Questions and Answers
Every year we get a lot of questions. the same questions over and over again. Here they are:
Are you really going to validate HTML5 and CSS3?
Yes we are. Last year we validated about 5% of the sites by hand, these where CSS3 and HTML5. Yes we are insane. We are using some automation tools this year.
Things are a lot tougher this year in the first round of the judging process. Why!?
The truth is last year a good number of the judges conducted site performance and responsive design compliance anyway. We are just formalising the process this year. Now you will know you are being tested. However if you are up with it all on the best practice front, it doesn’t matter, as your entry will shine anyway.
Can you tell us which validation, accessibility review tools you are using this year?
Partly. The point is that you follow and know industry best practice and the W3C standards.
You should not be using a validator as the final confirmation of whether your code is right or wrong. That final confirmation shoudl really be coming from your own skils. Hence the type of validator you are using will not matter. If you are correcting errors without understanding the standards you have implemented, now that's an issue. This is not about beating tools that we are using, it's about understanding the industry best practices.
Here is a list of some of the tools we use:.
- Total Validator (pro tool)
- FireFox extension - HTML Validator
- W3C CSS Validator (note css3 is a little flakey)
- W3C HTML Validator (note html5 is a little flakey)
- FireFox Toolbar - WAVE - web accessibility evaluation tool
- FireFox extension - Worldspaces FireEyes
Please note you shoudn't take the output of these tools as verbatim, we check every error, every warning, to ensure it is a real issue. Yes we understand HTML, CSS and WCAG1 and 2 that well. We have to it's our job.
We want to use vendor specific rules in CSS, are these counted as invalid (eg -moz-border-radius)?
If you are using CSS3, then no, as the specification is in a state of flux, we are allowing these in. Afterall we are being realistic here.
We know that certain tags and attributes of HTML have been added or removed from the draft specification since we built site X. Will this count against us?
No, just remind us if the tag you are using has been removed in your entry.
The validator we are using comes up with “Same colors for color and background-color in two contexts” as a warning. Is this going to be a problem?
In some cases we look at the validity of the warning and consider it inappropriate. Yes we understand HTML and CSS that well. We dream in the stuff. In this case if we can still read the text with the background images suppressed then we would consider the warnings as invalid.
Can you list the hacks you are not allowing or count as invalid?
Tough call. That’s going to be a long list. Some of the hacks for Microsoft IE specific and really don’t go against the nature of web standards. So in a way they are a benefit to the concept of best practice.
Can you tell me when the first round of judging begins?
No, judging is done in stages over a number of weeks immediately from the closing date. If you considering attempting to try and finalise your site after the closing date, you maybe lucky, you may not.
We want to submit a site, but it has subdomains that you transition seamlessly into from the main site. Does this count as one site?
If the site is presented as one distinct design and user experience with no distinct presentation variation then it is considered one entry. If you wish to only have unto a certain point or domain judged, then please detail this in your entry.
We know that we can only put a site /app into one category, so we need to ensure that category is right. Can we contact someone if we are unsure?
Yes, just drop us a line our contact information is readily available.
I didn’t start or re-launch my blog this year?
We understand that not everyone has the resources to re-skin their personal site or blog every 12 months, so we are happy to turn a blind eye to this restriction for entries into the personal site category; as long as you have been actively posting over the past twelve months.
We will only consider content from the past twelve months in the judging. Don’t forget that we consider a blog a personal web journal – so NO commercial content.
Can I get an extra login for our client / web designer to access our entry?
Sadly no. The accounts are based on the site owner or development firm making the submission. If you want to share the account details with your client and you a web development firm, we suggest you make a separate account for that entry.
We restructured and rebranded our business and concentrated on a specific new product last financial year. Our web site which is three years old, only had a few changes to reflect this, such as changing the logo, and some of the content to reflect the new product. Surely it would counts as a redesign.
Err, no. If the rebranding had been a signficate change in the site technically and visually then this would be a redesign. Changing the direction of the business with minimial marketing and brand change on the web site is not a redesign.
