Web Experience Toolkit (WET)

Web Experience Toolkit (WET) v2.3 release notes

Table of Contents

Overview

Web Experience Toolkit (WET) includes ready-made tools and solutions for building and maintaining innovative Web sites that are accessible, usable, and interoperable. These tools and solutions are open source software and free for use by departments and external Web communities.

The toolkit complies with the new Standard on Web Accessibility and the new Standard on Web Usability; the toolkit will also ease compliance with other new Web Standards, including Web Interoperability. WET is highly recommended for use on Government of Canada websites.

Benefits

  • Provides ready-made Web tools and solutions for building and maintaining innovative Web sites.
  • Respects accessibility (WCAG 2.0 AA and WAI-ARIA), usability, and interoperability.
  • Reduces costs by consolidating Web tools and solutions.
  • Open source software that is free to use by departments and external Web communities.
  • Uses advanced technologies to push the envelope for Web site functionality:
    • HTML5, CSS3, jQuery (JavaScript framework);
    • Ever-growing list of open source plugins and widgets.
  • Supports a wide range of layouts and designs for internal and external Web sites (including applications).

Features

There are 61 features included in WET v2.3 (9 new and 37 updated). The following benefits apply to each of these features:
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 7+

To report a defect or to suggest an improvement for any of these features, please register for an IRCan account and follow the instructions in the Reviewer's Guide.

Core framework

HTML5 core markup structure - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature combines HTML5 semantic markup, XML conformance, WAI-ARIA, and accessible coding to create the structural layer of the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Can be applied to Web sites, Web applications, and other Web-based tools
  • Allows a wide range of layouts and designs
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5 and is XML conformant

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Changed "Primary navigation" to "Side navigation" and "Navigation principale" to "Navigation latérale"
Added themes for fixed width (base-fixed), fixed width + grids (base-fixed-grids) and fluid (base-fluid)
Removed printer-friendly CSS section
Removed reference to util.css
Added "cn-col-inner" div to increase design flexibility
Removed type="text/css" from stylesheet links
Optimized the source code comments and the use of spacing to significantly reduce the HTML file sizes
Deleted the include files since they were out of date and no longer relevant
1.2 2011-08-08 Added a bilingual one-column template (English/French and French/English)
Improved the HTML5 outline by optimizing the use of section, header, and nav elements
Removed link element with rel="schema.dcterms" (no longer validates)
Removed type="text/javascript" from script elements load JavaScript (redundant)
Corrected minor errors in the XML files of the includes directory
1.1 2011-02-07 Moved CLF 2.0 and General themes to separate WET projects
Created include file versions of the core markup structure
Removed meta http-equiv, xml:lang, and xmlns from markup
Changed metadata namespace from "dc" to "dcterms"
Specified metadata scheme with title attribute
Moved role="navigation" to nav element to avoid landmark duplication
Moved id="cn-nav" from a to h2 in 1col-theme-base-eng.html
Corrected a few source code comments
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: HTML5 core markup structure

XHTML 1.0 Strict core markup structure - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature combines XHTML 1.0 Strict and accessible coding to create the structural layer of the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Can be applied to Web sites, Web applications, and other Web-based tools
  • Allows a wide range of layouts and designs
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to XHTML 1.0 Strict

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Changed "Primary navigation" to "Side navigation" and "Navigation principale" to "Navigation latérale"
Added themes for fixed width (base-fixed), fixed width + grids (base-fixed-grids) and fluid (base-fluid)
Removed printer-friendly CSS section
Removed reference to util.css
Added "cn-col-inner" div to increase design flexibility
Optimized the source code comments and the use of spacing to significantly reduce the HTML file sizes
Deleted the include files since they were out of date and no longer relevant
1.2 2011-08-08 Added a bilingual one-column template (English/French and French/English)
Corrected minor errors in the XML files of the includes directory
1.1 2011-02-07 Moved CLF 2.0 and General themes to separate WET projects
Created include file versions of the core markup structure
Changed metadata namespace from "dc" to "dcterms"
Specified metadata scheme with scheme attribute
Corrected a few source code comments
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: XHTML 1.0 Strict core markup structure

CSS presentation layer - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides the CSS-based presentation layer of the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Can be applied to Web sites, Web applications, and other Web-based tools
  • Allows a wide range of layouts and designs
  • Implements a theme-based approach to make it easy to configure the layout and design
  • Skip navigation links become visible with mouse hover or keyboard focus
  • Integrated printer-friendly functionality

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Corrected textarea font issue in Firefox
Corrected IE7 issue where activating same page links targeting a hidden heading did not cause the page to scroll down
Removed dotted underline from abbr and acronym because it was discouraging the use of the abbr and acronym elements
Added themes for fixed width (base-fixed), fixed width + grids (base-fixed-grids) and fluid (base-fluid)
Removed the top border from print CSS
Removed the default style from address elements
Made the positioning of the skip header links more consistent across the various themes
Removed support for the "invisible" class since "cn-invisble" should be used instead
1.2 2011-08-08 Corrected a text size issue with form fields in non-IE browsers
Skip header links are now only visible on keyboard focus
Corrected positioning of invisible link targets
Corrected skip header link spacing issues in IE6
1.1 2011-02-07 Moved CLF 2.0 and General themes to separate WET projects
Added support for a 2-column layout with a right column for navigation
Corrected right-to-left and bi-directional support for hidden content
Deprecated .navaid and added .cn-invisible, .cn-show-onfocus, and .cn-show-onhover CSS classes for hiding content
Corrected IE6, IE7, and Chrome display issues
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: CSS presentation layer

jQuery integration - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature uses the jQuery JavaScript framework to create a plugin-based approach for enhancing the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Includes the jQuery JavaScript Library which "simplifies HTML document traversing, event handling, animating, and Ajax interactions for rapid web development" (Source: http://jquery.com)
  • Provides a plugin-style architecture that can load scripts and CSS files without the use of link and script elements
  • Allows jQuery plugins and other JavaScript files to be added to the WET framework by wrapping them in a WET plugin
  • Simplifies plugin development by providing utility functions for loading parameters from a script id and dynamically loading JavaScript library files and CSS files
  • Requires only one line of code in a Web page to enable and configure WET plugins

