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Access eNonProfit: Resources Worth Noting
Resources Worth Noting
- GiveVoice.org
Nonprofit email advocacy tool based on action alerts from nonprofit organizations.
- NP Action
Nonprofit advocacy online resource from OMB Watch.
- Stockholm Challenge Award
The Stockholm Challenge is a unique awards program for pioneering IT projects world wide. It is a way of building networks between entrepreneurs who will benefit from contacts across borders, cultures and economies.
- Metblogs
A network of city focused blogs
- Nonprofit Knowledge Management
A short introduction to the principles, lessons, questions, and resources of value to people considering nonprofit knowledge management initiatives.
- Taking a Content Inventory
The basic task of re-architecture is answering the question "What goes where?" The content inventory answers the "what" part of the question, so that you can get to work arranging the "where" using other architectural techniques.
- Turning Chaos into Order: Managing Web Projects
Proposes a method that combines the best production techniques from the world of media production with those found in the software development environment.
- The Price of Ignorance
The cost of developing websites varies considerably depending upon the complexity of the site, ecommerce features, and vendor. Rates are not the only factor to pay attention to when deciding on a web developer.
- Indiantech.Org
National Congress of American Indians' website focusing on "the digital divide in Indian Country." Focus on issues of: Access, Economic Development and Workforce Training, Education, Content, and Sovereignty.
- The Digital Divide Network
The Internet's largest community for activists, policymakers and concerned citizens working to bridge the digital divide
- .us domain registry
Manages the .us domain space including government domains.
- 000Domains.com
Registration $13.50 per year for com, org, and net domains
- Delegated Subdomains
Although the .US domain space is being expanded, governments, schools, and libraries should use this list to find the contact for their local .us registrar.
- NameCheap.com
One of the cheapest domain services at $8.88 per year. Eliminates the need to initially specify the domain name servers to "park" the name. Also offers both free email and URL forwarding.
- US Domain Registration Procedures
See directions for "Registering in a Locality-based Zone"
- ARIN: Whois
Tool for identifying numeric domains found in weblogs.
- BetterWhois
The WHOIS domain search that works with all registrars.
- Whois.net
- www.whois.us
Look up US domains. Doesn't search government specific domains like ci,co,k12, lib, or state.
- American Institute of Philanthropy - charitywatch.com
A nationally prominent charity watchdog service whose purpose is to help donors make informed giving decisions.
- BBB Wise Giving Alliance
Reports on nationally soliciting charitable organizations that are the subject of donor inquiries. Offers guidance to donors on making informed giving decisions through our charity evaluations and publishes the quarterly Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Guide.
- Charity Navigator
Provides in-depth, objective analysis of the financial health of more than 1,700 of America's largest charities
- ChipIn
ChipIn widgets can be embedded on social media web sites to raise money for a nonprofit or cause.
- DonorsChoose
At this website, public school teachers in NYC can propose activities that would benefit their students, and concerned citizens can select proposals they want to fund. After funding a proposal, the citizen philanthropist receives photographs, student thank-you notes, a teacher letter, and receipts.
- eBay Giving Works
The program for charity listings on eBay -- all or part of the cost of an item will be donated to a qualified nonprofit
- Justgive.com
Donate to over 850,000 charities, donate in the name of a loved one, or create a charity gift registry.
- MissionFish
Helps nonprofits sell items on Ebay or accept a portion of Ebay sales by others
- Network for Good
Provides fundraising, volunteer recruiting, and online advocacy services and tools
- Online Fundraising Resources Center
This collection of online fundraising resources is the work of Adam Corson-Finnerty and Laura Blanchard, authors of Fundraising and Friend-Raising on the Web, now available from ALA Editions. It includes excerpts from the book, a series of essays on the changing online fund-raising scene, and teaching materials from classes and presentations.
- PayPal Website Payments Standard: Donations
PayPal Donation Buttons are ideal for nonprofit groups and other organizations that collect online donations.
- My Rules of Information
Marylaine Block shares her rules for finding and accessing information. Savvy Internet users can learn a lot from these rules. Searcher (January 2002)
- The Death of the Web Is Inevitable
Forrester Research sees the demise of the browser-based Web and the development of the X Internet. X Internet connects just about any electrical device to the Internet and runs a variety of disposable single purpose applications.
- Alliance for Nonprofit Management
A professional association of individuals and organizations devoted to improving the management and governance capacity of nonprofits - to assist nonprofits in fulfilling their mission.
- American Society of Association Executives
- Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action
The Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA) is an international, interdisciplinary membership organization. Our members include scholars and nonprofit leaders fostering the creation, application and dissemination of research on voluntary action, nonprofit organizations, philanthropy and civil society.
