[en] With the Sidebar 15, we present the brand-new Sidebar batch checking feature. With this feature, you can use the Sidebar to batch check directly in your editing environment. Learn more about how it works in Batch Check Your Content with the Sidebar.

[en] Log4Shell

[en] Core Platform version 2021.12 contains a Log4j version update to 2.16.0 in order to remediate the Log4Shell (CVE-2021-44228 and CVE-2021-45046) vulnerabilities without the need for further mitigation steps.

[en] If you're a Cloud customer, you don't need to worry. We’ve already taken the necessary steps to secure your instance.

[en] For Standard Stack, you’ve already received steps to remediate the vulnerability in your current deployment.

If the Acrolinx Private Cloud isn't an option for you, this is the combination of software that we support for Acrolinx installations. It's tested, supported, and works best in production.

If you run Acrolinx on a combination of these technologies, you can use the Standard Stack releases of the Core Platform.

Acrolinx works best with the software listed in the "Recommended" column, but you can use it with all of the versions listed below.

[en] Good news for Targets users: we've improved the German guidance package. We've added highly requested guidelines for Clarity (Verständlichkeit), Consistency (Einheitlichkeit), and Tone (Ton) to our standard guidance package for German.

[en] We’re happy to announce that you can use the first version of the Inclusive Language goal in Japanese. This goal covers guidelines for Respectful Language and Accessibility.

[en] New and experienced Acrolinx users alike might need a refresher every now and again. That's why we've created the Acrolinx Walkthrough. This handy tool helps you navigate the wonderful world of Acrolinx–whether you want more background on your setup or wonder how Acrolinx even runs a check.

[en] You might use it to:

[en] When you set the checking language to Japanese in the Sidebar, the quotation mark tags didn't render correctly. Instead of「 and 」, you saw " and ". This small hiccup might not have been a showstopper, but it certainly wasn't correct. Now, you'll see the right quotation characters when your checking language is Japanese.

[en] When you tried to open a Scorecard that you didn't create or have the privilege to view, you might've gotten some mixed messages. Our help text was a little misleading and included an outdated link. We've cleared this up for you. Now, if you can't access a Scorecard, you'll have a better sense of why.

[en] We've added some extra checks to the upload process for database backups. This gives you an enhanced layer of security against cross-site scripting vulnerabilities when you upload files.

[en] Now, you see them...now you don't. By some sleight of hand, you couldn't see deprecated variants of preferred terms in the “Deprecated” tab of a Targets Scorecard. This happened when you sorted by "Term" in the Words and Phrases goal. But when you ordered terms by "Occurrence", your terms would be right back where they belonged. This wasn't a ghost but a bug. So, we've fixed it. You'll now see deprecated variants in the “Deprecated” tab when you sort by "Term" in the Words and Phrases goal.

[en] As a Standard Stack user, you might've missed the Configuration Properties page in the Dashboard. We heard you! The Configuration Properties page is available for the built-in user admin again.

[en] We don't like it when you have to grope in the dark, especially when we can shine more light onto something. So, we've decided to give you more information. When you load the classic view of the Acrolinx Dashboard through a reverse proxy with single sign-on (SSO), you now get a shiny message about your connection status. It looks like this:

[en] The Sidebar cards and Analytics shine in every color of the rainbow! These colors help you to identify the goals that your issues relate to. But the Words and Phrases goal was displayed in pink instead of blue. As much as we like pink, it led to some confusion. We've given Words and Phrases a fresh coat of paint. Whether you're looking at your Sidebar or Analytics, you'll see it in a shade of blue. Learn more about the color coding of the Sidebar cards in The Sidebar Card Guide.

[en] There was an issue where Acrolinx didn't exclude terms in specific contexts from your check. For a small subset of contexts, this meant that Acrolinx highlighted terms in the Words and Phrases goal even though it should've ignored them. We took care of this. Acrolinx will exclude terms based on the configuration of the Target.

[en] We usually don't scream at each other, but you might have other reasons to write in all caps. In rare cases, Acrolinx didn't highlight all-uppercase terms as spelling issues even when there was an actual issue. That's fixed now. ALL GOOD!

