7540.02 - WEB PAGE SPECIFICATIONS

Baugo Community School Corporation

Administrative Guidelines

7540.02 - WEB PAGE SPECIFICATIONS

These guidelines and AG 5723 and AG 7540 and Forms 7540 F1, Form 7540 F2, and Form 7540 F4 will apply to all web pages on Corporation servers, whether created by schools, departments, Corporation staff, students, or other persons.

First Page of the Site

The first page of the web site should contain:

	A.	the index or table of contents for the site;
	B.	a school name, address, and phone number;
	C.	the webmaster and e-mail address of the person responsible for the site;
	D.	a date when the page was last updated or modified;
	E.	index.html;
	F.	a link to the Corporation web site.

Organization of Site Structure

	A.	The overall plan or file structure should provide quick access to information and help the user understand how the information is organized. It is recommended that a storyboard be used to plan the web site.
	B.	Each page should be designed with the audience and goal in mind.
	C.	A basic page format should be used, e.g. use the same background, locate navigation tools in the same place on the page, have consistent link appearance, and have consistent font size and type. Be consistent on all pages.
	D.	The title bar should include the school name in the <title> tag of each HTML document.
	E.	Limit page length, keep the HTML documents as small as possible.

F. The web site may include areas such as staff information, student projects, calendar, parent information, school information and mission statement, technology plan, and geographical information.

There should be a "mail to" link that provides a means of feedback on all main pages.

Keep Your Web Site Current

	A.	Pages should be checked regularly to ensure that links are working and meet Corporation standards. Check to make sure all internal an external links work properly.
	B.	Remove expired date-related items.
	C.	Maintain and update files by removing unneeded or outdated files.

Grammar and Spelling

A. All pages should be grammatically correct.

All words should be spelled correctly - web pages should be spell checked.

Navigation Tools

All pages should include a "back to" main menu in order to provide a link back to the web site index.

Backgrounds

	A.	Keep backgrounds simple. Light colors are better. Select backgrounds that make text easy to read.
	B.	Keep background tiles small.
	C.	Backgrounds should be in GIF format.
	D.	Reuse background images, pages will reload quicker and the user will be able to view your pages with ease.

E. Do not use a background to convey information.

Do not "name" your colors. For example, Netscape allows you to use the following tag; <body bgcolor - "green"> and your background will be green. This is a tag specific to Netscape and not necessarily supported by other browsers. Use the hexadecimal number for colored backgrounds. If using a tiled image, make the background color appropriately the color of the tiled image.

Copyrights

	A.	All web-site authors must follow all applicable and existing copyright laws pertaining to the use of text, images, and sounds. (see AG 2531)
	B.	Schools and students should copyright information on their web site.

Naming Structure

A. Use all lower-case letters for names of documents and graphics.

Do NOT use any spaces or other symbols in naming HTML documents or graphics.

Graphics

A. Smaller is better, images should be less than 50k.

	B.	Pictures need to be in GIF or JPEG format.
	C.	Always use width and height tags.
	D.	Use the "alt" tag to describe your picture for text-only browsers.
	E.	Use GIF format for drawings and line art.
	F.	Use JPEG Format for photographic color images.
	G.	Reuse graphics when appropriate. When graphics are reused, they remain in the computer and will load more quickly onto a web page.

HTML Standards

It is reasonable to expect that users will see your page using a variety of browsers including Netscape and Windows Explorer. It is recommended that you:

	A.	Check your web pages on a variety of browsers, including text-only browsers.
	B.	Check your web site on multiple platforms.
	C.	Use standard HTML tags. Do not use tags which are specific to one browser.
	D.	Use HTML syntax checkers to search your site for programming mistakes.

Use of Student Names, Pictures, Original Work, and E-mail Addresses

The Corporation will allow the use of photographs of students, names of students, and displaying original work of students on web sites in accordance with the following guidelines:

	-	Identifiable Photographs of students and/or student's first names may be placed on the Internet only after the appropriate release form has been signed by the parents or guardians.

	-	Last names of students and students' e-mail addresses should never be used.

	-	Original work by students such as art work, poetry, essays, performances, etc. may be placed on the web site only after the appropriate release form has been signed by the parents or guardians.