We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the United States Zone. For a complete summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding release tags.

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the Singapore and the Middle East Zone. For a complete summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding release tags.

We have successfully pushed an update to all Enterprise Video Platform instances residing in Canada and the European Union. Zones residing in the United States, Australia, the Middle East, and Asia will be updated later this week. The highlights for this update include improvements to the Video Editor, a dedicated Overview page for Campuses under the Umbrella System, updated design interfaces across several areas of the platform, new security ID support PINs, quality-of-life improvements to the Media Chooser, automatic imports for Zoom Room recordings, analytical tracking for time jumps by users, enhanced captioning for live streams, and more.

1. Unified Video Editor Slide-Out Sidebar with Access to All Advanced Editing Tools
   To enhance the Video Platform’s usability, it now features a sidebar menu for Content Creators to quickly access advanced tools and settings. This consolidates the previous right-hand side panel and the advanced editing tools on the center panel into a single, unified slide-out toolbar.
   
2. Umbrella System – Dedicated Usage & Analytics Overview Page for Campuses
   For institutions deploying the Umbrella System Architecture, Administrators responsible for managing campuses within their institution’s hierarchical structure will have access to a dedicated Overview page. This page will display analytics specific to their campus, including data on top-performing videos, active users, and views.
   
3. Updated Interface for the Admin Panel’s Branding Page
   The Branding page has been redesigned to feature a more organized structure with clear headings and new icons and colors across the page. Over the coming releases, each panel of the Admin Panel will be significantly updated.
   
4. Update Graphs and Analytic Displays for the Content Report in Usage & Analytics
   We’re continuing to transition the Video Platform to our new design system by introducing it to new areas, such as the Content page, to update the visual esthetics of graphs and how data is displayed.
   
5. Security ID PINs to Help Verify Account Access
   We’ve introduced unique ID pins for each account, which automatically change every 24 hours. Users can relay their PIN to our support staff to confirm they have access to the account they need help on.
   
6. New Third-Party Hardware Smart Connectors Required for Integration with Video Platform
   Hardware Smart Connectors ensure the integrity of the Video Platform and align with permitted use, similar to integration with third-party video conference tools. Now, all third-party hardware device integrations will require a licensed Smart Connector. All users who use these capabilities should have had their Client Success Manager reach out to them to ensure continued operations of the integration.
7. Video Editor Supports Ability to Mute Audio Tracks of a Unified Audio-and-Video Stream
   The Video Editor features the option to mute audio streams while retaining the video source, allowing Content Creators to remove unwanted audio.
   
8. View Selected Folders within the Media Chooser
   The Media Chooser allows users to view which folders they’re searching within.
   
9. New UI to Improve Visual Distinctiveness of Playlists
   Playlists feature a new UI that distinguishes them from folders, allowing Content Creators to easily recognize them within their personal library and channels.
   
10. Media Chooser – Browse Files Within Folders When Filtering by Location in the Media Chooser
    When choosing a location to filter results, users can toggle the “Show Files” option to view all media content within folders.
    
11. Automatic Imports for Recorded “Zoom Rooms” Meetings
    Our existing Zoom integration, which supports automatic imports for Zoom video conference recordings, will also support automatic imports for Zoom Room recordings.
    
12. Video Editor – Updated the Blur Tool to a More Intense Blur Effect
    The Blur tool has been updated to a much more intense blur effect to help ensure that textual material is illegible.
    
13. Analytical Tracking for Video Timeline Jumps by Users
    Administrators can view how users interact with a video by seeing parts they go back to or jump to when watching content.
    
14. Customize the Title Tag of the Video Platform
    Administrators can adjust the title tag of their Video Platform to match their institution’s branding.
    
15. Option to Require SSO Login for Administrators
    To protect the privacy and security of an institution’s Video Platform instance, we’ve added a new optional setting that requires administrators to log in through their SSO instead of their YuJa credentials.
    
16. Improved Live Caption Quality and Stream Sync
    We’ve addressed inconsistencies in live captioning, resulting in more accurate captions that will sync with the live stream.
    
17. Video Title Preview for Embedded Media
    To help viewers understand what they are about to watch, embedded videos show their titles directly on the thumbnail.
    