- Association of Fundraising Professionals
- Benton Foundation
Seeks to articulate a public interest vision for the digital age and to demonstrate the value of communications for solving social problems
- Center for Effective Philanthropy
The mission of the Center for Effective Philanthropy is to provide executives and trustees the management and governance tools needed to define, assess, and improve overall foundation performance.
- Gateway to Associations Online
Searchable directory of association websites
- Independent Sector
A coalition of leading nonprofits, foundations, and corporations strengthening not-for-profit initiative, philanthropy, and citizen action..
- National Association of State Charity Officials
- NetAction
A national nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting use of the Internet for effective grassroots citizen action campaigns, and to educating the public, policy makers, and the media about technology policy issues.
- NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network
Membership organization of nonprofit professionals who put technology to use for their causes.
- The Case Foundation
A good source of information about social citizens and the nonprofit web
- The Foundation Center
Gateway to philanthropy on the World Wide Web
- The National Council of Nonprofit Associations
A network of 37 state and regional associations of nonprofits representing more than 21,000 nonprofits throughout the country.
- The Urban Institute
A nonpartisan economic and social policy research organization
- White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives
Mission: To make sure that grassroots leaders can compete on an equal footing for federal dollars, receive greater private support, and face fewer bureaucratic barriers.
- Calling in Help
When and how to use outsourcing. Governing magazine
- Outsourcing Web Design: Yes/No?
Jakob Nielsen: "No, Web design is a core competency for the network economy, so you need to build up your own organizational knowledge in the area."
- The Devil and the RFP
A tongue-in-cheek view of RFP writing
- The Outsourcing Option
As governments turn to private partners to put their transactions online, they're finding that there's more than one way to make e-commerce happen. Governing magazine
- Adobe Acrobat Reader
View PDF format documents
- Online Conversion Tools for Adobe PDF Documents
Provides online tools to help visually disabled users whose screen reader software is not compatible with the Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0. These online tools convert PDF documents into either HTML or ASCII text, which can then be read by a number of common screen reader programs.
- PDF Online
Provides quick and free document conversion into PDF and HTML formats.
- Planet PDF
Useful resource for anyone creating PDF files
- Search Engines and PDF (Acrobat) Files
All about the problems with indexing, searching, and viewing PDF files online. Includes useful tips on how to make PDF files more accessible.
- Electronic Privacy Information Center
- How Consumers and Experts Rate Credibility on the Web
This research report found that people rely on visual clues more than was expected.
- Identity Theft
U.S. government's central website for information about identity theft -- maintained by the Federal Trade Commission.
- Identity Theft Resource Center
A nonprofit organization dedicated to developing and implementing a comprehensive program against identity theft
- Kidz Privacy
Federal Trade Commission offers this resource on the 1998 Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The FTC sets rules for website operators to make sure that kids are protected online.
- OECD Privacy Statement Generator
The best online privacy statement generator
- Privacilla.org
Privacilla is a unique Web-based project that seeks to capture "privacy" as a public policy issue. On the pages of this site, you will find privacy information and links that are designed for policy-makers, their staffs, the press, and the interested public.
- Privacy Analysis of your Internet Connection
Demonstrates the information that is collected about you when you visit a website.
- Privacy Resource Guide
Includes guide and model privacy statement
- Privacy.org
Privacy.org is a joint project of The Electronic Privacy Information Center and Privacy International. Good resources for current information and links.
- The End of "Practical Obscurity"
The conversion of public records into electronic formats may end the "practical obscurity" involved in finding and locating personal information in "open" government records.
- Truste: Model Privacy Statement
Useful template for creating a privacy statement. A little stiff and corporate.
- All My FAQs Wiki
Good example of an easy to use collaboration tool--Wiki.
- Alliance for Community Technology
A strategic partnership between the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and the University of Michigan's School of Information.
- BuzzWhack: The Buzzword Compliant Dictionary
Baffled by the latest Internet or computer jargon, check here.
- CharityVillage Main Street
Canada's supersite for the nonprofit sector --- 3,000 pages of news, jobs, information and resources for executives, staffers, donors, and volunteers.
- Craigslist
Free online classifieds for jobs, apartments, personals, for sale, services, community, and events
- DotOrg Media
A content publishing and syndication service that offers email newsletter, Web content and special reports on selected topics such as ASPs, online advocacy, fundraising and Internet presence.
- Establishing a Nonprofit Organization
In order to implement community development strategies and programs, your organization may want to form a legally recognized nonprofit corporation. A nonprofit organization is exempt from federal taxes, and the contributions it receives are tax deductible. This bulletin describes some of the steps that are needed in establishing a nonprofit organization.
