Using the same HTML specifications ensures a consistent look and feel across Sun's web properties. It also provides users with a familiar, easy-to-use format for interacting with content.

• General HTML Specifications
• Hyperlink Specifications
• HTML Quality Assurance Specifications

General HTML Specifications

• Convert ALL .htm extensions to .html. All HTML files should end with the ".html" extension and have proper world read permissions. Ending your HTML files with the ".htm" extension is indicative of the Microsoft 8.3 file format, and should not appear on any of Sun's web properties. Ensure your files are world-readable so they can be viewed across different browsers.
  
  
• Keep total page file sizes (including images) below 85k.
  
  
• DO NOT use spaces or special characters like & in any file name.
  
  
• All HTML code must be created in lowercase.
  
  
• Use unique comments to mark the beginnings and endings of elements.
  
  
• DO NOT hard wrap your HTML page. You may hard wrap elements in the content space, but when the entire page is hard wrapped it can cause problems with the navigation template.
  
  
• Use META tags correctly on ALL pages. See the Meta Guidelines page for details.
  
  
• Remove META tags containing the names of any third-party developers or roots to the editor of the company that wrote the html.
  
  
• Place ALL values in quote marks.
  <a href="/solaris/">,
  <table border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="2">,
  <td bgcolor="#ccffcc">, etc.
  
  
• DO NOT use frames. They cause problems with navigation, bookmarks, and searching.
  
  
• DO NOT use full page background images.
  
  
• DO NOT use the BLINK tag.
  
  
• Use an open <p> and a closing </p> at the beginning and end of each paragraph. Do not position a lone <p> between paragraphs.
  
  
• ALWAYS build your pages with official /webdesign Components.

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Hyperlink Specifications

• DO NOT refer to any URLs on the server you are on by their absolute URL, instead use the full path to the root directory. For example, on www.sun.com, do not link to www.sun.com/software/, instead, link to /software/.
  
  NOTE: In some situations, such as https servers, it is necessary and acceptable to use absolute paths.
  
  
• Use relative links among the components of your section.
  
  
• Use absolute paths from the root for references to other portions of sun.com.
  For example: <a href="/solaris/netscape/jpis/"> and not <a href="http://www.sun.com/solaris/netscape/jpis/">
  
  
• DO NOT hard code references to http://sun.com or /www/docs in HREFs or IMG SRC. Always start from the docroot or use relative links.
  
  
• Make sure you do not have links to internal staging or developement servers.
  
  
• DO NOT create unique styles for links.
  
  

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HTML Quality Assurance Specifications

• Make sure the page does not compromise the code or display of the navigations template.
  
  
• Test pages with various browsers on Windows, Mac OS, and Solaris Platforms if you have done substantial formatting. We code for Netscape 4.X and higher, and IE 5.X and higher for all three of these platforms.
  
  
• ALWAYS check the html syntax of your pages before they go live, by using Weblint or another comparable tool.
  
  
• ALWAYS check the spelling on your pages before they go live.
  
  
• ALWAYS run a link checker on your pages before they go live.
  
  
• Test ALL "mailto" links. Ensure the recipient receives the test e-mail.
  
  
• Strip out the ^M (escaped return characters)* from the file when you've finished editing.
  
  * These are Windows editor artifacts that may cause your pages to crash in certain scenarios on sun.com.
  

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