18. Phasing Out Support for YouTube Video Imports
    Given YouTube’s lack of official support for importing videos into third-party platforms, we will gradually phase out the option of importing YouTube videos to the Video Platform. While we phase out the feature, users who still wish to utilize it can find it under My Account > Integrations.
    
19. Visual Display of Content When Replacing Media
    We’ve created a visual display of the content that will be replaced, allowing users to more intuitively recognize the media they’re updating.
    

New Add On! New Drupal CMS Plugin with Media Chooser Capabilities

1. Integrate the Media Chooser with Drupal to Embed Content Into Your Website
   Through Drupal’s rich text editor, Content Creators can use the Media Chooser to embed videos, documents, and playlists into their websites. This will allow those navigating the website to experience faster load times due to bandwidth offloading.
   

We have successfully pushed an update to all YuJa Panorama Digital Accessibility Platform instances residing in the US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, the Middle East, and the European Union.

This update includes scoring rubrics to define how accessibility scores are calculated, a new audio player for Alternative Formats, use Panorama with Power BI, redesigned reports across the platform, semantically structured audio formats and Gradient Reader, publish OCR Reconstructed HTML content into Canvas as a page, customize the highlight color of issues, elements within documents will be highlighted when using PDF Remediation Engine Max, use AutoPilot within WYSIWYG editors, integrate Smart Speaker into any website, and more.

1. New Scoring Rubric to Define How an Institution’s Accessibility Scores Are Calculated
   Considering an institution’s unique accessibility requirements, they now have the option to choose from various scoring rubrics that will be applied across their Panorama instance. These scoring rubrics will determine the accessibility scores of documents based on a strict set of criteria. To know how each rubric aligns with the types of documents an institution might have, administrators can review different scenarios to determine which rubric best suits them.
   
2. New Audio-Player for Audio Podcasts and OCR Audio with Visual Waveform and Playback Speed Controls
   Our recent UI update incorporates a waveform to help visualize playback for audio-based Alternative Formats, including Audio Podcast and OCR Audio. Additionally, we provided speed controls, allowing listeners to customize the audio playback speed according to their preferences.
   
3. Use Panorama With Power BI to Create Visual Analytics
   Users can download Panorama reports and upload them into Power BI to create visual analytics with their data. Learn more.
   
4. New Redesign of the LMS Report – Compare the Accessibility Scores of Each Document Type
   We’ve redesigned the LMS Report and provided a new graph consolidating the previous Cumulative Accessibility Score and Score by Document Type charts. The new graph offers a comparative analysis of the institution’s overall accessibility with various document types, such as HTML content, PDFs, and DOCX files.
   
5. New Redesign of the Issues Report – Compare the Number of Issues for Each Document Type
   We’ve redesigned the Issues Report and provided a new graph that allows administrators to compare their institution’s overall accessibility issues with selected document types to view which files contain the most issues. We’ve also updated the view for the Most Common Issues into a tabular structure for improved responsiveness with various screen sizes.
   
6. New Redesign of the Content Report – Simplified Viewing of Data for Documents Processed and Alternative Formats Downloaded
   Previously, administrators would have to look at two charts to compare and analyze the files processed by Panorama and those processed by document type. We’ve consolidated both charts into a simple-to-view line graph showing the total files processed and files processed by each document type. Similarly, this feature extends to the Alternative Formats’ charts within the Content Report, showing the total number of Alternative Formats downloaded and a breakdown of each format downloaded.
   
7. New Semantic Structure to Preserve the HTML Elements in the Gradient Reader
   Users viewing content within the Gradient Reader can choose to generate a Semantically Structured Gradient Reader, which will analyze the HTML content within the document to produce an accurate representation of the file.
   
8. New Semantic Structure to Preserve the HTML Elements in an Audio Format
   Users will be able to perceive the semantic structure of audio content, allowing them to hear details like rows, columns, and bullet points, providing an auditory representation of the visual format.
   
9. Ability to Fix HTML Accessibility Issues Within the Issues and Content Table
   The Issues and Content table in the Course Report will allow users to fix accessibility concerns for content created with WYSIWYG editors in their LMS.
   
10. Publish OCR Reconstructed HTML Content as Canvas Pages
    The OCR Reconstructed HTML format can be generated for content and uploaded to Canvas as a page.
    