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Added jQuery UI 1.8.16
Updated jQuery to 1.7.1
Updated the default jQuery UI theme to fix contrast issues and remove font styles
Added the jQuery Metadata plugin to support the new parameterless approach
Added jQuery HashChange to the core
Added CSS3 PIE to the core to enable CSS3 features in IE6 - IE8
Added detection for changes in text size, zoom, and browser window size
Added the url function/object to the PE object and added pathTokenized and queryTokenized to it for easier manipulation of path and querystrings
Fixed loading issues with Equal heights
Equal heights feature now recalculates for every change in text size, zoom, and browser window size
Added code to fix focus problem related to anchors with some browsers
Added ie6Reflow for better ie6 image scaling in a responsive design system
Added HTML lang capability for language detection
1.2 2011-08-08 Added method for testing if CSS is supported/enabled
Modified the plugin module to allow for better scalability of features.
Fixed plugin detection issue in Firefox Ubuntu where the version could not be detected properly.
Fixed IE6 issue with keyboard focus tooltips
Fixed IE6 issue with cn-linkdesc content being clipped when extending beyond the right boundary of the content area
Fixed IE6 issue with the calculation of the size of the right border
Fixed IE6 scripting error with footer height adjustment of CLF 2.0 Welcome page
1.1 2011-02-07 Added Silverlight support
Better support for cookies with a new $.Storage function
Removed transparent background in Flash
Added caption support for Flash and Silverlight
Added the jQuery cookie plugin
Improved the version detection of plugins
Corrected overflow handling
Fixed layout issues with IE6
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: jQuery integration

Framework variants

.NET variant - Version 1.0

Overview: This feature adapts the XML/XSLT Abstraction feature for use with .NET.

Benefits:
  • Makes it quicker and easier to update the core markup structure across a site
  • Reduces maintenance and migration costs
  • Reduces network usage
  • Makes it easier to create and maintain Web pages
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: .NET variant

ASP variant - Version 1.1

Overview: This feature adapts the HTML5 and XHTML 1.0 Strict core markup structures for use with ASP.

Benefits:
  • Helps to minimize the duplication of content and code (such as titles and dates)
  • Provides central control of the left and right columns
  • Improves consistency by separating content from the template code
  • Automates the breadcrumb trail
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the core markup and the CLF 2.0 theme
Fixed validation and spelling errors
Added Proactive Disclosure link to the 3 column template of the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: ASP variant

CodeIgniter variant - Version 1.0

Overview: This feature adapts the XML/XSLT Abstraction feature for use with CodeIgniter.

Benefits:
  • Makes it quicker and easier to update the core markup structure across a site
  • Reduces maintenance and migration costs
  • Reduces network usage
  • Makes it easier to create and maintain Web pages
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: CodeIgniter variant

Drupal variant - Version 1.0 (New)

Overview: This is a Drupal 7 Distribution using the WET library + themes that allows for users to start using Drupal an Enterprise Web Content Management System with a pre-configured and often best practice implementation for government. This Distribution comes with a variety of features and is constantly being improved to meet both government requirements and other industries.

Benefits:
The Distribution has a lot of features that were implemented in the 1.0 release. These features either came through a variety of top notch Drupal modules or through custom modules that were added to ingrate more government aligned functionality. A list of the custom modules are provided in the appendix.

  • Custom Installation Profile (webexp): This installation profile installs the baseline suite of modules needed to properly use the distribution and its related features.
  • Improved CLF Theme Integration in Drupal: A lot of work has gone into integrating the new GCWU theme and the related WET library.
  • Complex Access Control + Workflow: The Workbench + Rules module help to built a great detail driven workflow.
  • Pre-Configured Roles + Users + Permissions: A baseline set of defaults permissions come with the Distribution and once the settings have been both updated and tailored to the organization they can be exported and become the default install.
  • Multilingualism: A great deal of work was done on ensuring the Distribution is fully functionally with both the English and Frech languages. Custom translations were made for most custom work and a great deal was done to ease the creation of multilingual content.

For a more up to date and comprehensive feature guide and knowledge base please go to: https://wetkit.atlassian.net/wiki/display/WETKIT/Home

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: Drupal variant project

Java variant - Version 1.0

Overview: This feature adapts the XML/XSLT Abstraction feature for use with Java.

Benefits:
  • Makes it quicker and easier to update the core markup structure across a site
  • Reduces maintenance and migration costs
  • Reduces network usage
  • Makes it easier to create and maintain Web pages
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Java variant

Mobile device variant - Version 1.01

Overview: This feature optimizes the core framework for mobile devices.

Benefits:
  • Expands the content area to the full width of the screen
  • Displays the left and/or right columns below the content area
  • Skip header links are visible by default
  • Does not remove any information

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.01 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure, the CLF 2.0 theme, and the base theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Mobile device variant

PHP variant - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature adapts the HTML5 core markup structure for use with PHP.

Benefits:
  • Helps to minimize the duplication of content and code (such as titles and dates)
  • Provides central control of the left and right columns
  • Improves consistency by separating content from the template code
  • Automates the breadcrumb trail
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Added support for the GC Web Usability theme
Updated to the latest version of the CLF 2.0, General and base themes
Add nojquery option for disabling jQuery framework
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the core markup and the CLF 2.0 theme
Fixed validation and spelling errors
Corrected English/Français URLs and title values on Welcome pages
1.1 2011-02-07 Updated to the latest version of the core markup
Minor reorganization and optimisation of files
Fixed pg_html5 implementation
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: PHP variant

Ruby on Rails variant - Version 1.0

Overview: This feature adapts the HTML5 core markup structure for use with Ruby on Rails. The code is currently packaged as a fully operational stock Rails web application.
There are plans to eventually extract the WET core framework into a separate gem or engine that can be dropped into existing Rails apps.

