Total Ring Navigability is a term that is getting a lot of attention in Ringmaster circles. If you haven't heard of it, you should read this very carefully.

If you are like the rest of the managers who have quality standards in their Rings, you already enforce the rule of PASSing the navigation code checker. This means that the navigation code must be on the page that is registered with your WebRing to make it easy to find when arriving on a member site from the WebRing. The idea behind total Ring navigability takes this to the next logical step. It is the ability to find the navigation code from other locations around the member site. Think about it for a moment. What good is it to require navigation to be on the registered URL if it's not possible to find the registered URL when the visitor is finished with the site? And what will the visitor do when he can't find the navigation for your Ring? He'll stop navigating and you just lost traffic.

The problem is twofold. First, if someone can come to the site from your WebRing but not get back to the WebRing, that is breaking Ring integrity (the ability to navigate a WebRing in its entirety) same as if the site didn't display navigation at all. Secondly, in addition to visibility to those already using your Ring, all members must be visible to potential visitors and members. Most sites that join any WebRing for the first time do it because they found the navigation on a member site, not because they found the WebRing homepage and decided to look up a Ring to join. Members are key to the success of your WebRing and a successful WebRing benefits all members.

To determine if your members promoting total Ring navigability, just grab the first site in your Ring and load it. Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is the navigation code for your WebRing visible on this page?
   • Yes - this is good, it means the site should PASS the checker. Go on to #2.
   • No - the next step won't matter because the site needs to be suspended for destroying Ring integrity because the code isn't visible. Don't worry about total Ring navigability if you aren't requiring basic Ring navigability.
2. Is this page the main content page for this site?
   • Yes - this is good, because WebRings are supposed to be promoted on main content pages. They really were never intended for burial on links pages or private entry pages. Now review question #3 just to be certain there are no problems.
   • No - this could be bad, depending upon the accessibility of this page. To find out if there is a problem, proceed to question #3.
3. Is this page clearly accessible from elsewhere on the member site?
   • Yes - If one can click a link named "home" and reach the Rings on the main content page or "WebRings" and return to the WebRing entry page then the Ring is fully accessible to anyone who wishes to view it, whether they are WebRing visitors or outside traffic.
   • No - this is the problem I'm talking about. If a visitor cannot find his way back to your WebRing navigation bar through the site layout, he's likely not bother to try. And, no, it's not the visitor's problem to find it. It's the responsibility of the member to display it in a visible manner and your responsibility to enforce the rule. If a visitor who came to the site through other means cannot encounter the NavBars, he's likely to miss out on the opportunity you offer by having WebRing memberships.

A growing number of managers are beginning to scrutinize their member sites to determine if their Ring is getting the maximum visibility. If you can visit each active site and agree to the following, then your Ring is promoting total Ring navigability:

The navigation code is visible on the registered URL and that page is accessible to any visitor viewing any page on the website.

If any part of this is not true, your member should be advised to take the appropriate steps to fix it. These can include one or more of the following options:

1. Installing the navigation code on the registered URL (or, if the manager permits "PASS-L", a link to the code from the registered URL)
2. Adding links to the registered URL from other pages of your site (if the page is a private, WebRing-only entry page, the link must read "WebRings")
3. Editing the registered URL so it's no longer a "private" entry page only for WebRing visitors but instead a publically-accessible area.

If you need help explaining the concept to your members, try referring them to my members' version of this page.