11. Customize the Highlight Color of Issues Within Documents
    To ensure that highlighted issues remain visible on various background colors, users can customize the highlight color and adjust the spacing between the highlighted border and the text.
    
12. New Redesign of the Storage Report – Compare the Total Storage Accumulated for Each Document Type
    We’ve redesigned the Storage Report to allow administrators to compare their institution’s overall file storage with different document types within a single graph.
    
13. New Redesign of the Course Report – Compare the Overall Accessibility Score with Each Document Type
    We’ve enhanced the Course Report graph, enabling users to assess a course’s overall accessibility score and compare it with the accessibility scores of individual document types within the course. Users can also, based on preference, choose between a chart or table view for the files processed and Alternative Formats downloaded within the course.
    
14. View the Total Number of Improved Documents Within Each Course
    Administrators can access the Course Analytics in their LMS Report to view the total number of documents improved in each course.
    
15. Option to Ignore SSO Role Mapping in Favor of LMS Mapping
    Recognizing that most institutions favor mapping roles based on their LMS, administrators can choose to disable SSO role mapping. This ensures that user mappings are only determined by their LMS roles.
    
16. Panorama Support for Canvas Rubrics
    We’ve expanded Panorama’s support within Canvas to provide Accessibility Reports for rubrics.
    
17. Users Will Be Notified of Unsaved Panorama Settings
    When users navigate away from unsaved changes within the Panorama LTI app, they will receive a notification informing them that their changes have not been saved.
    

Panorama Add-On: PDF Remediation Engine Max

1. Elements in PDFs Will be Highlighted When Hovered Over
   When viewing a document’s structural hierarchy, elements will automatically be highlighted when hovered over, allowing users to easily identify which content they are adjusting.
   

Panorama Add-On: AutoPilot

1. AutoPilot Support Remediation for WYSIWYG Editors
   AutoPilot will automatically apply accessibility fixes for issues detected within WYSIWYG editors.
   

Panorama Add-On: Smart Speaker

1. Integrate Smart Speaker Directly into Websites
   Site administrators can now integrate Smart Speaker directly into their website’s HTML, making it accessible to all users.
   

Panorama Add-On: Website Accessibility Widget

1. New Redesign of the Website Report – Compare Content and Color Adjustments Over Time
   We’ve improved the Website Report graph, enabling administrators to compare color and content adjustments over time. Additionally, we’ve introduced a tabular structure to declutter the report and display only relevant information.
   

EqualGround is a brand-new product for real-time website accessibility auditing designed to enhance web accessibility. Backed by the latest WCAG 2.2 compliance guidelines, EqualGround scans entire websites and provides comprehensive evaluation reports for accessibility checks to help improve readability and navigation. 

The release provides options to initiate scans for WCAG 2.2 accessibility issues, customized website scans, initiate scans for multiple subdomains, exclude web pages from scans, view real-time progress of scans, view in-depth accessibility reports, track accessibility improvements over time, custom role management, SSO integration, and more.

1. Initiate Scans for WCAG 2.2- Aligned Accessibility Issues
   To provide an accessible website viewing experience, EqualGround will examine websites using industry-standard WCAG 2.2 levels of conformance (A, AA, and AAA), scanning pages and documents to generate accessibility scores for individual web pages.
   
2. Full Customization for Website Scans
   EqualGround offers comprehensive website scanning. For each website, admins can specify the depth, frequency, and schedule of scans.
   
3. Initiate Scans from Multiple Subdomains
   Administrators can designate several subdomains as entry points, which serve as the starting locations for EqualGround to crawl through web pages to identify accessibility issues.
   
4. Exclude Accessibility Scans for Specified Web Pages
   Administrators can specify web pages they would like to exclude from the accessibility scans to ensure that only desired pages are analyzed.
   
5. View the Progress of Current Scans
   After adding a website, users can initiate scans and monitor their progress in real time by viewing the scan status of each page as EqualGround crawls through the website.
   
6. View In-Depth WCAG 2.2 Accessibility Reports
   Admins will be able to review a comprehensive report on their scans in a visual web format or HTML text. They can quickly access information about the issues, including their level (A, AAA, or AAA), and identify where the issue occurs.
   
