This month, we’ve got a veritable banquet of new features and improvements prepared for you! From new in-line image list view CDE items, to a quality-of-life improvement for project archiving, there’s something tasty for everyone. And as usual, we've continually deployed several bug fixes throughout the month that we've listed below.

announcements  

There's still time to enter October's Visual Theme Costume Contest. We're accepting screenshots until November 11th! Whether your site's theme is colorful or monochromatic, edgy or classy, this is a great opportunity to get your name out there in the world and score a little prize on the side! Check out the Announcement below for information on how to participate.

 new features  

✨ New Features ✨  

By Popular Demand: Feedback and User List Inline Images!

First on the menu is a dish many of you have asked for:  inline images and image thumbnails in your user management and feedback management list views. These new data points for the Centercode Data Engine have been a popular request, and we're excited to finally share it with you!

When creating a user or feedback view, you’ll notice three different view items related to file attachment form elements. These new items make it much simpler to get an in-platform view of images and files uploaded by users for specific forms.

“File Attachment Has Attachment” gives you a binary yes/no response if the user attached any files at all.

“File Attachment” shows a scaled version of the image inline:

“File Attachment Thumbnail” shows thumbnail versions of attached images:

improvements  

📈  Improvements 📈 

Simplified Project Archiving!

For our second course we’ve added the ability to archive a project from within the project itself. You’ll no longer need to navigate to Programs and Projects and find the specific project on the list (though that method is still available!). This option is located in the Project Configuration section of the Management menu when you're in a project.

Saving Time and Processor Power!

And last, but not least, is a feature designed to help you when your plate's piled a bit too high with automatically refreshing and distributed reports. We’ve implemented a new system that will automatically disable any reports that no one has viewed or interacted with in an extended period of time. This keeps your data fresh and your inbox uncluttered by old report emails you haven’t gotten around to turning off yet! (Note: This only applies to reports set to daily or weekly refreshes/distribution. Monthly reports will never automatically disable themselves.)

You’ll be notified of this two different ways: 

A new set of icons on the Report Management screen will show the status of reports that are set to auto-refresh. Green circle arrows indicate that a report is set to auto-refresh and has been viewed recently. Red circle arrows indicate that a report has not been viewed recently and will automatically deactivate soon. A red warning sign indicates that a report was set to auto-refresh, but it reached the time limit without being viewed, so it's been disabled.

When a report goes unviewed for an extended period of time, the people on its distribution list see an expiration warning at the top of their email with a link to refresh the report. To refresh it, they don't have to login—it just takes one user to follow the link and confirm that they'd like to keep receiving updates. This resets the report's expiration date and keeps it auto-refreshing and sending updates. No muss, no fuss!

fixes  

🐞  Bug Fixes 🐞 

Data Engine & Custom Reports

• User and Feedback Filter/View splash pages have been reworked to store prior selections as you are working within the page
• Corrected an issue causing "# of Activities" data counts to be inaccurate when factoring in regression features
• Corrected issue causing incorrect conversion to UTC date/time in exported Excel reports

Performance & Tuning

• Continued improvements to logging and behind-the-scenes performance

User Interface & Experience

• Ongoing UI refinements and textual improvement

Miscellaneous

• "Run Once" macros containing a webhook when using scheduled macro functionality will now function as intended
• Restored functionality of "Open in New Window" and "Log Download Attempt" for external files in Content and Releases
• Corrected the behavior of two checkboxes on External File linking in Content/Releases

This month we’re bringing you our spoookiest update yet! October’s release is primarily focused on under-the-hood updates, lurking in the shadows just out of sight (See, spooky!). Our recent releases have introduced quite a few new UI elements which take cues from your visual theme. We thought this would be a seasonally appropriate time to help you dress up your testing community by bringing you some new and improved Visual Theme-focused content!

announcements  

📢 Announcements 📢   

Centercode Site Costume Contest

We’re holding a Visual Theme contest to spotlight your hard work and celebrate those who take the extra step! If you’ve got a good looking site, this is a great opportunity to get your name out there in the world and maybe get a little something on the side! Alternatively, if you’re not happy with your theme, we can help (but you’ll be DQd from the contest)! Check out the Announcement below for information on how to participate.

✨ Featured Content ✨  

All About Visual Themes!

Our first piece of content focuses on explaining the value of a good Visual Theme, and the influence it can have on tester enthusiasm and participation. To help get those creative juices flowing we also provide a number of example templates, a few helpful tips and tricks, and a curated collection of background images.

Read it Here!

Getting Your Hands Dirty

Next up we have a brief (but informative!) article with step-by-step instructions on how to access the Visual Theme tools, and how to apply your themes throughout your site once they’ve been created.

Read it Here!

The Nitty Gritty

And last, but not least, we’ve created a detailed guide explaining how each of the Custom Images and Custom Color will affect your site, each with accompanying images of some of the more prominent places you’ll see those changes.

Read it Here!

 
📈  Improvements 📈 

OAuth for Your POP!

