W3C Sites is a collection of web sites created by designers that conform with the W3C standards.

Despite the name 'W3C', W3C Sites is not an initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), but rather an inspiration that came out of it.

The site has one goal. The same goal that responsible web designers all share. That is to promote web sites that are designed to comply to the web standards.

Also, I would like to congratulate those who have already started in designing web standard compliant sites as a common practice. We all know that your efforts are not wasted.

But for those who have yet to be convinced "why design with standards", I hope that you can take some time to look through some of the web sites that others have done. And hopefully you will be able to learn how designing with web standards can be of benefit to you as the designer as well as to your readers.

Here is just a short list of the benefits of compliant web sites:

• Improve user experience = Reduce page weight = Faster page load
• Increase page accessibility = Increase area of audience
• Maintain consistency in look and feel
• Provide easy to maintain pages = Reduce maintenance cost
• Forward browser compatibility = Stop the pain of designing for old browsers

The Basic Web Standards

I won't go too much detail on this topic because there are enough articles written for this. But just to list a few of the basics that define the standards.

1. Use valid (X)HTML
   Valid (X)HTML code is the first step toward more compatibility with browsers and better rendering on the latest ones. Sites that use valid (X)HTML also mean that they are easier to maintain and evolve. The W3C HTML Validator by W3Cis a great tool in validating your pages for valid (X)HTML.
   
   
2. Use valid CSS extensively
   Avoid using presentational markup and keep all the layout features in well-defined CSS style sheets. Linked style sheets allow presentation to be decoupled completely from the page structure of your site, and lets you change quickly its layout and rendering. It also guarantees that everybody can adjust the rendering to their needs and tastes. The CSS Validator by W3C detects any non compliant use of the CSS technologies.
   
   
3. Use techniques to make your content accessible
   Making a site accessible benefits all of your users, and broadens your current audience. This standard may be required by law in some countries if not now maybe in the near future.