Isidore, Patron Saint of Computers and the Internet -- About Isidore, this site includes a prayer to precede each Internet session you open.

Accessibility , ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) and the Web

ADA Compliance. This is the "Bobby.com" web page which will test your web page to determine its level of accessibility under the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

Knowbility - A movement aimed at increasing information access to the disabled, including accessible web sites.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 -- Guidelines developed to help web managers serve disabled surfers.

Church Web Sites Worth Viewing

Bethel Lutheran Church, Cupertino, California	Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit, Dripping Springs, Texas
St. Columb’s Episcopal Church, Ridgeland, Mississippi, Brian Seage, ETSS 1997, is rector. Featured as church web page of the day by the ECUSA website, Dec. 13, 2005.
Church of the Resurrection, Blue Springs, Missouri.
First Baptist Church, Austin, Texas	St. David's Episcopal Church, Austin, Texas

Copyright

Evaluating Web Sites and Info on the Web

AdventPoint -- A low-priced online service, $5 per month in August, 2004, offering filters to prevent pornography accessibility on your computers. Also offers advice on how to deal with addiction to pornography, an issue reported to be significant among clergy.

Center for Digital Democracy – “Committed to preserving the openness and diversity of the Internet in the broadband era, and to realizing the full potential of digital communications through the development and encouragement of noncommercial, public interest programming.” Includes a “Broadband Bill of Rights.”

Consumer Webwatch – Sponsored by the Consumers Union, the Consumer WebWatch mission is to investigate; inform; and improve the credibility of information published on the World Wide Web. Its goals are to build trust on the Web and provide consumer protection.

Cornell University -- A description of a process for "Critically Analyzing Information Sources."

Internet Detective -- A one hour tutorial which teaches you how to evaluate the sources your use from the web.

Scambusters    Whenever you receive a chain letter or a petition (for ANY good cause), check this website before forwarding it elsewhere. Most such mailings have been around for years and just waste people’s time. Petitions, in particular, do no good whatsoever unless you send mail direct to people who can change the condition about which they complain. (It’s simply not possible to compile a petition of signatures on a list by use of e-mail.)

Snopes -- Another site for checking urban legends. Very intuitive interface.

Symantec -- Lists the most dangerous viruses in current circulation. Scan down on the same list and find links to lists of Hoaxes and Jokes.

Truth or Fiction – A way to check on the veracity of e-mails you receive.

Urban Legends -- One more place to check the e-mail appeals which may be phony. Be warned that this site will send you a lot of unwanted pop-ups.

VUW (New Zealand) -- "Criteria for Evaluation of Internet Resources"

VUW (New Zealand) book list . A bibliography on Evaluation of Information Sources

Xenu Link-checker - Reviews links in your web page, to see if they have changed or gone dead.

Hosts for Web Sites

Use a search engine (listed below under Search Engines) to search for "web hosts". Or inquire with your web portal (AOL, Yahoo, etc.) to find out what kind of hosting they will give you free. Or try the links below.

Churches --  An American Bible Society listing offering four pages of space for details about any congregation. You first have to make application to be the editor of the page for your church, then fill in the blanks. You can look up details about listed churches in your area.

BuyDomains.com -- This link takes you to one site which offers to register and host web sites. To find other such offers, use a search engine to search for "domain registration."

Intuitive Solutions -- A web hosting service sponsored by Fito Kahn. Reasonable prices, excellent service.

Thrivent -- The Lutheran insurance company offers free hosting for Lutheran organizations and churches.

Web hosts advertisement. One of many ostentatiously gaudy web pages dedicated to linking you to web hosts, most of which will charge something.

Internet "Acceptable Use" Policies for Children, Schools and Public Institutions

Nuts, Bolts, and Screws

Colors on the web -- Choose colors which don't vary among the various web browsers.

HTML tags. To write HTML code for a web site, you may be able to use this compact index of HTML tags.

Java Script -- Free java scripts are available on the web for pasting into your source-code page. Java scripts enable pull-down (or pop-up, stretch-out, or click-on) menus to lead into your secondary level pages. To find java script code, use a search engine like Google and search for "free java scripts". Or you might try a couple I've used, free-javascripts.com or dynamicdrive.com.

Open Source Web Templates

URL Forwarding Service -- Enter any long URL at this site (TinyURL.com) and they will provide you with a short URL which will get you there.

Search Engines

Software

Adobe Acrobat software -- Site for downloading software needed for many resources on the web. If you have a complete version of Adobe Acrobat (including Acrobat Distiller), you can use it to convert a file from Publisher or MS Word to an Acrobat PDF file. Open the file in the original software then choose "Print." From the print menu choose Acrobat Distiller and O.K. the printing. This doesn't actually print the file but creates a new PDF file from it. PDF files are easy to place in web pages, and they retain their original appearance well.

DSpace (Digital Space) -- A software system for untrammeled dissemination of public domain information. Developed at MIT, the software is now available free to anyone (including educational institutions) who may want to provide digitized documents free to the general public. Documents may include articles, books, images, digitized video, digitized audio, etc.

Macromedia -- The source of Dreamweaver software, perhaps the most popular and powerful web site creation tool. This link allows the free download of a 30-day trial version. If instead you wish to buy it and are enrolled to study Web Site Management for Ministry, you can go to www.macromedia.com, choose Products, choose the current version of Macromedia (not the full Studio version), choose Buy, choose Other Purchase Options, and choose the Student/Teacher Option. The price is much better ($99 for the last few years). They limit use of this software to educational processes and do not allow establishment of a commercial site under this software license.

Web Site Philosophy

The Cluetrain Manifesto -- “Markets are conversations. Conversations are between human beings.” This site includes a 95 Thesis Manifesto which tells companies that they can no longer communicate with their markets effectively using traditional language. The ideas have relevance to parishes which want to minister to people in the age of the internet.