I’m collaborating with someone who has a passion for Web Standards. I’ve often been curious about people to get really passionate about standards. What’s the big deal anyway? I’ve always just thought of them as a way of tearing down the barriers to entry that proprietary formats serve so well. But truth be told, I don’t have the passion to fight against the dot doc format. So I asked my new friend Natalie what drives her passion for standards. Here’s her reply:

I got so into standards because they make the Internet work for everybody, from folks using dial up in Africa to jetsetters on their PDAs in NYC. In my humble opinion, the Internet is the great equalizer and makes worlds available that might not otherwise be (without the ability for so many people to share vast amounts of information very quickly). Barriers to that access just seem ridiculous and are fundamentally out of alignment with my commitment to a world that works for everyone with no one left out, no rock unturned. That’s why I’m intense about standards. And because it’s fun.

I think it’s an interesting perspective for those of us working in, on or around the Internet. If you choose to design and throw standards out the window, you are putting up barriers. These are barriers to potential customers, friends, vendors both here and abroad.

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