000

Web Site Privacy

Make Your Web Site P3P Compliant W3C (includes links to policy editors)
Platform for Privacy Preferences (P3P) Project W3C
Platform for Privacy Preferences (P3P) Lorrie Cranor

The Basics

HTML Basics
- Beginner's Guide to HTML
- Composing Good HTML
- HTML Cheatsheet Webmonkey (includes links, graphical elements, tables, forms, e.g.)
- Ten Commandments of HTML
- Tips, Tricks, How-To, and Beyond (HTML, Page Design and Layout, Web Graphic, Web Programming)
- WWW - User Guidelines and Netiquette
Document Structure, Semantics
- Semantic Web Activity W3C
- The Structure of Accessible Pages Excerpt from Building Accessible Websites ISBN 0-7353-1150-X
- What is semantic structure? (PopTel Technology)
- Tips for Authoring Fast-lading HTML Pages Netscape Devedge
- Web Design that's Modern, Efficient, & Accessible Colorado State U
Internet Basics
- Glossary of Internet Terms
- History of the Internet
- Introduction to the Internet including definitions and browser use information
- The Net: User Guidelines and Netiquette

HTML Elements and Features

Browser Support | CGI/Forms | Colors | Cookies | !DOCTYPE | Fonts & Characters | Frames | Images
JavaScript | Meta Tags | SMIL | Style Sheets | Tables | Web Robots

Browser Support
- Avantgo and HTML Styles for Handheld Devices
- Browser Chart (Webmonkey) - describes which features supported by which browser
- Campaign for a Non-Browser Specific WWW
- The Web Standards Project: Fighting for Standards in Our Browsers
  - Browser Upgrades
  - The Web Standards Project - Archive
- MSN TV Developer Support (previously WebTV)
  - MSN TV Viewer
- AOL Guide for Webmasters
- Lynx Viewer and Lynx-Me

CGI/Forms:
- An instantaneous introduction to CGI scripts and HTML forms
- CGI 101 Programming
- CGI Tips, Tricks, How-To, and Beyond

Colors:
- Browser-safe colors (CFSAN)
- Browser-safe Color Palette by Lynda Weinman
- Color Schemer Online
- Color Scheme Generator Webdesigners Tools
- 4096 Color Wheel
- EasyRGB and Color Harmonies
- Color Blindness Tester (requires IE)
- Color Vision and Color Blindness Calculations
- Effective Color Contrast Lighthouse International
- Make sure ... colors contrast well ... Bobby
- WebSafe Color Palette Webmonkey, September 2000
Cookies
- Cookies Persistent Client State HTTP Cookies (Netscape)
  (Not permitted on government sites.)
- Cookies - Dos and Don'ts (CNET)
- Cookies: Just a Little Data Snack
!DOCTYPE
- !DOCTYPE Statement W3C
- List of Published Grammars W3C
Fonts and HTML Characters
- Browser-safe fonts (CFSAN)
- Specify Browser-safe fonts (CNET)
- HTML entities reference W3 Schools
- Special Characters Webmonkey
Frames
- Frames (Netscape)
- Why Frames Suck (Most of the Time) Alertbox
Images: Optimize them!
- OPTIVIEW GIF Wizard for GIF and/or JPG
- GIF OPTIMIZER
- GifBot GIF vs. JPG images
JavaScript
- JavaGoodies.com
- JavaScript Code Library Webmonkey
- JavaScript for Beginners (CNET)
- JavaScript for the Total Non-Programmer (Webteacher.com)
- JavaScript Reference Netscape's JavaScript 1.2 online book
- JavaScript.com and JavaScript Source
  - JavaScript Accessibility
- JavaScript World
- Thau's JavaScript Tutorial Webmonkey July 2001
Meta tags
SMIL
- Synchronized Multimedia (includes specifications, authoring tools, history) W3C
- SMIL 2.0 Codeless Animation in HTML Webmonkey
Style Sheets
- Adding a Touch of Style W3C - an introduction to style sheets
- CSS FAQ HTML Writers Guild
- Style Sheet Properties (includes some browser comments) WebMonkey
- CSS Style Properties (includes some browser comments) Project Cool Developer Zone
- CSS Superscript Spacing Web Matters
- CSS Reference Table CNET Builder.Com
- CSS Tips and How Tos CNET Builder.Com
- CSS Tips & Tricks W3C
- CSS Validator W3C
- Quick Reference to Cascading Style Sheets, level 1
- Online Resources W3C
Tables
- Tables for Non-table Browsers (UK) 1998
Web Robots
- Robot Exclusion Standard June 1996

Organizations

World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
- XHTML Events Working Draft June 8, 2001
- XHTML 1.0: The Extensible HyperText Markup Language (Second Edition) - A Reformulation of HTML 4 in XML 1.0Juanuary 26, 2000; Revised August 1, 2002
- Canonical XML Version 1.0 Proposed Recommendation, January 19, 2001
- HTML 3.2 and HTML 3.2 - "Wilbur" at a Glance
- HTML 4.01 December 24, 1999
  - Changes between April 24, 1998 4.0 and December 24, 1999 4.01 versions
- Information about the HTML 4.0 Recommendation by W3C December 18, 1997
- HTML Validator and CSS Validator
- Web Accessibility Initiative
  - Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 May 5, 1999
- XML - Extensible Markup Language
  - XML 1.1 February 4, 2004
  - Namespaces in XML 1.1 February 4, 2004
  - XML 1.0 (Third Edition) February 4, 2004
  - XML Information Set (Second Edition) February 4, 2004
- Document Object Model (DOM) Level 3 Validation Specification, Version 1.0 January 27, 2004
- Mathematical Markup Language 1.01 July 7, 1999
- Platform for Privacy Preferences (P3P) Project and P3P Validator
- Resource Description Framework (RDF) and RDF Validator
  - Semantic Web
- Synchronized Multimedia (SMIL) (includes specifications, authoring tools, history)
- W3Schools Free on-line training
HTML Writers Guild
- Online Classes
- AWARE Center Accessible web authoring resources and education center

Software and Additional Resources

Web Site Tools
- Bobby analyzes web pages for accessibility by people with disabilities
- Gif Wizard (Site scan, image compressor, link checker)
- Graphics Editors (CNET)
- Lynx-Me (check pages for text browser compatibility)
- NetMechanic (check links, page load time, html, etc)
- Script generators (CNET)
- SiteSeer (Monitor site from several outside locations)
- WebTrends (log analyzer, link checker, site monitor)
- W3C HTML Validation Service
- Microsoft Internet Explorer subscriptions
Stroud's CWSApps Internet Software Resource
CNET Download.com
SitePoint.com
- Tools and Services
WebTechniques.com - Solutions for Internet and Web Developers
CNET Builder.com
Webmonkey
- Browser Chart describes which features supported by which browsers
- HTML Cheatsheet
- Special Characters
- JavaScript Code Library
- SMIL 2.0 Codeless Animation in HTML
- Style Sheet Properties includes some browser comments
- Thau's JavaScript Tutorial Webmonkey July 2001

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Last updated by dms August 8, 2007