[en] Sometimes the sign-in page would magically disappear. We thought we'd fixed this with the 2021.07 release, but the blank page issue returned. Spooky! This time, we took proper care of it.

If the Acrolinx Private Cloud isn't an option for you, this is the combination of software that we support for Acrolinx installations. It's tested, supported, and works best in production.

If you run Acrolinx on a combination of these technologies, you can use the Standard Stack releases of the Core Platform.

Acrolinx works best with the software listed in the "Recommended" column, but you can use it with all of the versions listed below.

[en] When you tried to share a term filter with Targets, the Term Browser didn't always play nice. Sometimes you thought you'd shared a filter, but you got an error message when you tried to use it. Because it wasn't shared, Acrolinx couldn't check the terminology that you added to your Words and Phrases goal. But you don't have to worry about this anymore! The next time you try to share a filter with Targets, everything should work as expected.

[en] We're fans of customizability, but in some cases custom fields would steal the spotlight completely. When a custom field was especially long, it would throw off the UI in the "User Information" section of the Dashboard Settings page. We've taken care of this. You won't run into any UI hiccups the next time you try to add a long custom field.

[en] If you use multiple IdPs you can now choose the order of your sign-in buttons on the sign-in screen. Contact Acrolinx Support to get started.

[en] When you deleted a user in the past, the filters they owned didn't get deleted. Instead, the filters continued to exist but no one could edit or delete them. This also made it tough to create a similar filter for an active user because you couldn't reuse the deleted user's filter names. We've improved this. The next time you remove a user, Acrolinx will also delete the filters that the user owns.

[en] With the launch of Targets, we removed the document details heading from the Scorecard. We've brought it back! The next time you open your Scorecard with Targets enabled, you'll see the name of the content you just checked in the top-right corner.

[en] When you tried to look at the charts and detail links on the Content Analysis dashboard, some of them didn't show results. We've fixed this. You can now see the relevant checking data in all charts and detail links.

[en] When you used Core Platform versions 2021.04 to 2021.06 with CCMS integrations like AEM or Drupal, you couldn't always open your Scorecard. This isn't the case anymore. The next time you try to open a Scorecard in one of these integrations, you'll have no problems.

[en] In rare cases, the Acrolinx Dashboard opened to an empty page. You could only view it after a refresh. We've fixed this so that the Dashboard displays as intended when you open it.

[en] Sometimes when you tried to sign in to an Acrolinx Integration via External Authentication, you had to click the sign-in button twice. There might've even been cases where you had to sign in twice before you could use an integration. You don't have to worry about this. When you try to sign in again, it'll work as expected.

[en] If you've enabled Targets, you might've noticed that no license information was available in the "Administrative Information" section of the Scorecard. This is fixed. You can now see your license information in the Scorecard.

If the Acrolinx Private Cloud isn't an option for you, this is the combination of software that we support for Acrolinx installations. It's tested, supported, and works best in production.

If you run Acrolinx on a combination of these technologies, you can use the Standard Stack releases of the Core Platform.

Acrolinx works best with the software listed in the "Recommended" column, but you can use it with all of the versions listed below.

[en] Want to set up a fully automated user management solution? Our new User Management API can help. It consists of the User API and Roles API endpoints and lets you integrate the Acrolinx Platform into your existing user management infrastructure. You can use it to read, create, update, and delete users. Check out the Acrolinx Platform API documentation to learn more.

[en] The guidance wizard can now do its magic with Targets enabled. We've also made a few updates.

[en] You can now use it to configure a lot more guidance! Along with the standard grammar and style guidance, for example, you can also tailor guidance across all goals. Head over to our documentation for more information.

[en] Previously, the issue cards in the Sidebar showed the same required/recommended status as their corresponding goals. While you can usually assume that all issues will have the same status as the overarching goal, this isn't always true. In some cases, a specific issue within a goal can have a different status. For example, analysis issues can be a part of "required" goals, but the analysis issues themselves never count toward the score — they're always "recommended". To account for this, we show the status of the issues themselves. Analysis issues, for example, are now clearly labeled as "recommended".

