Introduction
to this Web Site
The objective of this Web Site is to provide the public with
up-to-date, reliable and official information on the resources,
history, research activities, education programs and management
of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. The site will
be a flexible outreach tool that will provide materials in a
timely fashion to sanctuary users, technical audiences, and
the general public. We appreciate your comments. Please e-mail
them to: SBNMScomments@noaa.gov.
Description
of Content Sections
Home Page - this section provides a variety of changing
features including "Pictures of the Month," daily
meteorological and sea conditions, and guidance to new items
within the site. The Sanctuary's mission statement is provided.
About
the Sanctuary - provides background information about the
people, office, setting, resources, history, and uses of the
sanctuary. Electronic versions of general interest sanctuary
publications (new and archival) are available here, as is a
bibliography of publications about the sanctuary and its resources.
Sanctuary
Management - includes the full text of the present management
plan and documents pertaining to the management plan review
process. Sections cover sanctuary and related regulations and
enforcement programs.
Research
& Monitoring - provides a review of the recently completed
and ongoing research in the sanctuary, data from monitoring
projects, cruise reports from the field, and technical publications.
Education & Outreach - covers a wide range of programs,
from exhibits for the public, to special educational offerings
and publications. Online courses are in development. Programs
are designed for various audiences ranging from K-12, post-secondary,
teachers, and general public.
Wildlife
Watching - offers information on the living resources seen
in the sanctuary and tips on how to safely go about responsible
wildlife viewing. Sections include a guide to the most commonly
seen whales in the sanctuary, and guides to species and behaviors.
Image
Galleries - provides a location to access photographs of
the species, habitats, and users found in the sanctuary. Additional
sections include fine art, maps, and children's contributions.
Each year's newly named humpback whales (fluke photos) will
also be posted here.
Editorial Policies
Tales
from Middle Bank (an essay series): Entries should be less
than 1,500 words. The essays may either be first person accounts
based on personal experiences or third person accounts based
on historical research. The views expressed in the essays are
those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views
of NOAA or any of its sub-agencies. The sanctuary reserves the
right to edit the essays for length, language, and grammar.
The author(s) will be consulted before any edited copy is posted
on the web page.
Content
Areas: In areas where expertise must come from outside the
Sanctuary, the webmaster will determine the appropriate contributor.
All materials for which the Sanctuary contracts, are in the
public domain. Materials donated to the web page are available
for downloading for educational purposes, but some restrictions
may apply for other uses. Photos and written materials with
copyrights will be so noted on the web page.
Logos and Links
The
sanctuary will not use any logos other than the NMS and NOAA
logos on our home page. Links to non-NOAA sites will be made
on the Affiliates page. Links may be made on content pages to
appropriate sites for organizations that are sanctuary partners
on education, research, management, enforcement, and/or resource
conservation programs. By law, these organizations cannot be
for-profit institutions; non-governmental, educational, and
research institutions qualify. The partnership arrangement may
be formal or informal, but the recognition/web link must be
two-way in nature. All links to non-government sites will be
prefaced with a "You are leaving a government site" window.
Technical
Information
Browsers
- This site is designed to be completely compatible with Netscape
Navigator (v4.0 and above, recommended) or Microsoft Internet
Explorer (v4.0 and above, recommended); however, other browsers
can also be used.
Access
Time - Many pages on this site contain several photographs.
The purpose of these photographs is to enhance the visual appeal
of the page and provide supplemental information. Images have
been provided with captions that allow those readers who do
not load images immediately, to select specific images for viewing.
Fonts and Type Sizes - Verdana, Arial, Helvetica are
the default fonts for this site; 12 point is the default size.
All browsers allow users to select specific fonts and type sizes
for display. Some users select large type sizes for ease of
reading, or specific fonts for personal tastes. The text and
layout should not be adversely affected by a user's selection
of alternative fonts and type sizes.
Printing Pages - This site has been designed to ensure
simple printing. We recommend printing in portrait format.
Downloadable
Documents - A number of large, complex documents will be
made available on this site as downloadable files in Portable
Document Format (pdf). These files can be viewed on microcomputers
equipped with recent versions of the (free) Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Some documents may also have either thumbnail views or bookmarks
within the Acrobat document; these additional navigation features
may remain hidden without first activating an optional menu
selection. Adobe has a large collection of support resources
if you have problems installing or using the Acrobat Reader
software.
Navigation
- Navigation through the site is straightforward. There are
three levels of hierarchy, most of which are always visible
to the user. The first level is in the navigation bar at the
top of the page. The second level is in the left column, as
text links. The third level is either in the left column, or
occasionally, within the text block in the center of the page.
Site Index and Search - These two pages provide additional
access assistance. Site index is a complete listing of the higher
levels of the site. Search is a standard word/phrase search
through all text on the site's pages.
Advanced
Features - Several special features are planned. Streaming
audio will be offered as RealAudio; streaming video as QuickTime.
RealAudio can be downloaded from: http://www.real.com/products/player/index.html
QuickTime
can be downloaded from: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/index.html
For
Further Technical Information - If you would like information
about any technical aspects of this site, please send an e-mail
to the Webmaster at stellwagen@noaa.gov.
