I keep up with technologies and the ever changing web rules and design standards. I use the latest technologies and languages. I use Ruby on Rails and I build websites that are usable, accessible and scalable.

First I build everything I do from the ground up. I start from scratch. I don’t use templates (I actually hate them), I don’t use software applications like joomla or drupal. Sure they can save you money, but they produce invalid code most of the time, the applications are large, and you don’t really have full control over your website with them unless you really understand the application and how it works, which most people don’t.

People don’t know the web, they don’t know what goes on behind that fancy looking window on your computer screen. They don’t know there are rules, standards to follow and accessibility issues for disabled people. Actually most people don’t know much even if they think they do.

Websites are built from html code. The W3C aka World Wide Web Consortium is an organization that develops rules and standards that web developers should follow in order to make the web a better place for EVERYONE. A lot of web sites I’ve seen fail miserably according to the W3C, and almost all of them fail when it comes to accessibility according to USAB.

Lots of these sites look good but that’s half the battle. Html code is invalid if it contains errors and that can hurt search engine optimization as well as how your site is displayed across different browsers. It can also have a big affect on disabled people. Having a site that looks the same in every browser, ie: Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer 6 and 7, Safari and others is one of the most important parts of building a site. Why? If you have a designer build your site while using Firefox, chances are it’ll look great! But, when someone views it in Internet Explorer 6 it might look totally awful!

Did you know? That all U.S. related government sites are required by law to pass section 508? Almost every site I’ve visited fails even the first priority checklist. That means most people with disabilities can’t view your website properly. Disabilities can include ADD, blindness, partial blindness, color blindness and anyone that requires a screen reader.

Don’t believe me? Acting Nieve? Think your website is the bomb? Here are a few things you can do to find out how well your site or any site ranks up against today’s web standards and accessibility.

Check for valid html: http://validator.w3.org/ and enter the URL of the website in the input.

Check for valid css: http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/ and enter the URL of the website in the input.

Check for accessibility: http://www.cynthiasays.com/ and enter the URL of the website in the input and select which priority to check against; all sites in my opinion should pass priority 3 or even section 508.