Benefits:
  • Allows web developers to use Ruby on Rails for rapid Web application development
  • Helps to minimize the duplication of content and code
  • Out-of-the-box bilingual support
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Ruby on Rails variant

SSI variant - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature adapts the HTML5 core markup structure for use with Server side includes (SSI).

Benefits:
  • Helps to minimize the duplication of content and code (such as titles and dates)
  • Provides central control of the left and right columns
  • Improves consistency by separating content from the template code
  • Automates the breadcrumb trail
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Added support for the GC Web Usability theme
Updated to the latest version of the CLF 2.0, General and base themes
Added nojquery option for disabling jQuery framework
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the core markup and the CLF 2.0 theme
Fixed validation and spelling errors
1.1 2011-02-07 Updated to the latest version of the core markup
Minor reorganization and optimisation of files
Fixed pg_html5 implementation
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: SSI variant

TYPO3 variant - Version 1.0

Overview: This feature adapts the HTML5 core markup structure for use with TYPO3.

Benefits:
  • Helps to minimize the duplication of content and code (such as titles and dates)
  • Provides central control of the left and right columns
  • Improves consistency by separating content from the template code
  • Automates the breadcrumb trail
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: TYPO3 variant

WordPress variant - Version 1.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature adapts the WET core framework and the CLF 2.0 theme for use as a WordPress theme.

Benefits:
  • Easy to install like any other WordPress theme
  • Supports English and French in a single WordPress instance
  • CLF 2.0 compliant
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup and the CLF 2.0 theme
Corrected parsing error in index.php
Optimized HTML5 outline in sidebar.php
Removed unnecessary files
Corrected the heading structure
Corrected use of tables for admin page
Removed extra search field in search results to prevent conflicting ids and redundancy.
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: WordPress variant

XML/XSLT Abstraction - Version 1.2

Overview: This feature uses XML and XSLT to completely separate the core markup structure from content.

Benefits:
  • Makes it quicker and easier to migrate content into a Content Management System
  • Makes it quicker and easier to update the core markup structure across a site
  • Reduces of maintenance and migration costs
  • Reduces network usage
  • Makes it easier to create and maintain Web pages
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Updated to the latest version of the core markup
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: XML/XSLT Abstraction

WET themes

Accessibil-IT theme - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides an Accessibil-IT theme for the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Enabled responsive layout
Improved compatibility with responsive layout
Optimized the source code comments and the use of spacing to significantly reduce the HTML file sizes
Migrated to the WET v2.3 framework and features
Now uses the WET CSS Grid System
Replaced coin slider with the WET Tabbed interface
Replaced contact form validation with the WET Form validation
Corrected logo display issue in IE6
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the HTML5 core markup
Corrected heading structure
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Accessibil-IT theme

CLF 2.0 theme - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a CLF 2.0 theme for the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Conforms to CLF 2.0
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5 and is XML conformant (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Validates to XHTML 1.0 Strict and is XML conformant (XHTML 1.0 Strict Web pages only)

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Added "Transparency" heading and "Completed Access to Information Requests" link above the "Proactive Disclosure" link in the left column of the 3-column layout (same for French).
Changed "Breadcrumb" to "Breadcrumb trail"
Disabled skip header links in both the splash pages and the server message pages
Improved the appearance of the favicon
Floated #cn-msg-space to improve Welcome page compatibility with larger text sizes
Removed the gap elements since JS is now used to equalize column heights
Integrated print CSS into main CSS files (eliminates the need for a separate print CSS file)
Added breadcrumb to print version of content pages
Improved print support for Welcome pages and server message pages
Fixed display and printing issues with Date Modified
Updated to latest version of the WET core framework
Optimized the source code comments and the use of spacing to significantly reduce the HTML file sizes
Deleted the include files since they were out of date and no longer relevant
Deleted the printer-friendly CSS since no longer needed
1.2 2011-08-08 Added multilingual working examples
Updated to the latest version of the core markup
Removed rel="up up up", rel="up up" and rel="up" ("up" removed from HTML5)
Corrected printing issues in Firefox, Safari, and Internet Explorer
Corrected spacing issues affecting most browsers
Corrected IE6 display issues
Removed the title/scheme attribute from the dcterms.creator metadata field (to align with IM guidance)
Added content date indicators to the server message pages
Corrected the Welcome page and server message page heading structures
1.1 2011-02-07 Separated the CLF 2.0 theme from the WET core framework
Created include file versions of the CLF 2.0 theme
Updated HTML files to v1.1 of the HTML5 and XHTML 1.0 Strict core markup structures
Corrected right-to-left and bi-directional support for hidden content
Corrected IE6 and IE7 display issues
Corrected Welcome page margins
Corrected server message page width
Increased linked area, corrected appearance, and changed hover effect for h3 links in the left and right columns
Increased linked area of "Top of Page" links to include the arrow
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release included in the WET core framework

Project page: CLF 2.0 theme

GC intranet theme - Version 1.0 (New)

Overview: This feature provides an optional theme for GC intranets that is based off of the GC Web Usability theme.

Benefits:

  • Conforms to the Standard on Web Accessibility and Standard on Web Usability
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5 and is XML conformant (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Validates to XHTML 1.0 Strict and is XML conformant (XHTML 1.0 Strict Web pages only)
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 6+

Version history:GC intranet theme

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: GC intranet theme

GC Web Usability theme - Version 1.0 (New)

Overview: This theme was developed to help Government of Canada websites comply with the Standard on Web Usability.

Benefits:

  • Conforms to the Standard on Web Accessibility and Standard on Web Usability
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5 and is XML conformant (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Validates to XHTML 1.0 Strict and is XML conformant (XHTML 1.0 Strict Web pages only)
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 6+

Version history:GC Web Usability theme

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: GC Web Usability theme

General theme - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a general theme for the WET core framework.

