Web Standards

Benefits

• Forward compatibility: Increased interoperability in existing and future browsers and devices (including wireless devices).
• No versioning.
  • No more IE-only versions
  • In many cases, no more WAP or WML versions
  • In many cases, no more printer-friendly versions
  • No more browser and platform sniffing, and no more straining of the server to fetch various browser or device-optimized components
  • Support multiple browsers without the hassle and expense of creating separate versions, and often with little or no code forking.
  • Support nontraditional devices, from wireless gadgets and web-enabled cell phones to Braille readers and screen readers used by those with disabilities—again without the hassle and expense of creating separate versions.
• Fewer (if any) accessibility problems.
  • The content of sites so designed will begenerally accessible to all.
  • Comply with accessibility laws and guidelines without sacrificing beauty, performance, or sophistication.
• Restores elegance, simplicity, and logic to markup.
• Restores document structure to documents.
• Faster, easier, less expensive production and maintenance.
  • Because sites cost less to produce and maintain, low budgets can avoid strain, while higher budgets (if available) can be put into writing, design, programming, art, photography, editing, and usability testing.
  • As a result we'll reach more users with less work.
• Easier to incorporate into dynamic publishing and template-driven, content-management systems like TeamSite.
• CSS layout makes possible some designs that cannot be achieved with HTML tables.
  • Attain more precise control over layout, placement, and typography in graphical desktop browsers while allowing users to modify the presentation to suit their needs.
• Stronger transition toward more advanced forms of XML-based markup.
  • When authored correctly (containing no errors, no illegal tags, and no attributes), XHTML markup is completely portable. Your documents will be able to appear in places you never dreamed would exist
• Less markup, lower bandwidth.