7. View an Accessibility Summary of Websites and Individual Web Pages
   Websites and individual web pages will have their own dashboard, which features a quick summary of the overall accessibility performance. The performance will be measured based on aria labels and WCAG A, AA, and AAA level issues detected.
   
8. Track the Improvements of Websites and Web Pages Over Time
   As websites and web pages enhance their accessibility, users can track the changes over time by reviewing the scan history to assess how scores have improved.
   
9. SAML-SSO Authentication Support
   In addition to manual login credentials, administrators can access EqualGround by signing in directly with their SAML-SSO integration.
   
10. Assign Custom Roles to Users
    Administrators can create custom roles on the EqualGround platform to provide users with different levels of access to view reports, initiate scans, and manage website settings.
    
11. Manage Users Within the Roster Management Dashboard
    Administrators can manage users on the EqualGround platform by adding users, assigning them new roles, and removing them from the platform.
    
12. Allocate Users to Manage Websites
    In addition to offering users different access levels, admins can allocate them to only manage and view specific websites.
    
13. Manually Trigger Scans to Immediately View Scores
    Administrators can trigger a manual scan instead of waiting for the scheduled scan to occur to instantly see a website’s latest scores.
    
14. Customize EqualGround’s Login Page
    Administrators can now customize the branding of their EqualGround login page by adjusting the colors of buttons and adding imagery.
    
15. Custom EqualGround Platform URLs
    Institutions can contact their Client Success Managers to create their own custom EqualGround Platform URLs.

We have successfully pushed an update for Software Capture for PC and Mac to all instances residing in the US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, the Middle East, and the European Union.

For the YuJa Software Capture for PC, this update includes optimizations to CPU usage during live streams.

1. Optimized CPU Usage for Live Streaming
   We’ve improved the performance of Software Capture’s live-streaming capabilities, resulting in optimized CPU resource utilization. With our enhancements, Content Creators will experience up to 25% less CPU load.
   

For the YuJa Software Capture for Apple, this update includes a new upload status window, access to the Annotation Toolbar from the Confidence Monitor, the option to save passwords, and real-time status updates.

1. Upload Status Window to Show Upcoming Sessions for Auto-Scheduled Events
   Content Creators can access the Software Capture Status modal at any time to review upcoming scheduled and previously uploaded recordings to the Video Platform.
   
2. Access the Annotation Toolbar from the Confidence Monitor
   We have made it easier for Content Creators to enable the Annotation Toolbar by integrating it into the left-side panel of the Confidence Monitor.
   
3. Save Passwords for Automatic Sign-in
   Content creators can save their passwords when signing in to Software Capture to automatically sign in for future sessions.
   
4. Real-Time Recording Status Updates for Active Software Capture
   Administrators can view live updates on the Devices page for streaming and uploading statuses of the Software Capture application.
   

For the YuJa Hardware Hub, this update includes reduced recording processing times and improved live stream recovery when switching sources.

1. Significantly Reduced the Processing Times of Recordings by Approximately 75%
   We’ve significantly reduced the processing time for long Hardware Hub recordings to allow video playback within minutes instead of hours.
   
2. Improved Live Stream Recovery When Switching Sources
   When switching sources during live streams, sessions will no longer be interrupted for up to a minute.
   

We have successfully pushed an update to all YuJa Engage Student Response System instances residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. This release provides our users with the option to build polls and surveys by importing CSV files, email notifications for scheduled polls, upload images without size restrictions, enhanced geofence tracking, the option to reattempt surveys, the option to mandate a password reset, set a time limit for the attendance activity to automatically close, auto-share questions during presentations, and more.

1. Build Polls and Surveys by Importing CSV Files
   Creators with a personal CSV file of questions can now easily upload it to import their queries into any poll or survey.
   
2. Email Notifications for Scheduled Polls
   Course members can be notified via email when a poll is scheduled for release and receive a follow-up reminder when the poll is about to be released.
   
3. Upload Images Without Size Restrictions
   We’ve updated Engage to no longer restrict users to a maximum file size when uploading images to questions or the branding page.
   
4. Enhanced Geofence Tracking for LMS-Embedded Attendances
   An LMS-embedded attendance will open in a new tab, allowing participants to access their attendance with location tracking enabled.
   
