While discussing about Web Standards, most web developer’s cliche is “Who Cares Standards?”, “Too Difficult to understand, let’s forget” and “It worked anyway”.

Always be listed on side to follow web standards. It’s easy to build a website with good looking graphics and best functionality but why they just don’t add up a little effort to make a site follow standards. We must remember that, we are targeting visitors of site, and pages should be accessible irrespective of OS, Browser used by visitor. Using web standards offer much benefit to us.

• Separation of HTML semantics (structure) from design confirms better accessibility.
• Pages sizes are less and results in quick downloads. Browsers render pages faster when pages confirm standards.
• Following standard ensures that documents will be compatible in future browsers. There is no risk of browser not understanding your documents. Interpretation and rendering is easy for browser.
• Different CSS files can be created and adopted accordingly. Adaptation of document to print media, mobile devices is easy just by creating alternative style sheets and linking to particular CSS file.

The bottom line is: use web standards. It’s the future of web. If you are new and haven’t yet followed then start from this point upwards. And, after all this; its you to choose and follow and how you perceives.

Quite a few people in Nepal are following a web standards to build web application. Whether be it small or large web application, no one cares about the web standards. The web standard has been there for a long time and its been continuously upgrading and updating. But, here people, company, designers, (whoever) are still developing web with HTML 4.

Why are we being like an ostrich? Is it because, we just wanted to earn money and forget all the things behind? Or Is it because clients here are unaware of the web standards? Or no one knows about the benefits that we could achieve with building web with web standards? Or there are other factors or reasons?
Even most popular and mostly viewed site do not follow web standards. For example
1. eKantipur, claims oneself as number one news site uses frame and heavy graphics.
2. Cyber Sansar, a popular entertainment site has heavy graphics and is built with HTML 4.0 transistional.

There are numerous other popular sites that does not even passes the W3C validation. A lot of work is yet to be done. These site has to come with as an example for others. Other follows these popular sites.
So, lets not use deprecated features. Lets upgrade and update ourselves. Lets build web applications that meet web standards.
What is Web Standards?

The W3C along with other groups and standards bodies, established a framework for creating and interpreting web-based content. These framework are web standards. These are carefully designed to deliver the greatest benefits to the greatest number of web users while ensuring the long-term viability of any document published on the Web. Designing and building with these standards simplifies and makes site accessible to more people and more types of Internet devices.

We should follow the basic guidelines of W3C. Its not compulsory that you should build sites with XHTML Strict and CSS 2.0. But make sure to follow primary rules to build pages.
Most of us Ignores

1. Declaration of doctype at the beginning of page
2. capitalizing of HTML tags
3. missing of proper alt and longdesc attribute in image tag.
4. Improper nesting of HTML tags

and other follows………. (if you know please state others mistakes we commit as well)