[en] Before Targets, you could always add the name of a writing guide or Checking Profile to the Dashboard section Content Profiles > Criteria > Advanced. This was a problem with Targets enabled, because there wasn't a place to add the name of your Target. We've changed this. When you use Acrolinx with Targets, you'll now see "Target" in place of "Checking Profile / Writing Guide".

[en] You might want different departments within your company to sign in with different identity providers (IdPs). This is especially useful if you have contract employees. Until now, you couldn't use more than one IdP with the Core Platform. So, we've added support for up to 5 IdPs.

[en] When you tried to navigate to a details table in the Guidance Overview dashboard, you might've ended up with an empty table. We've fixed this. You'll now see summary information for the goal you clicked when you open a Details table.

[en] You might've only seen results for the Clarity goal when you reviewed your Score Roll-Up dashboard. This is no longer the case. No matter which goals you check with, you can now see all of the corresponding results in the Score Roll-up Analytics dashboard.

[en] When you wanted to assign Targets to your content contributors, you could do so based on any custom field. This shouldn't have been possible, so we've fixed it. You can now assign Targets based on a role, username, or custom field set to "List".

[en] On rare occasions, the Core Platform would crash when you used certain invalid XML characters. We've fixed this. The XML characters no longer trigger a crash.

[en] If you use external authentication, you might've gotten stuck in a loop when you tried to grant access to an application after sign-in. Sometimes, you'd get sent back to the sign-in screen repeatedly. We've fixed this. You won't have to sign in again after you grant an application access to your Acrolinx account.

[en] In some cases, you couldn't completely sign out of the Sidebar. When you signed out and signed in again, you'd see a message on the browser access confirmation page that said "You're already signed in as <username>. To switch accounts, sign out". We've fixed this. The next time you sign out of the Sidebar and try to sign back in, it'll work as expected.

[en] It's been a while since we've changed the Acrolinx Findability UI, so you'll see a few updates. The "Discovered Keywords" and "Target Keywords" have new icons, and we've given the keyword card an updated look.

[en] We've adjusted the minimum session timeout for the Acrolinx Dashboard and the Term Contributor. You'll now need to set the timeout to at least 2 minutes. If your current custom setting is below 2 minutes, it'll automatically change to 2 minutes with 2021.06. The default session timeout setting is still 30 minutes.

[en] Instead of loading all Targets/languages into memory at once, we now use stream handling to merge new and existing data when you use Targets . This uses less memory, so you don't need to worry about memory issues when you have a large number of Targets.

[en] The default DITA Content Profile that came with guidance packages before 2021.05 didn't show the name of the topic location in the Acrolinx Sidebar. However, with the release of 2021.05 you can now see the location of the issue, so you can manually change it.

[en] From 2021.05, any guidance packages will include a default DITA Content Profile that Acrolinx uses to check the name of the topic location. So, you can keep an eye on everything. If you’re using a Core Platform version before 2021.05, you'll need to make a little tweak if you have customized DITA Content Profiles. Follow the steps in Acrolinx for Oxygen - What You Can Check to get started.

[en] We heard you! It looks like the help text for the administrative sign-in when federated authentication is enabled wasn't too helpful. We've improved the wording to make it clearer.

[en] With our switch to a containerized deployment, the Server ID no longer had any useful information. That's why we’ve removed the Server ID from the overview of servers table in the Servers section.

[en] Since they aren't useful for most scenarios, we've removed the Stop all servers button from the servers overview and the Stop server button from the individual server pages. As a Standard Stack user, you might need to stop or restart the Core Platform in rare cases. Learn how to button up those situations without the buttons.

[en] Ever looked at the Performance Monitoring section in the Acrolinx Dashboard? No? Neither have we. With the launch of our containerized deployment method, we jumped at the chance to remove a few little-used Dashboard sections. Now, less is more in the Maintenance section.