- Evaluating the Quality of Information on the Internet: A Checklist
Handy tips from a Law Librarian
- Free Management Library for For-Profit and Nonprofit Organizations
Complete, highly integrated library for nonprofits and for-profits.
- GuideStar
A free database of more than 850,000 IRS-recognized nonprofit organizations.
- Idealist.org
Portal listing jobs, events, and volunteer information
- Internet Archive
The Internet Archive, working with Alexa Internet, has created the Wayback Machine. The Wayback Machine makes it possible to surf more than 10 billion pages stored in the Internet Archive's web archive.
- MIT OpenCourseWare
Free online access to selected courses (no credit offered)
- NonProfit Open Source Initiative
Learn about how other nonprofits have used Open Source
- OMB Watch - Nonprofit Issues
- Secretsites.com
A companion site to David Siegel's book titled Secrets of Successful Web Sites: Project Management on the World Wide Web.
- Smart Computing
A computing magazine written in plain English. It features computer articles, tutorials, hardware and software comparisons, along with reviews, tips, and troubleshooting advice.
- Tax Information for Charities & Other Non-Profits
IRS page for nonprofits: "You work to serve others - we work to serve you."
- The Foundation Center's Online Librarian
The Center's librarians developed this service to respond to your need for factual information on foundations, philanthropy, and other issues related to nonprofits, and to assist with your fundraising research.
- The Thanks Company
Offers volunteer recognition gifts and greeting cards. Includes some free resources.
- Tools for Nonprofits
The most useful guides for starting, running and funding a nonprofit organization; recruiting and managing volunteers; and making the best use of technology.
- A9.com
A powerful search engine, using web search and image search results enhanced by Google, Amazon, GuruNet, and other reference sources
- All the Web
- FindArticles.com
Indexes full-text articles dating back to 1998 from more than 300 magazines and journals.
- Google
- Google Press Center: Zeitgeist
On a monthly, weekly, and sometimes daily basis, the Google Zeitgeist page is updated to reflect lists, graphs, and other tidbits of information related to Google user search behavior.
- Google US Government Search
- Googlism :
Googlism.com will find out what Google.com thinks of you, your friends or anything! Search for your name here or for a good laugh check out some of the popular Googlisms below.
- Invisible-web.net
The directory includes resources that are not visible to general-purpose search engines. Not comprehensive but some useful examples.
- IRS Charities & Non-Profits Search
Search for Charities, Online Version of Publication 78. Search by name or city/state.
- iTools
Quick access to the best Internet tools
- Live Search
- MetaCrawler
- My Way
Banner-free portal powered by Google search engine
- Search Systems
Largest free public records database collection
- Yahoo! Netrospective
10 years, 100 moments of the Web
- DealCatcher
DealCatcher helps shoppers find coupons, rebates, promotions and the best prices for over 500 online merchants.
- Safeshopping.org
Information site created by the American Bar Association covers: security, privacy, payments, terms, complaints and tips for online shoppers
- Shopping.com
Free online comparison-shopping service that lets you compare products, prices and stores on the Web
- techbargains.com
Lists current deals on tech equipment
- TechSoup Stock
Connects nonprofits with donated and discounted technology products
- Care2
Discover, share, take action
- Eons
Online community for Baby Boomers
- Facebook
Popular social networking site that includes the Causes app
- FriendFeed
Discover what your friends are doing online
- Gather
Social network for the over thirty crowd
- LinkedIn
Social network for professionals
- List of social networking websites
From Wikipedia
- Meetup
Helps groups of people with shared interests tomeet in local cafes (and other places) around the world.
- MySpace
Connect with others, blog, rank music, share photos and videos, join a community
- Upcoming
Local events guide - add your events
- 15 Seconds
Home of ASP, VBScript, XML, SOAP, .NET, ASP.NET, IIS, SQL, VB, COM, active server pages, database, ADSI, ISAPI information.
- Arachnophilia
Free HTML editor
- Browser Archive
Archives copies of all web browsers beginning with Mosaic 1.0. A handy place to find browsers for checking web designs or powering ancient computers.
- CSE HTML Validator
Easy to use tool to check webpages. Lite version is free and includes a spell checker.
- FrontPage
Microsoft's popular HTML editor
- Google Desktop Search
Free desktop software that searches your email, files, media, web history and chats instantly
- HTML-Kit
Free HTML editor with built-in validation features
- idealware
Provides candid Consumer-Reports-style reviews and articles about software of interest to nonprofits
- Internet Filter Review
Compares popular software for filtering Internet pornography
- OSDir
Stable, open source software
- SnapFiles
Shareware and freeware archive
- Windows Search
Free desktop software that searches your email, files, media, and web history
- Xenu's Link Sleuth
Free link checker. Use regularly!
