1. There are several major differences. The first is that The Web Academy teaches user-centric Web authoring. That just means that we think about the users of our sites. From the moment someone clicks on a link, they are experiencing the results of the designer's efforts. Page loading behavior, graphic compression, customized content and navigational models all contribute to the user's willingness to interact with the site. We contend that a good Web site is like a good conversation. It is engaging, interactive and enjoyable! Going far beyond the mechanics of HTML, The Web Academy covers the human factors that affect the quality of the user experience.

2. The second difference is that the only goal of The Web Academy is to make you more confident and successful in your Web development duties. The Web Academy does not provide Web design services. In our opinion, there's a conflict in seeking to train you to successfully do Web development for your company and, at the same time, offering to do the work for your company ourselves.

The Web Academy takes the position that Web page development at the professional level requires a solid understanding and familiarity with HTML. Therefore, authoring tools, are not covered in our classes. By learning raw HTML, students will be able to evaluate various authoring packages for use in their particular work environment.

There is no recognized industry-wide certification for Web developers at this time. Beware of the Web equivalent of "diploma mills"! Even you can start your own organization (let's call it the "International Federation of Web Development Specialists".) You can then advertise (on the Web, of course) that, for a small(?) fee, you will designate someone a "Certified Webmaster". He or she will even get a fancy certificate suitable for framing (actually, that's about all it's suitable for!)

The actual accreditation of training programs for industry-wide certification is being handled by the Association of Internet Professionals. They are working on the "technical" track first (for Web server administrators) and then the 'design" and "business" tracks. The Web Academy's courses will best coincide with the "design" track. The Web Academy will be monitoring the development of this curriculum with the intent that its courses will be accredited by the AIP. An examination will be required for certification.

Students range from relative beginners to seasoned Webmasters. Even if you've picked up HTML on your own (or taken one of the typical 3-6 hour HTML classes), you will benefit from the detailed discussions of graphics, usability and the Web industry.

Also, if you learned HTML more than a year or so ago, you probably haven't worked with CSS style sheets. A knowledge of this is very important for current and future development techniques.

Web site designers have struggled for years, trying to tweak their HTML to look good in all versions of the major (and minor) browsers. An alternative that some designers are taking is to develop sites to conform the the HTML 4.0 and CSS1 standards and then they will look best on browsers that fully implement those standards. At this point in time, MSIE5.5 and Netscape 6 have the most complete support for the standards.