Lynchburg College Web Page Design Guidelines
Web page editors should contact College Communications and Marketing (at ccm@lynchburg.edu) if they have questions or need assistance in developing web pages.
The LC Template
To present a consistent image and interface throughout Lynchburg College’s web site, the College has adopted a standard design style for all official College pages. This style is maintained by the use of templates.
Template changes can be made only by CCM staff and will be reflected sitewide. If it is not possible for a page to use the template, it will be designed by CCM staff to maintain consistency with the rest of the site.
The guidelines listed below refer to the primary body area which is editable by non-Web staff using the College's content management system (CMS).
Design guidelines for the Lynchburg College web site are subject to change based on the needs of the site.
Accessibility
The Lynchburg College web site is moving as quickly as possible into compliance with federal accessibility standards as provided in Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. New content on the site should comply with these standards. A guide from the Federal Access Board is available at http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/guide/1194.22.htm, and a checklist from the W3C is available at http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/full-checklist.html.
The issue most commonly seen is images lacking alternative text ("ALT text"). Make sure that any image on a page has meaningful alternative text.
Hyperlinks
Hyperlinks, when clicked, ordinarily take the site visitor to another web page (or perhaps a specific location within a web page). If a link will do anything else when the visitor clicks on it, it must be noted in the link text. Clicking on links to Microsoft Word or PDF documents, for example, will cause an external program or browser plug-in to open, potentially causing problems for the site visitor. Thus, the link text to a Microsoft Word document, for example, must specify "Document_Name (Word doc)" and a link to a PDF file should read "Document_Name (PDF file)".
The text of an email (or "mailto") link should be the email address ONLY, unless noted in the link. For example, an email link for the Lynchburg College webmaster should have the text "webmaster@lynchburg.edu", but "Contact the webmaster (Email link)" would also be permitted.
No colors or font style should be specified for hyperlinked text.
New Browser Windows
It is possible to specify whether a hyperlink will open in the same browser window or will open a new window. Links to pages should always stay in the same browser window. This is the default; so you do not need to make any special effort for this.
Links to documents, however, such as MS Word or PDF files, should always open in a new browser window. This is because people are used to closing an application when they are finished with it, and will probably close the linked document as they usually do. If the document is open in the same browser window as the preceding page, they will then have lost the site.
Within the CMS, specify a new window by selecting "_blank" in the target field of the hyperlink context menu.
Font Specification
Font face and size are specified in the LC template and style sheet. Therefore, no font style should be specified within the page content.
Tags that are approved for use include headers ("h2"-"h6"), "strong" (bold) and "em" (italic) tags.
If further formatting options are required, contact ccm@lynchburg.edu.
Do not underline text. Underlined text, to Internet users, connotes a link (and also makes the text hard to read). Use italics or bolding for emphasis instead.
Do not use all caps. Use a larger heading instead. All caps is difficult to read and is interpreted as "shouting."
Colors
If colors are used in an element of the page, be sure that the information conveyed by color can also be discerned without color (this is one of the federal accessibility requirements). Do not use blue, red, or purple text, since these are standard link colors.
Never specify color for hyperlinked text.
Images
For most web pages, graphics should be no more than 25K in size (a maximum recommended limit is 60K total). Large images, or a large number of images on a page, can signficantly slow page load time, especially for visitors using a dial-up connection.
Graphics files should either be in JPG, GIF or PNG format. The JPG format allows more efficient compression and is best used for photographs. GIF or PNG format should be used for any created image such as diagrams or a graphic that contains text.
Image resolution should be 72 dpi. Approved College graphics such as photos and logos, including the Hornet, will be provided upon request.
Official LC pages should not contain animated images.
The LC webmaster reserves the right to alter images to optimize file size, correct color, correct light levels or crop aesthetically.
Body Text
Web page text must adhere to the standards for official College publications. Contact the Office of College Communications and Marketing for more information. Brevity and simplicity of language should be the rule of thumb for text. Break up large paragraphs and use bulleted lists whenever possible. Remember that website visitors skim text rather than reading.
Paragraphs
Paragraphs should be block style, left-justified. Indentation and justification are print conventions and should not be used on the Web site.
Keep paragraphs short and easily scannable.
Avoid using spaces to place text. Spaces render differently on every different browser, so that what lines up on your computer may look very different on someone else's.
"Upcoming" or Placeholder Content
Placeholder text, such as "Coming Soon" or lists of links which do not yet go anywhere, will not be published. Such content is unhelpful to site visitors and looks unprofessional.
Sound
No embedded sound is permitted on any official LC page. Links to sound files, however, are permitted.
This document is subject to change without notice. Document last modified 29 September 2011.