We've added the ability for customers to utilize OAuth to authenticate their email accounts used in email reply integrations (a.k.a. “POP Integrations”). Once it’s enabled on the back-end, you can access this function via a button on the community level Email Template and Logs page. If you have an existing email reply integration that either uses or needs to be updated to use OAuth, let us know so we can make the necessary adjustments.

fixes  

🐞  Bug Fixes 🐞 

Centercode Mobile App

• Fixed an issue that prevented Android users from re-opening the app if it was shut down during a file download

Data Engine & Custom Reports

• Data engine and reporting on All Reply Text no longer includes user email address

Performance & Tuning

• Resolved an issue that could cause file uploads to fail when more than one file was being uploaded at once
• Fixed an issue that would cause uploads for background images added during initial Opportunity creation to fail
• Adjustments made to prevent timeout error when exporting large numbers of files from Feedback Forms
• Improved Ted Performance Dashboard performance under heavy load

User Interface & Experience

• Addressed issue preventing Legacy User Forums links from appearing for certain user roles in the navigation bar menu
• Fixed issue causing surveys set as notices for one team to be hidden from the activities menu for all teams
• Site color picker widget no longer requires a click-plus-drag to modify the color (a simple click will do)

Centercode Site Costume Contest!

Like a haunted house covered in sheet-ghosts and fake cobwebs (or toilet paper), the appearance of your testing site significantly impacts your testers’ perception of your program.

A well-presented site can elevate tester enthusiasm, brand confidence, and even professionalism. To help maximize your candy (feedback) haul this season, we’re holding a customer contest for the best-dressed site and giving out prizes for the best-in-show! You may or may not see some of our favorites showcased in the future… 🧙🔮

The Rules:

We can only accept one submission per customer site, and only one prize per company. If we get more than one submission for a site, we'll use the first one—and that submitter will receive any contest results or prizes. 

Submissions must be received throughout October through November 11, 2022. Winners will be announced in the November Newsletter.

Themes will be evaluated based on specific criteria including accessibility, use of brand colors, cohesiveness, creativity, and some spooky mystery categories.

This contest is only open to customers who have implemented their own themes. While we're always willing to help you design your site's look, themes created by Centercode employees (via Services or otherwise) don’t qualify for this contest.

Full-sized candy bars only; no apples. 

To Participate:

Submit two screenshots of your site on or before November 11th: one of the login page, and one of the User Management page, as shown in the examples below. Send your submissions via email to contests@centercode.com with the subject line: “Visual Theme Contest”. Include your screenshots and any details you’d like to call attention to such as the name of your theme, special notes about it, etc.

https://<YOUR IMPLEMENTATION URL>/welcome/
https://<YOUR IMPLEMENTATION URL>/community/users/default.html 

First, take a screenshot of your site (Windows: [Windows]+[Shift]+S, Mac: [Shift]+[Command]+3). Then simply paste (Windows: [Control]+V, Mac: [Command]+V) in your email to add the screenshot. Repeat for each screenshot you want to take. Finally, just send it our way and you're all set!

announcements 

🎉 Centercode's 20th Anniversary 🎉 

As of May 2021, Centercode has existed for 20 years. This continues to be a journey we’re incredibly proud of, highlighted by the hundreds of amazing companies and thousands of incredible people and products that we’ve had the opportunity to work with, and driven by the fierce passion we maintain to this day.

Along with this release we've produced the new ebook, The Definitive Guide to Delta Testing which you can download here. This is a comprehensive resource intended to not only explain delta testing to the uninitiated, but also to serve as a ”buy-in guide” to be shared within your organization.

delta  improvements new features fixes mobile 

Delta Testing: The Answer to Alpha, Beta, Field, and Everything

By literally any measure, this is our largest release to date. It spans the entire platform, and operates as a cohesive means to deliver on our vision.

New User Interface

For the first time since the inception of our platform, we’ve refreshed our entire user interface. For admins, this means easier access to virtually all functionality. For testers, it means a more focused and accessible experience that's aligned with our new mobile app. For everyone, it means a fresh look and feel (which will likely take platform veterans a bit of time to get used to!).

Delta Planning and Dynamic Surveys

The heart of the new release is a centralized suite of tools to plan and manage a delta test, including first-class incorporation of features, phases, and activities. Delta tests may be planned within the platform or imported, and easily adjusted at any time.

Introducing: Ted Adams

An intelligent virtual agent of Centercode who manages tester engagement on your behalf. Ted continuously learns from your project, testers, and feedback. Ted takes a huge load off your back by communicating the most important information at the right moment, through the most ideal channels.

Furthermore, Ted continuously provides test managers with insightful updates in classic Scrum format: What just happened? What's happening next? What are the blockers?

Dynamic Dashboards

Centercode now automatically generates beautiful data-rich dashboards that summarize your project, phases, features, and much more. The dashboards are highly interactive, may be filtered in real-time, and allow for both direct presentation and sharing. No more decks.

Centercode Mobile App

A native Centercode app allows your testers to engage with all aspects of your test, including providing and collaborating on feedback directly from their iOS or Android devices.

The Everything

Beyond these key features, literally hundreds of other small enhancements cover virtually every corner of the platform. This truly is a monumental release, and one we couldn't be more excited to share with you.