- A Nation Online: How Americans Are Expanding Their Use Of The Internet
This report is based on the September 2001 U.S. Census Bureau's Current Population Survey - a survey of approximately 57,000 households and more than 137,000 individuals across the United States.
- ClickZ Stats
Internet Statistics and Market Research for Web Marketers
- Counting on the Internet
Most expect to find key information online, most find the information they seek, many now turn to the Internet first. From the Pew Internet & American Life Project
- FC Stats
FC Stats is a free online resource that provides users with ready access to a wealth of statistical data on U.S. private and community foundations and their funding patterns.
- Getting Serious Online
Pew Internet Project study finds that "As Americans Gain Experience, They Use the Web More at Work, Write Emails with More Significant Content, Perform More Online Transactions, and Pursue More Serious Activities"
- Giving and Volunteering in the United States 2001
Independent Sector's Giving and Volunteering in the United States 2001 is the seventh in a series of biennial national surveys that report trends in charitable behavior. PDF http://www.independentsector.org/PDFs/GV01keyfind.pdf
- Harris Poll
Occasional surveys of Internet use
- Internet Geography Project
Focuses on the analysis of the geographic distribution of Internet use and its relationship to local economies.
- National Center for Charitable Statistics
The National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS) is the national repository of data on the nonprofit sector in the United States.
- National Technology Readiness Survey
The primary purpose of the NTRS is to provide an in-depth view of consumer beliefs about new technologies. Includes data on use of Internet for eGovernment and Ecommerce.
- Pew Internet & American Life Project
Ongoing surveys and topical studies
- Statistics.com
Research Statistics and Statistical Analysis Directory
- UCLA Center for Communication Policy: Internet Project
A longitudinal study of the Internet use of 2000 Americans
- US Census
Ecommerce studies, population studies, occasional reports
- Use of the Internet at Major Life Moments
Web information is an important resource for Americans making important choices related to education and job training, investments and big-ticket purchases, and health care for themselves or for loved ones. From the Pew Internet & American Life Project study.
- Volunteering in America
Site includes US Government report on volunteerism and links to Federal volunteer opportunites
- Keep it simple, stupid!
Suggests that simplicity is the key to good web design. "A functioning formula for simplicity (where A equals simplicity) could be A = x + y + z. x is good research and prototyping, y is play and z is the reduction of unnecessary elements."
- Site Testing: Preventing the Breakdown
Like any built environment, websites require maintenance. This article examines a few tools and bits of preventative maintenance can keep your existing website in good shape.
- The Other Home Page: Special-Purpose Entry Points for Library Web Sites
This article deals with the design of alternative homepages for special situations, such as in-library public access stations and intranets.
- The Web Content Style Guide
The essential guide for online writers, editors and managers (book)
- Dangerous words
Hypertext clichés to avoid!
- How To Create Your Site's Style Guide
Good advice on how to create a style guide.
- NYPL: Style Guide
The Style Guide for the Branch Libraries of the New York Public Library explains the markup and design requirements for all Branch Libraries web projects, along with various standards and best practices. A work in progress.
- Style Guidance
How to create a website style guide.
- Style Guide for Online Hypertext
The inventor of the World Wide Web, Tim Berners-Lee, began writing this style guide in 1992.It explains basic Web concepts that are still important today. It should be required reading for anyone involved in creating websites!
- Web Style Manual
"The advice here is aimed at the practical concerns of bending and adapting a relatively primitive authoring and layout tool (HTML) to purposes it was never really intended to serve (graphic page design)."
- Strengthening Nonprofit Advocacy Project
The first national research effort designed to investigate the public policy role of nonprofit organizations exempt under 501(c)(3) of the tax code, which are called charities.
- Extending the Information Revolution: IT Utilization by Non-profits and Community Groups
Argues that nonprofits-- particularly those most underserved or with underserved populations-- must provide aggressive, yet coordinated, perspectives in the technology development and policy arenas, in order to realize any benefit from innovation. They must also serve as early adopters of technology innovation, as a means to counter sector-wide inability or unwillingness to utilize technology in nonprofit operations and activities.
- Join Together Online
Provides technical assistance for organizations fighting substance abuse and/or gun violence.