Benefits:
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5 and is XML conformant (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Validates to XHTML 1.0 Strict and is XML conformant (XHTML 1.0 Strict Web pages only)

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Changed "Breadcrumb" to "Breadcrumb trail"
Corrected lang and xml:lang values in the French 1 column XHTML 1.0 Strict page
Corrected banner text in the French 1 column XHTML 1.0 Strict page
Removed <div id="cn-leaf"></div> from all 1 column pages
Removed the gap elements since JS is now used to equalize column heights
Integrated print CSS into main CSS files (eliminates the need for a separate print CSS file)
Added breadcrumb to print version of content pages
Fixed display and printing issues with Date Modified
Updated to latest version of the WET core framework
Optimized the source code comments and the use of spacing to significantly reduce the HTML file sizes
Deleted the include files since they were out of date and no longer relevant
Deleted the printer-friendly CSS since no longer needed
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the core markup
Removed rel="up up up", rel="up up" and rel="up" ("up" removed from HTML5)
Corrected IE6 display issues
1.1 2011-02-07 Separated the General theme from the WET core framework
Created include file versions of the General theme
Updated HTML files to v1.1 of the HTML5 and XHTML 1.0 Strict core markup structures
Corrected right-to-left and bi-directional support for hidden content
Corrected IE6 and IE7 display issues
Increased linked area, corrected appearance, and changed hover effect for h3 links in the left and right columns
Increased linked area of "Top of Page" links to include the arrow
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release included in the WET core framework

Project page: General theme

TerraFirma2 theme - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a theme for the WET core framework that is based upon the TerraFirma2 template by NodeThirtyThree + Free CSS Templates. This feature is meant to demonstrate the flexibility of WET.

Benefits:
  • Uses HTML5 semantic elements and WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Groups most of the navigation after the content area
  • Validates to HTML5 (HTML5 Web pages only)
  • Validates to XHTML 1.0 Strict (XHTML 1.0 Strict Web pages only)

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Removed the gap elements since JS is now used to equalize column heights
Integrated print CSS into main CSS files (eliminates the need for a separate print CSS file)
Updated to latest version of the WET core framework
Optimized the source code comments and the use of spacing to significantly reduce the HTML file sizes
Deleted the include files since they were out of date and no longer relevant
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the HTML5 core markup
Added an h2 to the menu bar nav element
Corrected validation errors in the XHTML 1.0 Strict version
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: TerraFirma2 theme

Display enhancement features

Archived Web Page template - Version 1.0.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides an "archive" notice for your archived content. The notice appears at the top of the browser window when the user scrolls away from the top of the page.

Benefits:
  • Makes it easier to recognize archived content
  • Provides instructions on how to request alternate formats

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme and v1.3 of the CLF 2.0 theme
Added missing "contact us" link
When clicking on an anchor, scrolling now adjusts to take into consideration the height of the floating top bar.
Changed message in "Archived Content" box.
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Archived Web Page template

Charts and graphs support - Version 2.0 (Updated)

Overview: This feature dynamically generates charts and graphs from table data.

Benefits:
  • Easier to update and maintain than image-based charts and graphs
  • Supports line charts, area charts, bar graphs, and pie charts
  • Visual appearance can be customized through CSS
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
2.0 2012-02-06 Complete re-write and support for complex tables and complex graphic
1.01 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure, the CLF 2.0 theme, and the base theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Charts and graphs support

CSS Grid System - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a layout grid for dividing up horizontal and vertical space. This helps to create visually appealing layouts by enabling consistent placement of content.

Benefits:
  • Enables consistent placement of content
  • Makes it easier to create visually appealing layouts by helping to apply the “rule of thirds” and the “golden section” to Web page design
  • Significantly reduces the amount of effort needed to produce visually appealing Web page layouts (in comparison to building CSS-based layouts from scratch)
  • Supports nesting of grids to create complex designs with little effort
  • Makes it easier to produce asymmetric layouts for creating visual texture
  • Reduces the amount of effort needed to reposition elements and to change display properties (typography, margins, etc.)
  • Enables the creation of “magazine” and premium themes for blog platforms

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the GC Web Usability theme
Removed CLF 2.0 working examples
Corrected several CSS validation errors
Minor CSS changes and ensured that the demo images and CSS images are still supported for the CLF2 theme.
Added reference to line-height CSS on example pages
Changed form element proxmity, fixed table display, added 5 new classes for margin-right (none, small, medium, large, xl) and merged in the decorative CSS that was in grids.css
Removed font-family declarations because redundant with recent fixes to the CSS presentation layer
Corrected margins for a few form elements
Added util-free.css, a version of util.css with the 3rd party icons and images removed
Temporarily disabled external links CSS until an improved solution can be found
Corrected opening "Attention:" block in the GC Web Usability theme examples to reflect that the util.css is used by default by the theme
framework-default.css, framework-large.css, and framework-small.css replaced by framework-responsive.css and framework-static.css
Removed elastic examples and JavaScript files since no longer supported
Removed util-free.css
Adjusted forms CSS per suggest/defect raised.
Included missing images
Improved table of contents on demo pages
Adjusted attributes so there should be no/limited overlap in IE7
Spell checked text on demo pages.
Added new class "update"
Adjusted padding for IE7 input buttons
Changed table of contents to h2
Updated terms and conditions comments
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Corrected display issues caused by recent changes to the WET core framework.
Corrected an image stretching problem in IE6.
Removed image stretching
1.1 2011-02-07 Improved support for rtl and bidirectional content
Adjusted the margin-left for grid-medium to 230px from 225px
Added download icon for ppt and pot files (PowerPoint)
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: CSS Grid System

Image-free rounded corners - Version 1.1 (Replaced by CSS3 PIE in jQuery Integration)

Search term highlighting - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature automatically highlights certain words on a Web page. The words to highlight can be set manually or through a simple search form.

Benefits:
  • Helps users to find certain words on a Web page
  • Includes a simple search form that allow users to set which words to highlight
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Fixed issue where no-ASCII characters (such as french accents) where not showing up in the results
Converted the plugin to the parameterless approach
Added the functionality to specify default terms in the query string
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.11 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Now ignores double quotes and round brackets when matching terms (created regex problems)
Results message now cleared when minimum length for search terms is not met
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Search term highlighting

Tracked changes - Version 1.01 (Updated)

Overview: This feature visually identifies tracked changes and provides a mechanism for navigating tracked changes in HTML documents.

