Templates & Tutorials
Fermilab Web Site Style Guide
General Site Information
Web Site Mission/Philosophy
The goal of the www.fnal.gov public web site is to further the science mission of Fermilab, an Office of Science-Department of Energy National Laboratory.
The site furthers the Fermilab mission by focusing on these objectives:
- Communicating the nature and value of Fermilab's scientific mission.
- Communicating the role of the Office of Science in basic science research.
- Strengthening Fermilab's relationships with the scientific community and residents of neighboring communities.
- Supporting and strengthening communication within the Fermilab community of employees and users.
- Serving as a general resource for information about particle physics.
- Communicating Fermilab's role as a natural area open to the community.
- Providing links to fresh news. The site audience must, at first glance, know that the site is being updated regularly. There are many areas within the site that change often. We need to steer the audience toward those areas with a minimal effort. The site is a library, complete with reference section and periodicals. It is important to lead with the most recent periodicals.
- Having a navigation scheme that allows all audience segments to get to the information they need in an efficient, effective way.
- Offering a fresh, contemporary look and feel.
- Operating within the technical boundaries of our core audience.
- Fermilab community (employees and users)
- The Office of Science and the Department of Energy
- The worldwide physics community
- Other government officials and staffers
- Members of the media
- Students and teachers
- Residents of neighboring communities
- Environmentalists
- The science-literate (and would-be science literate) public
Architecture
The site is organized as follows:
Navigation "hubs" serve as the basis for content navigation. Secondary level pages will serve as the main points of navigation within the site. View a graphic representation.
All information needed by any visitor must be available through one of the information hubs.
Whenever possible, information is only published once. In other words, if there is a page regarding a conference on B physics in the "events" area, and similar information is needed elsewhere in the site, link to the existing page, don't republish it.
The home page provides easy navigation to the main information hubs (and beyond) with a rollover-based system, allowing direct access to many of the subsections with one click. All viewers regardless of browser level will still be able to navigate to respective hubs and drill down from there. All subpages will contain a standard navigation bar containing links to the home page and all other main navigation hubs. Home page news is updated daily. The home page news box steers traffic in helpful and timely directions. For example, when a new feature is added to the site or a major announcement needs to be made, it can become the focal point of the home page. News items can be changed "on the fly" to address visitor feedback and needs.
Graphics and Interface
Clean interface:
The home page and subpages look appealing and professional. The design is inherently usable to all levels of visitors.
Accessibility:
Section 508 accessibility conventions are followed whenever possible.
Use of compelling, high quality images:
Fermilab is a visually compelling site, with many high-quality images available as resources. Additions should use of these resources while still respecting file size and viewing area.
Use of compelling colors and graphics:
The graphics on the site are consistent with respect to color and treatment. Color additions (beyond FNAL blue) should be made within the FNAL legacy colors whenever possible and suitable.
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