5. Participants Can Reattempt Surveys After Completion Based on Creator Settings
   Similar to how Creators can allow multiple poll attempts, they can now grant participants the option to reattempt surveys.
   
6. Option for Password Reset for All Users After 12 Months
   IT managers can require all users to reset their passwords after 12 months.
   
7. Set a Time Limit for the Attendance Activity to Automatically Close
   For automated attendance management, Creators can set a timer to close an open attendance.
   
8. View Your Account Information on the Engage Platform
   Engage now offers the option to view your account information from within the platform and options to quickly access settings.
   
9. New Gradebook Filters to Sort Results by Participants or Scores
   Creators reviewing activity results can sort the gradebook alphabetically by participants or filter the results based on the scores received by participants.
   
10. Auto-Share Questions During PowerPoint and Keynote Presentations
    We’ve added a new setting that allows Creators to automatically share their questions during presentations instead of manually clicking the “Release” button.
    

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the Singapore and the Middle East Zone. For a complete summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding release tags.

We have successfully pushed an update to all Enterprise Video Platform instances residing in Canada and the European Union. Zones residing in the United States, Australia, the Middle East, and Asia will be updated later this week. The highlights for this update include a new visual search experience with improved search capabilities, an update of the Video Editor theme to a dark theme, IMS Caliper Analytics support for YouTube videos, direct links to video quizzes will record grades for users, performance report tracking for the Video Editor, more accurate tracking of unique video views using IP address, enhanced screen reader capabilities, overall UI enhancements, and much more.

1. New Visual Search User Experience with Slide-out Drawer with Time-Sequenced Results
   We have redesigned the user experience of the Visual Search to provide improved at-a-glance search match information, along with the ability to quickly review more detailed metadata match information. New capabilities include:
   
   • Visually Summary Bar: Clear color-aligned search match summary information that shows how a particular search term matched within the captions, slides (OCR), in-video comments, and indexes
   • Slide-Out Match Details: Clicking Match Details now presents a slide-out drawer with time-sequenced, color-coded search matches along
   • Improved Timeline Indicators: The search matches are now better annotated along the timeline bar of the video thumbnail
   • Improved Accessibility and Responsiveness: The user experience now offers a more modern, responsive and screen-reader-accessible design.
   • Multi-Selection of Search Results: A convenient multi-selection of search results to perform bulk actions is now available.

   

2. Improved Search Capabilities to Locate OCR, Captions, Table of Contents, and Comments
   We’ve optimized that search infrastructure to ensure search results are quickly displayed across all metadata layers.
   
3. Search for Folders on the Video Platform When Using Basic Search
   When using the Video Platform’s basic search, users will find relevant folders on the search results page.
   
4. Video Editor Now Uses Dark Theme to Improve the Contrast of Editable Elements and Reduce Eye Strain
   Our Video Editor has been redesigned with a dark theme to reduce eye strain and improve the ability to edit the video content.
   
5. IMS Caliper Analytics – In-Depth Integration of Video Viewership Data for YouTube Videos
   Previously, we added additional data with our third-party Caliper Analytics integration to help administrators make more informed decisions about their content uploaded to the Video Platform. We’ve now expanded our analytic capabilities to include video viewership metrics for uploaded YouTube content, monitoring the following information:
   
   
   • Points on the video timeline viewers play the video.
   • Points on the video timeline viewers pause the video.
   • Specific points selected on the video timeline.

   

6. Visual Analytics Overview Now Offers New Directional Summary Cards With Integrated Directional Graphs
   Each panel in the Overview tab for Usage & Analytics offers a graphical representation of the trend line of the given metric. The goal is to provide improved at-a-glance information to administrators. Over the coming quarters, we expect to roll out this new analytics representation to other reports.
   
7. New Compact Design for Media Library Folders with More Accessibility Action Menu
   The Media Library folder design now offers a more compact design with a clearer pop-out menu style.
   
8. Video Quizzes: Direct Links to Video Quizzes Will Record Grades for Users
   Previously, grades from Video Quizzes accessed through direct links were assigned to an “anonymous” user within the Video Platform. With the recent update, authenticated users who take a quiz using a direct link will have their grades automatically recorded and synched with the gradebook in the Video Platform.
   