- efile.form990.org
Complete your 2003 & 2004 Form 990, Form 990-EZ and Form 8868 (Request for Extension) online
- MyWorkTools
The first employee to employee (E2E) knowledge exchange that enables employees to find business tools to complete specific business tasks. Mostly inexpensive templates and spreadsheets
- SelfPromotion.com
Free site submission service
- TechAtlas
The technology planning tool for nonprofits (free and fee versions available)
- TechSoup.org - New Website Development Worksheet
If you are in the process of creating a new website for your organization, these questions are a good place to start.
- 10 Best Intranet Designs of 2008
- A flying menu attack can wound your navigation
Hidden menus are like hidden road signs: they force you to stop when you'd rather keep going. We examine the weaknesses of pop-up, pull-down and cascading menus.
- Alertbox: Jakob Nielsen's Column on Web Usability
A bi-weekly column on website usability.
- Content as Navigation Tool
Websites need what is termed "guide copy," allowing for access and understanding of what is contained within the site and leading users deeper into the site experience.
- Designing for Usability on a Shoestring
The challenge, as designers, is to come up with an interface that primarily suits the needs of the user, while still satisfying the needs of the client, and yourself.
- Focus Groups to Study Work Practice
Focus groups are a good complement to other usability methods because they provide information that would be very difficult or more costly to study directly.
- Read the Instructions
Instructions (also referred as procedures) should be easy to use, easy to understand, reflect best practice, and be written according to the context of use.
- Sample chapter from Don't Make Me Think
You should buy Don't Make Me Think! A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability but if you don't, read this sample chapter.
- Top-10 Guidelines for Homepage Usability
Jacob Nielsen suggests easy to implement ways to improve homepage usability.
- Usability Basics
Provides a basic overview of and general information about usability.
- Usability Problems to Fix Today
List of common usability problems that are easy to fix on most well-organized small and mid-sized websites.
- Usability.gov
Information on how to make websites more usable, accessible, and useful.
- UsabilityNet: Tools and methods
Excellent review of usability methods
- Writing for the Web
Users scan webpages, they don't read them. This article shows how to write (and re-write) for the web.
- Club Penguin
Disney's virtual world for kids: games, sharing, and shopping
- Second Life
A 3D online virtual world with a distinctly commercial flavor
- Webkinz
Where kids can care for virtual pets, answer trivia, earn KinzCash, and play games
- A Standard for Robot Exclusion
How to keep the pesky critters out of your private directories...
- BrainJar.com: Experiments in Web Programming
BrainJar.com features technical articles, tutorials and examples of programming for the web.
- Browser News: Statistics
Learn about trends in browsers, color-depths, and resolutions.
- Extreme HTML Optimization
Optimized webpages load quickly. Most users are unwilling to wait more than 10 seconds for a page to display. Most homepages should be limited to about 50K including graphics.
- HTML Validation: Choosing a DOCTYPE
According to HTML standards, each HTML document requires a document type declaration. The "DOCTYPE" begins the HTML document and tells a validator which version of HTML to use in checking the document's syntax. Many websites do not use the proper doctype.
- Structure Directories For Easy Maintenance
Web sites organized in a logical, coherent directory structure are much easier to update and maintain.
- Ten Top Sites Compared
Compares the design features of the ten most popular websites: AOL Time Warner, Yahoo!, MSN, Microsoft, eBay, Amazon, Lycos, About-Primedia, Google, and Walt Disney Internet Group.
- The Web Standards Project
Promotes following Web markup and stylesheet standards
- What are Meta-Tags Useful For?
How one webmaster uses meta-tags
- Open Source Web Design
Free website templates sortable by date submitted, rank, number of downloads, or author.
- CommunityRoom.net
A community of nonprofit websites which provides online donation capabilities via the world wide web. Wainwright Bank offers free hosting and on-line giving to client nonprofits.
- GeoCities
Cheap web hosting for individuals
- Grassroots.org
Offers of free webhosting for 501(c)3 nonprofits (non-political and non-religious)
- Homestead
Inexpensive professional and personal web site development
- How to Choose a Web Host
Covers both free and commercial web-hosting services.
- OrgSites.com
Free template-based websites for nonprofits
- The Perils of Platform Selection
According to this article there are "...the four dimensions of platform selection. In case you missed it, these dimensions consist of: the vertical stack ranging from hardware to software, the horizontal scope of different applications, the political dimension, and the temporal dimension of upward compatibility."
- Tripod
Inexpensive consumer-oriented web hosting
- Google Mobile
Get Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube and other Google products on your mobile device
- The XML FAQ
XML is the Extensible Markup Language. It is designed to improve the functionality of the Web by providing more flexible and adaptable information identification. Some expect it to revolutionize not only the Internet but also business processes because it makes exchanging data relatively easy.
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