Kristina Ackley and Hilary Benoit are the authors of Online Web Design (August 2001). Kristina is also the author of 100 Top Internet Job Sites (March 2000).

Kristina works as communications manager for VeriSign, Inc. She also owns and operates Gryphon Communications, a communications and website consulting firm located in Herndon, VA.

As a communications specialist for over ten years, and an online user since 1985, she integrates her two interests to effectively meet personal and professional goals. Prior to her current position with VeriSign, Kristina worked in communications management for several small businesses and nonprofit organizations.

An avid editor and writer, Kristina has also written feature articles and poetry. She speaks and writes for diverse audiences on topics such as career searching and the Internet.

A founding member of Working to Halt Online Abuse (WHOA), Kristina continues with that organization, as well as the National Association of Female Executives. She writes an online help column for The Tattling Turtle, published bi-monthly by the Delta Zeta Northern Virginia Alumnae Association, and serves as Webmaster and vice president, Membership, for the group.

Kristina holds a master's degree in Public Relations Management from the University of Maryland at College Park and a bachelor's degree in English, with a German minor and Writing concentration, from Wittenberg University in Springfield, OH. She resides in Northern Virginia with her family.

Hilary is the director of Quality for W R Systems, Ltd., an information technology and engineering services company headquartered in Fairfax, VA. She has been involved in the information technology (IT) field for more than 20 years, starting as a Cobol programmer back in the seventies. Over the past few years, working more and more with Internet applications, Hilary has targeted quality improvement initiatives at the Web application development process and is particularly interested in usability and accessibility design issues.

She regularly writes papers and gives presentations on software quality-related topics at IT conferences. She is a member of the American Society for Quality (ASQ), the Internet Society, the National Association of Female Executives (NAFE), IEEE Computer Society, the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), Quality Assurance Institute (QAI), the Usability Professional’s Association, and Mensa.

Hilary holds a master of science degree in Computer Information Systems from Boston University, a Post-Graduate diploma of Technical Russian Translation in Astronomy from North London Polytechnic, U.K., and a bachelor's degree in Russian from the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, U.K. Her professional certifications include: Software Quality Engineer (CSQE) and Quality Manager (CQMgr) with the ASQ; and Software Test Engineer (CSTE) and Quality Analyst (CQA) with the QAI. Hilary, originally from Ledbury, Herefordshire, in England, now resides in Northern Virginia with her husband.