9. Administrations Can Receive Automatic Emails for Device Schedules
   Administrators can schedule reports for devices on their platform to obtain a CSV file containing a list of past or upcoming automated recording sessions within a specified period of time.
   
10. New Report for Tracking the Historical Computational and Delivery Performance of the Video Platform
    The Report panel in Usage & Analytics offers administrators the option to request a performance report. This report provides insights into the Video Platform’s speed in processing requests, such as:
    
    
    • Media processing time.
    • Completion of auto-captions.
    • Time taken for videos to be playable.
    • Load times for various information, including the Roster, Devices, Campus Tube, and Gradebook pages.

    

11. Consolidated Usage and Object Reports Within the Data Management Tab
    In our previous release, we updated the Data Management page by consolidating information from the Overview page in Usage & Analytics and the Admin Panel. We are continuing to update the Data Management page, which now offers the option to retrieve reports for storage usage and stored objects.
    
12. Configurable Email Notifications for Media Deletion and Recycle Bin Actions
    We’ve expanded customization options for administrators, allowing for personalized automatic email notifications when media content owned by a user is deleted and when media is moved to the recycle bin.
    
13. More Accurate Tracking of Unique, Unauthenticated Video Views Using IP Address
    We’ve implemented an IP-based approach to tracking unique video view counts for authenticated and unauthenticated users.
    
14. Roster Panel Supports Email-Based Search
    Administrators have the option to look up users on the Roster panel by using their email addresses.
    
15. Enhanced Screen Reader Accessibility for Mouse-Hover Actions
    Users who require screen reader assistance will find improved functionality in scenarios where mouse-hover actions are required to select content.
16. Updated Color Scheme and Text for the Advanced Search Console
    We’ve improved the Advance Search Console’s overall color palette and text to align more closely with our brand goals.
    
17. New APIs to Add or Delete Users from Shared Folders
    We’ve added new APIs which can add and delete users from shared folders (1.2.12 and 1.2.13).

Himalayas Add-On

1. Specify the Number of Days Media Will Remain in the Exclusion List
   Previously, content would remain in the exclusion list for 90 days. We have now provided the option for administrators to set a custom amount of days to keep items in the exclusion list.
   

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. This update includes real-time notification to live proctors, institution-wide proctoring restrictions, a new workflow for creating a list of approved URLs, enhanced proctoring restrictions UI, the option to send proctor recordings to specified emails, new filtering options for recordings, and quality of live improvements to the media player.

1. Real-Time Notifications to Live Proctors for Flagged Restrictions
   During a live assessment, the Events log will provide proctors with a list of flagged restrictions that have occurred for each user in real time. Proctors can use this information to immediately view a user’s environment and create any notes regarding the flagged restriction.
   
2. Institution-Wide Proctoring Restrictions Such as Disabling Room Scan
   Administrators can choose to disable specific proctoring restrictions across their entire institution, ensuring they are not applied to any assessments. This can be used to disable restrictions that may not comply with an institution’s state-level or even federal policies.
   
3. Create a List of Approved URLs That Can Be Accessed During Assessments
   Previously, the option to create a list of approved URLs was hidden inside the Close Open Tabs and Disable New Tabs restrictions. We have now added the Website Access feature inside the Proctoring Restrictions to allow an approved list of URLs to be accessed during an assessment.
   
4. Enhanced Proctoring Restriction UI When Selecting Proctoring Platforms
   Some quiz restrictions apply exclusively to specific platforms, like the Desktop Lockdown App. Verity will notify those creating a proctored assessment of any disabled restrictions when they select an alternative platform, such as the Mobile Lockdown App.
   
5. Ability to Send Proctor Recordings to Specified Emails
   Proctors reviewing assessments can send recordings to any specified email address.
   
6. New Capabilities to Filter Recordings by Notes
   A new filter has been implemented in the Verity Results table to help proctors identify recordings that include notes.
   
7. Quality of Life Improvements to the Verity Media Player
   In the Verity media player, proctors can control the playback of assessments by simply clicking within the viewing area to play, pause, or resume the video. Additionally, we have implemented a new UI to indicate the end of a recording.