Sitefinity releases - February 27, 2019
Obiageli Ogbutor Feb 27, 2019New features
Upgrade to 11.2
We have upgraded Sitefinity version to 11.2 and below is the link to the official release notes. Please note that we are still using the “classic” editing interface to allow Progress additional time to improve the newer version.
Social Sharing Widget retired
Progress has retired the Social Sharing widget. This widget will be removed from the website on February 27th.
Padding Widget, aka the breathing room widget
Several site builders have been using content blocks to add some breathing room in between content elements. In response, OIT has developed a widget that does this specific job. Site builders can now use the padding widget and select from a variety of preset spaces of 10, 15, 20, 30, 40 or 50 pixels high rather than using breaks or blank paragraphs.
Improvements
Call to Action Button Widget width and alignment selection
Site builders continue to ask for different width Call to Action buttons. In response, OIT has started with the on-page Call to Action widget. A variety of width choices are now available. Builders can now set buttons to be as wide as the text within the button, small (250 pixels), medium (500 pixels), large 750 pixels, Full Width (100% width of the button’s container). The CTA button can now be aligned to the left, right, or center. If this functionality proves to be popular, we will consider incorporating it into the other versions of the Call to Action button (the content type).
Option to open footer links in a new window
At the request of CU Online and other site builders, we have added the ability to open any footer link in a new window. Please use this feature in accordance with accessibility best practices.
New Department Contact Info view for the People widget
In response to the needs expressed by the College of Engineering, we have added a new template for the People widget. It is a list view that includes the individual’s Department information.
Newsroom Article Content Type and Templates
The Article has been updated to allow featured images, videos or embedded videos to show in the detail template. Additional video and choice fields have been added to the Article content type to bring it in line with the Enhanced Card functionality.
New Article Widget Template
In response to requests from multiple site builders, a new “Title only” article list template has been added.
Field Requirements on Research & Creative Projects Content type
The requirements on field in the Research and Creative Projects content type have been relaxed. The Abstract field is no longer a requirement.
Fixed
Testimonial leaving a blank space for images
The testimonial widget templates were showing blank spaces when no images were present. This formatting has been resolved.
Article and RSS reader links missing arrow
In certain templates, Articles and RSS stories were missing the arrow icon. This issue has been resolved.
The Academic Program detail templates showing code
The detail templates for Academic Program have been revised to remove the code which was visible around the Area of Concentration.
Arrow Icon showing in Footer
The footer has been revised to remove a stray of arrow icon which appeared occasionally.
Double click on iPhone
We have resolved an issue that was occurring on iPhone where a visitor had to tap a link twice in order to navigate to the destination.
In the Content Block, bullet points can overlap an image
When you insert a photo, the bullet points overlaps. This issue has been resolved.
Table inside a Highlight Box
A code has been added to make the tables within Highlight boxes visible.
Sitefinity Performance Improvements
Network Analysis
OIT recently experienced an issue with a device related to network security. In resolving that issue, some part of Sitefinity’s performance issues were also resolved. We will continue to monitor and adjust as we learn new information.
Warm-up Script
A new and improved server side warm up script has been added to help cache and compile all of the Sitefinity pages. This process makes the pages to load more quickly for our site visitors.
Diagnostic Module data
The Diagnostics Module was activated and data was collected for some weeks. We are reviewing the data for any possible issues while the diagnostic module has been turned off.
Groundwork for future improvements
Image Optimization and resizing Images on upload
We have explored Sitefinity’s image optimization and Thumbnail size features. Some testing will be done with these settings to see how our users accept the pre-set image sizes and the automatically optimized images.
Academic Program Review and Analysis
The Academic Program widget and content type were launched on January 30th. We reviewed the data in February against the specification and have opened a number of product backlog items that will be addressed in March. The revisions have to do with certain pieces of data not showing on the detail template. Our UX team is working on updating the wire frames and Prototypes in February.
WAC Feedback on Hero Carousel & Image Gallery Prototypes
This month we sent two prototypes for an accessible hero slideshow/carousel and an accessible image gallery to the WAC for feedback. Thank you to all that participated. The development of the two widgets will be prioritized for March/April releases.
Sticky Sessions take 2
We are exploring sticky session on the load balancers in an effort to improve editing performance for our site builders. We ran into 404 pages with our first attempt at Sticky Sessions and we have moved on to a different approach.
Hero Video Flexibility
Several options will be added to the Hero video widget to allow site builders to customize height and scaling options.
RSS Feed tile/card template
In response to the requests from multiple site builders, we are adding a new template to the RSS feed widget that uses a card layout. This will stack stories horizontally instead of vertically and will include an image.
NewEd Degree Finder Funded and Underway
The NewEd degree finder tool has been funded! We are using the data collected in November to populate these widgets and let them work on our licensed websites. Planning meetings are underway.
Helvetica Neue Web Font
The University has purchased the web license for the Helvetica Neue font. We anticipate adding this to the Sitefinity website in March to closely align with the University brand.
Extension of the Content Block widget
We have received multiple requests to add a feature that would allow a Call to Action button to be added via the Content Block Widget. We have started research to determine what is possible in regards to the widget. We found out that we need more formal requirements in order to guide our research. Our UX teammates are currently working on specifications.
Known Issues
Be sure to check out for the latest on known issues.
CTA, Testimonial, and Enhanced Card changing title of the page
When a single item of content is specifically selected, it changes the title of the page. There is a work around to avoid this issue. Please see
New site launches
Ombuds Office launched February 5, 2019:
CU in the City launched February 19, 2019:
Transfer Center launched February 26, 2019: https://www.ucdenver.edu/transfer