W3C compliant code - server web stats

[bmiller011]

Good morning WPW,

I ran into an odd problem. Well I don't know that it is odd, just something I never concidered before.

I am currently recoding my websites so they will have valid html coding. I just started doing this so if you look at my website you will see the old code. Anyway, using css and getting way from the "table" design and hand coding I got rid of alot of junk code and made the pages I redesigned valid html. The only problem is when I upload the new pages to the server, the server inserts site tracking javascript after the </html> tag which then makes the page fail the validation test as there is not to be any code after </html> tag.

I called my hosting provider to see if they could remove the code or atleast place it in the appropriate place. Of course they said there is no way to do either.

So my question (which I am sure I already know the answer) is, is there any way around this or am I going to have to switch hosting providers so I can have truly valid html code?

My second question is this: I understand the idea behind valid html code. I also understand that the search engines say they will give better rankings if your code is valid, but through my searching there are very few sites that have truly valid html coding. Of all the "big" sites that I checked microsoft.com is the only one I found that had no errors. All the search engines coding had errors. So I am wondering how relevant valid html code really is seeing as there are only a few out there that I found with html code that didn't fail.

[skydream]

I am not sure how relevant it is to have valid html codings. But the idea of having a valid html coding was to ensure that your website can be viewed on all browsers. however, sad to say 99% of the websites on the net dun meet that standard yet.. but i believe more and more designers will be paying attention to web standards.

as for now, most browsers are designed to be backward compatible, so that even codes that dun pass the validation test can still be viewed. But generally having a valid html code ensure your entire site is viewable on every browsers, so visitors will view it in the way u intend them to do so.. visitor friendly = spider friendly?

valid html may be just one of the factors they take into considerations when it comes to page ranking, to search engines, nothing is more important than unique and relevant content. No point placing a scam site with valid html coding on the no 1 place and get blasted for doing that.

[bmiller011]

I know and understand all that. The conclusion I am beginning to come to is for the time and effort one puts into making sure they have valid html, and hand coding a site to insure the code is as clean as possible, there is really no reason not to use a WYSIWYG program and save all the time involved. The benifits just don't seem to outway the means. Hopefully someone can prove me wrong because if there was a true "reward" (other than the fact that you are proving you can do it) for having clean and valid code I would make sure all my sites had just that. But if not then why bother?

I am sure that if I were to give my clients two options, one option being a website written with a WYSIWYG program for x amount of dollars, or a site hand coded with valid html (which does take longer) for x amount (that would obviously be more than the latter)I am sure they would choose the WYSIWYG site. I don't know maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'll have to try it and see what happens. Or maybe someone already is giving this option and could enlighten me.

[weegillis]

Create with whatever tools are at hand, then finetune by hand. The way to a valid site is a short one, especially in xhtml strict, and easily achievable, even with WYSIWYG. The road to an accessible site, however, is paved with potholes and switchbacks. It requires that every element on every page receive careful and meaningful scrutiny every step of the way. The good news is that often the best solutions are also the easiest, and once learned and refined, the methods stay with you in all your future work.

That a great many of us still have so much to learn, is no surprise. What is a surprise is that so many have already shown us what they have learned and yet so few are catching on.

Bottom line... do what it takes and thank yourself for it when you've finally got somewhere. We all know your visitors will.

Bear in mind that accessibility is about giving all your visitors an all-access pass to all the content of any meaning on your web site... all of it, or don't put it up. To the mix of considerations you must always add something that makes everyone feel the same welcome without making a big deal about it.

An accessible site is quietly accessible. It utilizes semantic markup that makes sense to search engines and unskilled 'client webmasters' alike. It puts content of importance near the top of the document, and generic sitewide content below that, then uses CSS to position it.

An accessible site makes meaningful related information quickly and easily available by using 'scent trails' to guide the visitor around the site rather than depending purely on a templated menu to do the job. Information on any one page is thoughtfully kept to one topic, which topic is clearly reflected in the h1 tag at the opening of the content. We go one step further by making our information accessible to SERPSurfers simply by mirroring our h1 in the title element. A meaningful title will always get your page visited.

The plain truth is that all accessibility begins with being able to get at information. From there it's just a matter of following proven typograhical principles and make your site into an easily followed and searched outline of the various topics it beholds.

If you are always asking, "How will our visitors find this?" then you will always be finding newer and better ways to organize and relate the information on your site, and as a result you will be creating a more accessible web site in the long, and short run. After that, most of the standards will make perfect sense and you'll be on your way to Level Triple-A!

With reference to your ISP's scripts being tagged onto your pages, there is only one solution--either upgrade to premium service level or switch to a new host. The kind of scripts you mention are usually only associated with free hosting plans.

[Webnauts]

My second question is this: I understand the idea behind valid html code. I also understand that the search engines say they will give better rankings if your code is valid, but through my searching there are very few sites that have truly valid html coding. Of all the "big" sites that I checked microsoft.com is the only one I found that had no errors. All the search engines coding had errors. So I am wondering how relevant valid html code really is seeing as there are only a few out there that I found with html code that didn't fail.

You might would like to follow up a discussion we have here: http://www.webproworld.com/viewtopic.php?p=258924