[en] As we mentioned, less is more. If you're a fan of advanced configurations, you might miss the Configuration Properties in the Maintenance section of the Acrolinx Dashboard. We've removed it to adapt to our containerized deployment. But don't worry, we've got you covered! Cloud customers, you can reach out to our Support Team directly for any special configurations. If you're a Standard Stack user, you can still change configuration properties settings manually through the overlay. No need to panic, we’ve only removed the UI.

[en] We've treated this release as an opportunity to streamline the Maintenance section even more. Another little-used section was the Logs section. With the removal of this section, we've taken another step toward a neat dashboard.

[en] With the big cleanup, we've removed two rarely used advanced terminology configuration features. These features are the ability to localize categories, list items, and field names and to view term search logging. We also did this to make the containerization of the platform possible.

[en] We've changed the availability of reporting database backups created via the Database Backups page in Analytics. If you create a backup, make sure to download and save it immediately. Once you restart the Core Platform, the backup won’t be available. Same goes for any uploaded backups. After you upload a backup, make sure you restore it immediately. Uploaded backups won’t be available once you restart the Core Platform. Visit Analytics and Reporting Database Backups for more information.

[en] If you use Standard Stack, you can no longer edit the threshold.xml file via <INSTALL_DIR>\server\www\xsl. Don't worry, it's still possible to overlay this file to access the thresholds features in non-Targets mode. To do this, just create a new version of the file in an overlay in your configuration directory.

[en] You might've seen our 404 page more than usual. Even though we're fond of our new design, we prefer that Acrolinx displays the information you're looking for. We've fixed this so you get all the information you need.

[en] There were several minor issues in the Status Details table, which you'll find linked from the Trends, Content Comparison, and Content Alignment dashboards. Some headers went missing, and the first rows of the table were empty. We caught the little runaways and brought them back to the table.

[en] There were two bugs in the Guidance Overview dashboard in Analytics. The parameter that defined the time scope of the dashboard was set to the beginning of the year. It should've been set to the beginning of the current month to ensure that the dashboard loads faster. There was also an issue where two charts in the Guidance Overview dashboard were always empty. You only saw this in the 2021.03 and 2021.04 releases. We've fixed both bugs, so you can view everything in the Guidance Overview dashboard as intended.

[en] In the past few Acrolinx versions, XML term filters in non-Targets mode didn't resolve in a containerized setup. We've fixed this. You can now use XML term filters again in non-Targets mode. Reminder: we've deprecated XML term filters with the Targets launch! Instead, you can use the term filter setup.

If the Acrolinx Private Cloud isn't an option for you, this is the combination of software that we support for Acrolinx installations. It's tested, supported, and works best in production.

If you run Acrolinx on a combination of these technologies, you can use the Standard Stack releases of the Core Platform.

Acrolinx works best with the software listed in the "Recommended" column, but you can use it with all of the versions listed below.

[en] When you used Targets mode previously, you had to share term filters with the Term Browser to add them to your Words and Phrases goal. We've changed this. You can now choose to share term filters with the Term Browser, with Targets, or with both.

[en] To find this option, go to Terminology > Search Filter and click the actions menu.

[en] The Content Analysis dashboard lets you view the Guideline Details, Issues by Goal, and Content Analysis by Goals charts, but you couldn't filter them by goals or categories. We've improved this. You can now filter these charts by goal or category to take a closer look at the issues in your content.

[en] Sometimes, the style of the "Administrative Login" button was a little misleading. That's why we’ve improved the UI of our sign-in screen when you use federated authentication. We made the administrative sign-in less prominent, but the added help icon makes clear who should use it. While we were at it, we updated the "sign-in" button to better match our color scheme. You'll see this on the Dashboard, Term Browser, and Term Contribution sign-in pages.

[en] When you export and import terminology between systems, fields don't always get mapped correctly. This can make some IDs look a little funny when you import them to Acrolinx. The good news? We've added a style sheet to help with this! The “Non-numeric IDs” style sheet helps you find terms with broken IDs. This style sheet will be available in all guidance packages from this release forward Learn more about managing terminology data with Acrolinx..