Benefits:

  • Allows readers to see what changes were made to a document
  • Allows readers to navigate changes using a toolbar or keyboard
  • Makes tracked changes accessible to screen readers
  • Visual appearance can be customized through CSS

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.01 2012-02-06 Toolbar now attached to the content area rather than the body
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
Increased z-index so doesn't get overlapped by the GC Web Usability theme header
Start position is now set to below the menu bar of the GC Web Usability theme
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Zebra striping

Zebra striping - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature adds zebra stripes to lists and tables by colouring alternate list items and table rows.

Benefits:
  • Clearly distinguishes individual list items and table rows

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Added French working example
Cleaned up the markup in the working examples
Added missing CSS properties
Updated to the latest version of the GC Web Usability theme
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Added support for tables with header rows
Replaced JavaScript-based hover effects with CSS-based hover effects
Added missing table elements and attributes
Removed the need to declare the selector in the params var
Corrected heading structure
Corrected translation errors
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Zebra striping

Form interface features

Auto-complete for text input fields - Version 1.0 (New)

Overview: The focus of this project is to develop and maintain a jQuery plugin for adding auto-complete functionality to specific text input fields by dynamically displaying a list of words that match the user's input.

Benefits:
  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 7+

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: Auto-complete for text input fields

Checkbox list enhancement - Version 1.02 (Updated)

Overview: This feature enhances the appearance of a checkbox list and makes it easier to use.

Benefits:
  • Visually groups checkboxes together
  • Makes it easier to identify which checkboxes are selected and which are not
  • Adds the entire containing row to the selectable area for each checkbox
  • Controls the number of checkboxes that are visible (scrollbar used to reach the rest)
  • Adds "Select all" and "Deselect all" buttons
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.02 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
Removed maxRows setting from working example
1.01 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Checkbox list enhancement

Deselectable radio buttons - Version 1.0 (Updated)

Overview: This feature allows radio buttons to be deselected.

Benefits:
  • Allows users to make one selection or none at all
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0.1 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Form validation - Version 1.1 (Updated)

Overview: The feature provides generic validation and error message handling for Web forms.

Benefits:
  • Multiple validation methods
  • Customized error messages
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2012-02-06 Added examples showing custom/advanced parameters
Added support for XHTML
Limited the effect of the CSS styles to the wet-boew-form-validation container
Error messages no longer change when focus shifts to/from form fields
Added required="required" to required form fields (excluding IE6 and IE7)
Form is hidden initially and only shown if JavaScript is enabled
Added fallback solution for when JavaScript disabled
Corrected support for French
Added support for prefixing summary messages with field names
Can now handle multiple form instances on a page
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.01 2011-09-13 Corrected IE6/IE7 scripting error
Corrected French phone number error message
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Form validation

Slider control - Version 1.0 (New)

Overview: The focus of this project is to develop and maintain a jQuery plugin for creating accessible slider interfaces.

Benefits:
  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 7+

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: Slider control

Information sharing features

Feedback form - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature allows users to submit feedback for a specific Web page or the Web site in general.

Benefits:
  • Provides a common way for users to provide feedback
  • Makes it easier for users to provide helpful feedback
  • Hides the fields that users should not complete
  • Includes both client-side and server-side form field validation
  • Includes the option to send the submitted data to an email account
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Now depends on the Form validation project for validation and error message handling
Updated text to align with the requirement for notices in the Standard on Web Usability
Added option to select the reason field through the query string
Added "Other" to the reason field
Limited effect of CSS to just wet-boew-feedback-form container
Added fallback solution for when JavaScript is disabled (provides alternate contact methods)
Removed PHP server-side support (server-side should only be used to do server-side processing of submitted form data)
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Corrected or removed unnamed sections in HTML5 outline
Added h2 to group follow-up questions
Made the default option a blank value in the first drop-down menu
Fixed validation to produce an error when a blank value is selected in the drop-down menu (HTML only)
Replaced "/" with "or" under Mobile Information
Relocated "Contact Information" header to display right above the Name field.
Removed comment box at the end of the form. Form now only has one message box at the beginning.
1.1 2011-02-07 Desktop and Laptop Information now visible by default when reporting a difficulty browsing or navigating
Updated to the latest version of the core markup
Changed the heading text for Personal Information Collection Statement
Added a link to the Personal Information Collection Statement
Corrected the display of "(required)"/"(obligatoire)"
Corrected a few typos in the French version
Changed "contact" to "contact-coord"
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Feedback form

RSS feeds widget - Version 1.1 (Replaced)

This feature was replaced by Web feeds widget - Version 1.2.

Share widget - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a widget for sharing a Web page on various social networks.

Benefits:
  • Makes it easier for users to share Web pages on various social networks
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Added functionality to hide the share widget when tabbing out of it
Escape key anywhere in the widget closes it
Now absolutely positioned to the right
Improved compatibility with responsive layout
Added hover/focus effect
Optimized code
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to jQuery Bookmarks v1.3.4 (from v1.3.1)
Enabled support for global configurations using all jQuery Bookmark options within the JavaScript file (applies to all affected pages)
Enabled support for filtering social media sites, adding email support, providing page-specific descriptions, and hiding icons through the params var
Updated examples to show a small selection of social media sites, no icons, and all available social media sites
Added link for closing widget at the bottom of the widget
Updated the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Share widget

Web feeds widget - Version 1.2.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a widget for aggregating and displaying the entries from one or more Web feeds on a Web page. Supported Web feed formats are Atom, RSS, and Media RSS.

Benefits:
  • Displays entries from one or more Atom, RSS, and Media RSS feeds on a Web page without the need for a Web feed reader
  • Dynamically fetches the top five items of any public Atom, RSS, or Media RSS feed
  • Enables cross-promotion and sharing of information between Web sites
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.21 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.2 2011-08-08 Renamed to Web feeds widget since now supports Atom, RSS, and Media RSS feeds
Removed dependency on jParse because of issues with cross-browser XML parsing.
Streamlined Ajax requests though Google RSStoJSON feed (jGfeeds) service increasing performance and cross-browser support.
Changed identifier from id to class to allow multiple widgets on the same page
Updated location of proxy URLs
Updated to the latest version of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Improved support for rtl and bidirectional content
Updated to the latest version of the core markup
Changed name to "RSS feeds widget"/"Gadget des fils RSS"
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Web feeds widget

Interface enhancement features

Calendar interface - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature dynamically generates a calendar interface for navigating a list of events or for selecting a date in a form.

