Additionally to the points already mentioned by others, one very good reason for coding in standards is to ensure the website will last a long time.
I am sure the organisation you are talking about will not want to create a new website in a few years time. Show them some of the many websites that have been created just a few years ago and which now look shocking in new browsers (e.g. Firefox) because the sites don't adhere to standards. If the PR company doesn't stick to standards it is likely that new browsers in future years won't display the site correctly. Which means for the organisation running the website: spending more money on fixing it. Getting it right in the first time will save them money and headache in the long run. >From what you said about the PR agency it sounds as if they are trying to push you out of the way to get the job (which of course is understandable from their point of view). The best point you have against them is that they are a PR agency, not a web development agency. They might be good in marketing, but they don't have a clue about development. That already shows in the few bits of code they have provided. What about making a suggestion to the non-profit organisation: the PR firm creates the marketing and the design, but you do the development. The organisation can insist on that and if the PR company is clever they will accept that offer. Hope this helps. -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Donna Jones Sent: Tuesday, 6 December 2005 2:01 AM To: wsg@webstandardsgroup.org Subject: [WSG] talking points for standards A non-profit that i've maintained the website for for 8 years or so has recently had some special grant money and as part of a package hired a PR firm to work with that segment from the grant (including the website). They would rather I continue to maintain it but the PR firm feels otherwise. The situation now, the PR firm has put up a number of pages, its tag soup, tables, js menu (with graphics) - you know. I've done the same, based on the PR's firm design - css-p etc. The non-profit doesn't know what code is, doesn't know there are browsers other than IE and don't feel they have the time to learn. I need to be able to explain, by looking at the surface, the difference between standards coding versus "you-know-what". Just about the only thing I can come up with is the ability to increase font size in IE. I also thought of making a PDA example using Opera's PDA emulator and comparing the two codings, with screen shots, next to each other and did that but i don't think they get what they're looking at. Or else make very short sentences i.e. "what the PR firm is doing is the way someone would have commonly done it five years ago ... " Any other ideas. Also, I'm afraid, the PR firm has convinced them that I am just the "in-house volunteer" and that *I'm* liable to mess up the site ... quoting an experience they had when they turned over a site to another customer. I hope this is enough on-topic for some discussion. best regards, Donna ****************************************************** The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/ See http://webstandardsgroup.org/mail/guidelines.cfm for some hints on posting to the list & getting help ****************************************************** ****************************************************** The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/ See http://webstandardsgroup.org/mail/guidelines.cfm for some hints on posting to the list & getting help ******************************************************