[en] Lost in translation? Some terms in Targets only appeared in English. We've fixed this. You can now see all menu items in your selected interface language.

[en] You might've noticed that the link to the Acrolinx Privacy Policy was missing from the sign-in app. This was, of course, not intended. We've now added it back.

[en] You can no longer guess the URL of a term import log. This makes things more secure, especially when you don't use an access token to secure your log downloads.

[en] We've updated the Current Avg. Acrolinx Score in the Trends dashboard to more closely match the averages in the Trends chart. Now, you'll always see the average Acrolinx Score for the current month instead of a cumulative average.

[en] You'll still see a cumulative average Acrolinx Score on the Content Alignment dashboard, so we've updated the label to make that clear.

[en] When you edited a role, you'd only see the "Dashboard" privilege group for a short time before it closed and you couldn't expand it again. This happened when you selected the "Edit Targets" privilege. We've fixed this. Now, you can see and expand the "Dashboard" privilege group without any issues.

[en] You might've had some trouble with popup blockers when you tried to navigate between the classic and modern views of the Acrolinx Dashboard. We've fixed this, so you can smoothly navigate between both views.

[en] A few pesky bugs in the Targets Scorecard affected the styling and ordering of guidance. The Scorecard you get when you have Targets enabled is pretty and works as expected.

[en] We've also fixed a link in the request validator, so you can now open the XML Scorecard from the Request Validator.

[en] Did a new tab magically open when you signed out of the Dashboard? That wasn't to motivate you to sign in again. We've fixed that confusing bug. A separate tab no longer opens after you successfully sign-out of the classic and modern views.

[en] Targets bring you the guidance you've waited for! When updating to Targets, you’ll have access to new guidance for Inclusive Language and Scannability. Both are goals that you can set in a Target.

[en] Targets serve the same purpose as Checking Profiles (called Guidance Profiles in the Sidebar) and Writing Guides. Now, it's just easier for you to manage and tune your guidance.

[en] Targets also come with a fresh, new look. We’re currently overhauling the Acrolinx Dashboard UI, and Targets is the first section to live in the modern view. Once you've updated to Targets, you can navigate between the classic and modern views of the Acrolinx Dashboard — without the need to sign in separately. The modern view is responsive across all supported browsers to give you a quality user experience in various desktop screen resolutions. Be on the lookout for more section makeovers throughout the year.

[en] Want to use Targets now? We’ll translate your existing Checking Profiles into Targets. Reach out to your customer success manager to schedule your update. Let's start this together! We look forward to hearing from you.

[en] News regarding our inline tutorials! You might've already noticed that we’ve changed a few things when it comes to our inline tutorial. To make the inline tutorials compatible with the modern view of the dashboard, we’ve moved the inline tutorial icon to the bottom-left side of the Acrolinx dashboard. We’ve also updated the color of the icon to make it all nice and shiny! Unfortunately, we also needed to change the display behavior. The inline tutorials are now only visible on screens that are wider than 1200px. If you’re using a smaller screen device, you can't see the tutorials.

[en] We've added a built-in user for automatic terminology integrations that use the terminology API or the Term Transfer Tool. The termapiaccess user is for use with the Terminology API if API Token or federated authentication isn't possible. This user has the role “Terminology API Access“, which comes with permissions to access API-based terminology applications, sign in to the Dashboard, view and edit terms, change the status of a term, import and export terms, and restore and create database backups.

[en] Was my username upper case? Maybe lower case? It shouldn't matter. Even so, you couldn't always sign in to the Acrolinx Dashboard due to different casing for usernames. More specifically, this happened when you used PingFederate authentication to sign in. We've fixed this, so you no longer have to worry about whether your username is case-sensitive.

[en] Acrolinx has started to phase out support for most of the guidance settings options. The majority of them found a new home in Targets, others won't be available anymore. Reach out to your Acrolinx contact if you have any questions, or visit our Sunset Policy for more specific details.

[en] Starting in 2021.02, we’ll drop dashboard support for Internet Explorer 11 due to low popularity and industry trends.