Benefits:
  • Event calendar provides an interface for navigating a chronological list of events
  • Date picker provides an interface for selecting a date in a form
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Calendar uses lists instead of tables for easier navigation
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Using jQueryUI Theme
Moved the "year" field before "month" field in the "Go to" menu
The "month" field hides months that are out-of-range in the "Go to" menu
Calendar hides when not in focus and when the ESC key is pressed
Selecting from the datepicker triggers a "change" event
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-08-08 Corrected several tabbing and keyboard focus issues
Improved support for screen readers
Improved support for Internet Explorer
Added support for multi-day events
Added support for displaying only the events for the current month in the events list
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Calendar interface

Coda slider - Version 1.11

Overview: This feature shows content to the user one section at a time. A small table of contents can be used to control which section of content is currently shown. A scrolling/sliding effect is used when changing the section content that is shown.

Benefits:
  • Helps to break down a large amount of content into manageable chunks
  • Helps users to focus on the relevant content
  • Adds “Next” /“Previous” (Précédent / Suivant) links to simplify navigation
  • Can be used with a grid system to create side-by-side layouts
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.11 2011-08-08 Updated to latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Improved WAI-ARIA support
Corrected a crashing issue in Jaws + IE8
Corrected change of focus issues in Jaws
Improved support for rtl and bidirectional content
Updated to the latest version of the core markup
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Coda slider

Dialog Box Enhancement - Version 1.0 (New)

Overview: The focus of this project is to develop and maintain a jQuery plugin that enhances the layout, design, and functionality of dialog windows.

Benefits:

  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 7+

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: Dialog Box Enhancement

Expandable/collapsible content - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature shows content to the user one section at a time. A small table of contents can be used to control which section of content is currently shown. A scrolling/sliding effect is used when changing the section content that is shown.

Benefits:
  • Helps to break down a large amount of content into manageable chunks
  • Helps users to focus on the relevant content
  • Adds “Next” /“Previous” (Précédent / Suivant) links to simplify navigation
  • Can be used with a grid system to create side-by-side layouts
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Removed default border for expand/hide blocks
Enabled persistent storage using WET Storage instead of jQuery cookie
Converted the plugin to the parameterless approach
Allowed for multiple groups of expand/hide
Fixed a syntax error that was preventing the initial states to load in IE
Fixed incompatibility with jQuery version 1.6.2
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.2 2011-08-08 Added support for saving the state of the expand/hide boxes in a cookie
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Fixed a few display issues
Added CSS support detection to prevent the plugin from loading when CSS is not supported
1.1 2011-02-07 Corrected right-to-left and bi-directional support for hidden content
Fixed display issues in IE6/7
Added default behaviour that selects the first heading of the child to expand/hide
Added jQuery cookie plugin to allow saving states of the expand/hide boxes
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Expandable/collapsible content

Filterable content - Version 1.01 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides an interface for filtering content on a Web page.

Benefits:
  • Helps users to filter out unwanted content
  • Enables users to combine multiple filters at the same time
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.01 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Filterable content

Geomap - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature adds a Web map to your page through a simple wrapper for OpenLayers (http://www.openlayers.org/). Anything that is possible with OpenLayers, is also possible with the Geomap feature.

Benefits:
  • Inserts dynamic maps into any Web page
  • Can load map tiles, overlays, and markers from most local or remote sources
  • Can perform geographic look-ups
  • Can include a toolbar for drawing custom overlays
  • Can include geo-tagged RSS feeds
  • Supports WMS and WFS protocols

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Added more context to "Show more" links by including addition information hidden with CSS.
Map now zooms to show all displayed data points
Using aria-live="polite" to help identify what changes when a "Show more" link is clicked.
Now the content of "Base Layer" and "Overlay" labels is set manually depending on the current locale.
Moved the search controls below the map in the three-column layout.
The "show more" links now include additional information hidden by CSS to give more context.
Replaced the select control for selecting provinces with a group of checkboxes.
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme and v1.3 of the CLF 2.0 theme
1.2 2011-08-08 Added ability to search for data points on the map with the search results provided in a separate data table.
Added one and two column example pages
Corrected validation errors with malformed br elements
Now loading the keyboard message from the script rather than hardcoding in the page
Corrected the wording of the keyboard message
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Replaced Yahoo! / Google maps with Atlas of Canada WMS in default version
Updated to OpenLayers version 2.10
Fixed keyboard accessibility issues
Fixed language detection issue
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Geomap

Multimedia player - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a multimedia player for playing videos on the Web.

Benefits:
  • Supports multiple players on the same Web page
  • Supports WMV and MP4 formats
  • Video viewer and toolbar are separated which enables other multimedia players to be used for the video viewer without having to change the toolbar.
  • Toolbar is coded with HTML and CSS to allow easy customization of the toolbar appearance and avoid past tabbing issues with Flash-generated controls
  • Captions can be loaded from a Timed Text XML file or from Timed Text embedded into an HTML5/XHTML transcript
  • Captions scale to the size of the multimedia player
  • Default 16:9 ratio preset to optimize video viewing
  • Multimedia player resizes to the width and height of the associated thumbnail image
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Corrected how player width is specified in the HTML so compatible with the CSS Grid System
Fixed issue between grids system and the multimedia player
Resolved issue with focus being invisible when tabbing to the hidden TimedText link
Dropped support for WMV (now only supporting MP4)
Timecodes now properly display in Silverlight
Fixed the logic to hide the buffering text in a small player.
Added a default step for when the total time is not available.
Fixed the bug of NaN showing when the timecodes from a video are not available
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.2 2011-08-08 Fixed a display problem when the mediaplayer was placed in a tab or an object that is hidden at load time.
Increased the accessibility of the controls by converting them to buttons and using image tags instead of background images.
Added basic support for audio descriptions
Added event for media player state changes
Unified the way the Flash and Silverlight do rewind and fast forward
Fixed issues with the rewind, mute, and closed caption controls
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Added Silverlight support
Leveraging the Open Source Media Framework
Updated to align toolbar width with player canvas width
Removed deprecated classes for mediaplayer since it now uses the posterimg dimensions as the width/height setting for the canvas window
Fixed alignment issues with the toolbar digits and text
Fixed character encoding issues
Better support for scaling
Added captions support for timed text embedded in an HTML5/XHTML page
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Multimedia player

Panorama project - Version 1.02 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a viewer for 360-degree panoramic images.

