ITMUSTBE W3C Standards

We are actively engaged in supporting W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) activities and recommendations. The W3C develops interoperable technologies (specifications, guidelines, software, and tools) with the goal of leading the Web to its full potential. W3C compliance ensures the long-term viability and accessibility of our websites and web applications, while reducing the costs associated with development and maintenance. Our fluency in the current best practices enables us to develop and maintain all our source code by hand, rather than relying on software to generate source code automatically. This approach results in streamlined, standards-compliant code using the newest technologies available. We verify compliance by using tools provided by the W3C, and upgrade elements as needed following announcements of new W3C recommendations.

One of the most significant benefits to implementing recent W3C standards is the separation of content (e.g. page copy) from presentation (e.g. layout and design). By making it possible for the entire look-and-feel of a site to be captured in one or two accessory files (rather than repeated on each page across a site), both development and maintenance time are much reduced. This separation also allows pages to be associated with alternate presentation styles (instead of creating and maintaining separate versions of the same page for different purposes, such as viewing on mobile phones). Modern standards compliant sites are suitable for display on a wide variety of devices (not just the traditional PC), and to a great range of people (including those with special accessibility needs). In order to reach this widest possible audience, browser and device manufacturers are also implementing W3C recommendations in their new products and services. For this reason, standards compliance also helps assure forward compatibility, which further reduces long-term costs. As the W3C evolves its recommendations towards increasing modularity, we can expect even greater benefits in the area of web deployment.