This message was emailed to all Department Web Framework editors on 9/28/2015.
Our team was very busy this summer and we have a bunch of updates for you as the first week of classes begins. Topics covered in this message:
- Branding Update
- Image Upgrades
- Change Coming: Alt text required for images
- New feature: Status updates on filtered views
- New feature (by request): Featured Courses page
- Department Staff Changes
- Recommended end of summer updates
Branding Update
Twenty-one of our Department Web Framework sites have been updated to align with the revised UW branding guidelines released last year. The last one will be ready soon. Thank you all for reviewing the changes and working with us to refine the designs. Go forth and be boundless!
Image Upgrades
The image fields on nine of our earlier sites have been upgraded to behave the same as those on our newer sites. Those editors can now select images from the image library and choose from various display options to change the page layout. Editors in affected departments were notified with separate messages as their sites were upgraded. (The tenth and last will follow as soon as its branding update is complete.)
Change Coming: Alt Text Required for Images
A few months ago we were contacted by Access Technology Services who randomly reviewed one of our sites. They pointed out that many of the images did not have alt text, and we noticed that’s true on most of our other sites too. This text is helpful to people who use assistive technology such as screen readers or refreshable braille displays to navigate the web. It is also beneficial to search engines, users who may be viewing the site using a text-only browser, such as with some mobile devices, and users who may have images turned off for faster page loading on slow internet connections.
Because we want to encourage best practices and comply with UW IT Accessibility Guidelines, we’ve decided to make the alt text field required for all images. This change will be applied soon, and you’ll notice it when adding images. At our fall Department Web Framework users meeting we’ll share more information about the UW IT Accessibility Guidelines, which were approved in May and affect other IT besides the web, and share tips for writing good alt text.
New Feature: Status Updates on Filtered Views
Usability testing (and our own observations) showed that users were sometimes confused when trying to filter results on pages like people directories, courses, and research. They weren’t always aware that their filters had been applied. We’ve added a status message to any views that have exposed filters to let the user know that their filter has been applied and they are seeing updated results. You’ll notice this on your Manage Content screens as well.
New Feature (by Request): Featured Courses Page
For those of you that like to post Course Flyers, we can add a page in the Courses section that shows all the flyers for upcoming course sections. See examples at Slavic Languages & Literatures and Asian Languages & Literature. If you’d like this page added to your site, please email our team at asweb@uw.edu and request it.
Department Staff Changes
Summer is always a season of staff changes, and we’ve already been in touch with many of you about training new web editors. When someone who works on the website leaves your faculty or staff, please remember to notify us so that we can remove their editing privileges and update our mailing lists. You can request access and training for new web editors by writing to asweb@uw.edu.
Recommended End of Summer Updates
- Courses – Add course lists for Winter 2016. Review Autumn 2015 courses and see if you need to make any additions or changes. You can add individual course sections or course feeds if necessary, customize course descriptions, and so on.
- News- Solicit news items from faculty and students. Many of them may have been involved in interesting summer projects.
- Images – Review and change out some of the large Image Slides used on the front page.
- Programs – Review and update program descriptions and requirements.
- Profiles – Review and update faculty/staff/student profiles. For students who have graduated, we recommend that you change their title and departmental role to alumni, rather than deleting or unpublishing their profile.
View the complete recommended update schedule.
Please contact us at asweb@uw.edu if you have questions about any of these announcements or tasks.