Benefits:
  • Fit large panoramic images into any content area
  • Scroll through panorama using the mouse or keyboard
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Support for Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 6+

Version history

Version Date released Highlights
1.02 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.01 2011-09-19 Improved compatibility with latest version of the CSS presentation layer
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Navigation enhancement features

Accessible footnotes

Overview: The purpose of the Accessible Footnotes sub-project is to implement a consistent, accessible way of handling footnotes across Government of Canada web sites. The main concept behind this solution is to place footnotes in a definition list, within a dedicated section. Supporting CSS is used to lay out the footnotes and hide navigational aids.

Benefits:

  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Compatible with the Web Experience Toolkit (WET)
  • Support for Firefox and IE6+
  • Support for English and French
  • Configurable layout and design

Version history

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: http://ircan-rican.gc.ca/projects/wet-boew-footnotebas

Active link indicator - Version 1.02 (Updated)

Overview: This feature looks at the current file name of the webpage in the URL and then dynamically applies a class to any link on the page that matches that file name. This allows you to indicate a "you are here" effect.

Benefits:
  • Eliminates the need to hand-code an indication on each page for indicating which section of content the user is on.
  • Allows the appearance of each active link to be fully customized.
  • Targets the CSS Grid System module named ‘module-menu-section’ and applies the active link feature to any link target that matches the current URL. This can be modified to target any CSS section of content.
  • Applies the style to the correct link target, per the URL, even when the linked filenames match (e.g., ../test1/default.html) and (../test2/default.html).
  • Compatible with the Expandable/collapsible content feature.
  • Allows for a dynamic and localized right hand menu rather than filling the left menu with all the navigational links.
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.02 2012-02-06 Update to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.01 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Active link indicator

Floating toolbar - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a floating toolbar at the bottom of the browser window. This toolbar becomes visible when the user scrolls away from the top of the page.

Benefits:
  • Provides quick and easy access to the "Home" link, the "Top of Page" link, and a search form
  • Provides an alternative to including "Top of Page" links throughout the page
  • Helps to minimize the number of "Top of Page" links that screen reader users have to listen to
  • Can be used with a grid system
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Reduced extra space at the bottom of the page
Fixed display issues in IE6 and IE7
Vertically aligned elements in the toolbar
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme and v1.3 of the CLF 2.0 theme
1.2 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Disabled floating toolbar on more mobile devices
1.1 2011-02-07 Disabled floating toolbar for mobile devices
Floating toolbar now hidden when printing the page
Updated to latest version of the core markup
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Floating toolbar

Menu bar - Version 1.0 (Updated)

Overview: The focus of this project is to develop and maintain a jQuery plugin for creating an interactive menu bar.

Benefits:
  • Conforms to WCAG 2.0 AA
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
  • Progressive enhancement approach
  • Supports Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, and IE 7+

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2012-02-06 Initial release

Project page: Menu bar

Open new window/tab - Version 1.3 (Updated)

Overview: This feature causes links with rel="external" and rel="internal" to open in a new window or tab. It also adds a standard warning about this change to each link.

Benefits:
  • Prevents the loss of progress on the current Web page when opening a link
  • Prevents the loss of a secure session when opening a link
  • Provides a standard advance warning for each link that opens in a new window or tab

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.3 2012-02-06 Now uses target attribute to open new window in HTML5
Added "container" parameter to be able to target links outside #cn-cols (as needed for the XHTML Application Template)
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.21 2011-09-13 Corrected example source code in the working examples
1.2 2011-08-08 Changed trigger from rel="internal" to class="wet-newwindow" because rel="internal" is no longer supported in HTML5
Corrected support for multi-line links in IE7
Replaced the external icon with one that combines the internal icon and the arrow from the external icon
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.1 2011-02-07 Corrected handling for links that include HTML markup
Corrected parsing error in JavaScript file
Limited effect to just the left, centre, and right columns
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Open new window/tab

Slide out tab widget - Version 1.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a tab at the edge of the content area that can slide out to show content.

Benefits:
  • Provides a mechanism for providing additional content (such as a table of contents) without wasting valuable space on the page
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2012-02-06 Corrected some issues when zooming/increasing text size
Improved default look of lists inside the tab
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Slide out tab widget

Tabbed interface - Version 1.2 (Updated)

Overview: This feature dynamically transforms multiple sections of content into a tabbed interface.

Benefits:
  • Supports multiple tabs on the same page.
  • Supports multiple design options.
  • Supports setting the default tab
  • Supports automatic tab rotation and allows the rotation speed to be configured
  • Allows tab panels to be forced to the same height (height of the tallest tab panel)
  • Compatible with the CSS Grid System
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.2 2012-02-06 Added tabs-style-7, a full-width (960px) vertical news scroller with the links on the left.
Fixed issue that was triggering a click on tab focus which disrupted the keyboard navigation
Fixed visibility of the keyboard focus indicator
Updated to a parameter-less approach
Update to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.1 2011-08-08 Added 2 styles (tabs-style-4 and tabs-style-5) for more of a slide show effect
Added a plugin parameter (autoPlay with default value false) so that the tabs instances can start paused (default) or playing (as before).
Added a height option to let users override autoHeight to give fixed heights to tab panels.
Added a second demo page, for tabs in the right column of a 3-col layout.
Added functionality allowing anchors that are in hidden panels to be activated and focused (parent panel becomes active and then the anchor gains focus) by clicking links pointing to the anchor.
Improved the Play/Pause code
Corrected issue that removed the Play/Pause button hidden text once the button was activated
Improved iPad support
Improved compatibility with Expandable/collapsible content feature
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup and CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Tabbed interface

Personalisation features

Client-side CSS - Version 1.1

Overview: This feature allows users to change the look of WET-based Web pages to meet their accessibility needs.

