Content Technical Quality

[surreypcsupport]

In the Google Webmaster guidelines for optimisation it states that the web designer/builder must ensure their html is of high technical quality. We can only guess what this means.

After reading this I decided to run my pages through the W3C parse checker and sure enough, loads of errors.

I decided to correct these but at the same time I decided to convert my pages from html 4.01 transistional to xhtml 1.0 transistional. My new pages have not been cached by Google yet so I guess I will see the affect of these changes in the next 2 or 3 months. Will let you know if it has any significant affect on my SERPs.

So, are you guys using html still or have you moved to xhtml yet? Also, what else do you guys think Google is referring to when they mention "technical quality"?

[temi]

This is only a guess but I think some or the things you can call high technical quality HTML include codes that are not unnecessarily bloated, for example, you use Microsoft Word to create a site, use Dreamweaver to create a site and you code one by hand.

You will find out that the one coded by hand is the best (I am assuming you are a good coder), followed by DW and the one created using MS world will be complete crap full of loads of silly stuff. I think that is what they mean by high technical quality. All 3 sites has been created with HTML but if you award them marks, handcoded will probably score 8/10, DW about 6/10 and MS word about 2/10.

[surreypcsupport]

I agree. I always code by hand but using the dreamweaver design mode in some cases just to generate code quicker than typing it. But I find if I remove stuff after it'll leave close tags behind and stuff like that which is what led to all the errors my code had in it.

Also, when you change to xhtml you cannot get away with shortened close tags and the use of <br>. Need to use <br/> instead.

Also, W3C generates errors if you have empty table or paragraph elements.

For sure my code is more compact since I made the changes.

I also checked all my CSS too.