The Web Developer's Virtual Library
The Webmaster's Illustrated Encyclopedia
of web technologies and design principles
A comprehensive illustrated encyclopedia of web technology,
The WDVL is a well-organized goldmine of tutorials,
examples, and links to great resources. It's for webmasters, web
designers and Internet developers who are creating web sites with
HTML,
CGI,
Java,
JavaScript,
DHTML,
CSS,
graphics,
VRML,
multimedia,
animation,
scripting.
etc.
The WDVL is one of the oldest web developer web sites,
founded in December 1994 by Alan Richmond.
The material is unbiased,
vendor-neutral and standards-based.
The site has won several major awards.
The content is painstakingly written and cross-linked to create a unique
Webmaster's Illustrated Encyclopedia.
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- The WDVL currently has more than 2,000 pages and some 6,000 links
- The WDVL is well-organized with several navigational aids to enable users to quickly and easily find what they are looking for.
- The WDVL is for webmasters,
web designers, Internet developers, and online publishers.
The focus is on comprehensive coverage of all topics relevant
to web development,
especially the technical aspects.
We firmly believe that this focus is what makes The WDVL unique and valuable.
We are much more than a link store.
- The WDVL is a collection of articles and links to information
about developing World Wide Web sites.
The main sections are
Authoring,
Internet,
Location,
Multimedia,
Web Reference, and
Software.
It includes in-depth tutorials on the software technology available and pointers to additional resources,
such as the language standards and other web sites with expertise in the particular field.
The project started as a hotlist on a
NASA computer in late 1993,
and was moved to
Charm Net in 1994.
It became part of
The WWW Virtual Library
(originally at CERN)
in
September 1994.
The CyberWeb was announced in
What's New, October 16, 1994 (528 Kbytes).
The Stars.com
domain name was granted on December 22nd 1994.
The WDVL was founded at about the same time as the
W3C - mid 1994.
It's the oldest commercial web developer resource (supported by ads).
It was the web's first comprehensive web developer resource.
Structure and Content
The WDVL is part encyclopedia and
part e-zine (electronic magazine).
There are usually two or three feature articles per month which are
integrated right from the start with the faceted hypertree structure.
Part of the editing task is to classify new articles and ensure rich cross-linking,
to make The WDVL a valuable reference resource. We are
web librarians.
- CGI: The Common Gateway Interface for Server-side Processing
- Web Searchable Databases
- Dynamic HTML
- Web Design - More than Meets the Eye
- Graphics Tools,
Techniques,
Examples and Resources
- HTML - The Hypertext Markup Language
- Learning to Write Java
- Authoring JavaScript
- Languages for the World Wide Web
- Programming and Scripting
- Style Sheets and Guides
- VRML for Rocket Scientists,
Astronomers,
and Truck Drivers
- Electronic Commerce
- Guide to Web Developer Resources
- History of the World Wide Web
- Internet and Web Law
- Protocols
- Publications
- Security and Privacy
- The World Wide Web
- Web Maps
- The Meta-Meta Page
- Navigation
- How in the WWW will they Find me ?
- Search
- Topics Index
- The Web Librarian
- Animation
- Design
- Gallery
- Java
- Shockwave
- Sound
- Video
- Applications
- Browsers
- CGI Scripts
- Java Applets
- Perl Tools
- A List of Browser Plugins
- Servers
- Tools
- Authoring
- Internet
- Location
- Mall
- Multimedia
- Software
- Website Reference
- Associates and Staff
- Authors and Contributors
- Frequently Answered Questions
- The Web Developer's Forum
- Linking To The WDVL
- Statistics: The Top 100
- Help !
- Interesting Answered Questions
- The Webmaster's Glossary
- Java
- Navigation and Information Architecture
- Ultimate Resources
- Standards
- Website Management Tools
- The WDVL Website
Operations and Maintenance
The functional staff positions are
The Managing Editor oversees all editorial processes,
from proposal solicitation to publication.
The Editorial Associate
introduces authors to The WDVL's style,
procedures and standards (e.g. insistence on valid HTML)
and guides them through to final publication.
The Contributors include a couple of regular columnists
(e.g. Selena Sol, Ken Sall, Aaron Weiss) and the editors,
and the occasional spontaneous contributor.
The Promotions Associate
reports new features to newsgroups, mailing lists, etc.
The Webmaster
installs new articles and ensures quality control,
e.g. HTML validation, links checking, etc.
She also ensures that all navigational components are kept updated,
e.g.
search engine index,
the site map,
Top 100,
etc.
Authors or other content creators,
e.g. graphic artists, submit proposals to us,
and an appropriately knowledgeable editor reviews it for suitability
according to our guidelines, editorial calendar, audience demand, etc.
If accepted,
the author is guided through the rest of the pipeline by the
Editorial Associate.
The final published article is required to be compliant to the latest
HTML standard.
Almost all HTML pages are generated by Perl scripts from flat files.
Articles or other media are also created by WDVL staff.
In particular, we continually review the site for update possibilities.
There is no concept of 'archival' - if an article can't be updated,
it's removed or replaced.
All articles are linked to other relevant resources,
preferably onsite,
by inline and supplementary links.
WDVL pages are designed with respect for the user.
Frivolous frames and graphics,
gizmos and gadgets are avoided unless needed to illustrate a point.
Pages should be fast-loading and get to the point without hype,
fluff, or waffle.
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