Benefits:
  • Option to make the skip header links visible
  • Option to make the Web page expandable
  • Option to underline all links
  • Option to change all link colours
  • Option to use a high contrast content page banner (clf2-nsi2 and general themes)
  • Option to use a high contrast Welcome Page message area (clf2-nsi2 theme)

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2011-08-08 Added support for new way of hiding skip header links
Added support for the two-column + right nav layout
Underline removed from links on mouse hover or keyboard focus
Added English and French working examples
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Client-side CSS

Customizable interface - Version 1.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature enables the page layout to be customized to meet an individual user's needs.

Benefits:
  • Allows the users to customize the page layout
  • Enables parts of the page layout to be locked in place
  • Remembers the customized layout through the use of cookies
  • Compatible with the Expandable/collapsible content feature
  • Layout can be customized with keyboard or mouse. Tabbing order is updated to reflect the customized layout.
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2011-08-08 Corrected the cookie handling and changed from session-based to persistent
Added a parameter for saving the state of the expand/hide boxes
Changed the 3rd party Fluid plugin so focusable elements have a tabindex value of 1 instead of 0
Corrected working example so it displays correctly with JavaScript disabled
Updated to the latest version of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Customizable interface

Geo-targeting - Version 1.05 (Updated)

Overview: This feature can detect the location of the user and provide content and functionality that is relevant to that location.

Benefits:
  • Enables Web sites to provide content that is relevant to the user's location
  • Improves usability by helping to minimize content that is not relevant to the user
  • Support for English and French

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.05 2012-02-06 Added French working example
Updated to v1.0 of the GCWU theme
1.04 2011-12-16 Changed method of encoding/decoding JSON since old way wasn't working correctly in IE7
Updated to the latest version of the GCWU theme
1.03 2011-11-30 Removed dependence on http://jsonip.appspot.com which frequently had over-capacity issues, causing no geo-targeting results to be returned
Added session cookie support to minimize the load on http://ipinfodb.com (only queries the 3rd party service once per session)
Updated to the latest version of the GC Web Usability theme
1.02 2011-11-04 Updated to support the latest IPInfoDB API
Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the GC Web Usability theme
1.01 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Geo-targeting

Helpful 404 error pages - Version 1.0

Overview: This feature helps visitors to find content that has been moved to a different folder. This will help to avoid frustrating the user by making it easier to find the new location.

Benefits:
  • Makes 404 error pages more helpful
  • Gives suggestions based upon the requested URL
  • Identifies how to contact the Webmaster

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial version

Project page: Helpful 404 error pages

Style switcher - Version 1.1

Overview: This feature provides users with style options so they can configure a Web site to meet their needs.

Benefits:
  • Helps users to configure a Web site to meet their needs
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest versions of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Inserted space between "Colour options" and "expand"
Use cssEnabled core framework variable to only display colour options when CSS support is detected
1.0 2010-08-09 Initial release

Project page: Style switcher

Utility features

Language selector - Version 1.1

Overview: This feature provides ASP, Javascript, Perl, and PHP approaches for automatically linking to different language versions of the current page.

Benefits:
  • Simplifies Web page maintenance by eliminating the need to hard code language links

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2011-08-08 Updated to the latest version of the HTML5 core markup structure and the CLF 2.0 theme
Added include variations for SSI and PHP (for added compatibility with SSI/PHP variants)
1.0 2011-02-07 Initial release

Project page: Language selector

Session timeout - Version 1.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature helps Web asset owners to provide session timeout and inactivity timeout functionality.

Benefits:
  • Timing can be adjusted easily in the parameters
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2012-02-06 Fixed expiry time display issues (minutes rolling over to hours, etc..)
Fixed a bug with one of the timer handles being lost, which caused "ghost" AJAX calls to the server.
Added a new parameter, "refreshOnClick", which will reset the session when the user clicks on the page. The default value is true.
Changed name of the "noconfirm" parameter to "reactionTime". Note: you can still use "noconfirm", your old configurations won't break.
Removed a redundant AJAX call to the "logouturl" before redirecting
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme and v1.3 of the CLF 2.0 theme
1.01 2011-09-22 Bug fixes
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Session timeout

Web management features

Accessibility responsibility breakdown - Version 1.02 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides a breakdown of WCAG 2.0 accessibility responsibilities throughout the Web production chain.

Benefits:
  • Helps to identify the accessibility responsibilities for each role in the Web production chain
  • Provides a tabbed-based interface for quickly focusing on the relevant role in the Web production chain
  • Provides a filtering interface for narrowing down responsibilities by conformance level (A, AA, AAA) and by role in the Web production chain
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility
Version history:
Version Date released Highlights
1.02 2012-02-06 Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.01 2011-12-02 Updated to the latest tabbed interface and zebra striping features
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Accessibility responsibility breakdown

Web Accessibility Assessment Methodology - Version 1.1 (Updated)

Overview: This feature provides an assessment methodology that assists with measuring conformance to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level A, AA, and AAA Success Criteria.

Benefits:
  • Helps to calculate the number and percentage of A, AA, and AAA success criteria that were passed
  • Uses WAI-ARIA to enhance accessibility

Version history:

Version Date released Highlights
1.1 2012-02-06 Added zebra striping and a hover effect for success criteria using the Zebra striping feature
Added table of contents using the Slide out tab widget
Rounded corners now done using PIE (included in jQuery integration)
Updated to v1.0 of the GC Web Usability theme
1.01 2011-09-13 Removed extra comma that was causing issues in IE7
1.0 2011-08-08 Initial release

Project page: Web Accessibility Assessment Methodology