Sitecore has released a new version of Content Hub, version 4.2. This release has not only new features but is also packed with a lot of bug fixes. Let's first start with the cool part, what new features does Sitecore offer us?
To start off this blog post, one of the coolest things Sitecore is doing, is migrating the existing components from Knockout to React. This will not only improve performance but will allow for an easier extension by Content Hub and the implementation partners. In each next release, Sitecore will keep replacing Knockout components with React versions. Read more on this topic in the documentation.
New Features
Content collaboration improvementsContent collaboration has been improved with a better display of annotations (depending on width), the introduction of user mentions (for example, @user), and email notification of mentions. You can also use different email templates for each workflow for more flexibility per department or process. See Collaborate, Write Comments and Email notifications.
Media embedding from different sources
You now have the ability to embed media (such as YouTube, Vimeo, Twitter, and Spotify) in rich-text fields.
New calendar viewYou can now drag and drop content in the Calendar view for easy updates. A new Agenda view provides an overview of content for better visibility when teams collaborate. The inline preview gives you quick access to content details without leaving the calendar.
Watermarking on documentsYou can now protect a PDF document from inappropriate use by adding a watermark.
Performance improvementsTo improve performance and stability, there has been a new .NET update to Content Hub to support the latest framework. Content Hub now scales up automatically to smoothly absorb any increase in use without interruption. Updates to ElasticSearch make searches faster. Redis Cluster updates mean workload can be balanced between multiple clusters allowing users to run queries and fetch data at the same time.
Content Hub reskinContent Hub has a new more modern look. The portal theme, base template, and email templates match the new Sitecore branding guidelines. See Technical updates 4.2.x release.
Improvements
Watermarking on documents
You can now protect a PDF document from inappropriate use by adding a watermark.
Performance improvements
To improve performance and stability, there has been a new .NET update to Content Hub to support the latest framework. Content Hub now scales up automatically to smoothly absorb any increase in use without interruption. Updates to ElasticSearch make searches faster. Redis Cluster updates mean workload can be balanced between multiple clusters allowing users to run queries and fetch data at the same time.
Content Hub reskin
Content Hub has a new more modern look. The portal theme, base template, and email templates match the new Sitecore branding guidelines. See Technical updates 4.2.x release.
Improvements
MONE-27412
The Attach to campaign operation used with the Selection component has been replaced with the Add to entity operation. The Attach to campaign operation will be removed in Content Hub 4.3.
MONE-29166
Added improvements to comment threads which are now displayed in chronological order, with visible time stamp and author.
MONE-29787
Added several improvements to comment threads. Comment replies now have an indentation, show more information, and have an Add comment button always available.
MONE-27767
Added a feature where you receive an email message with all the relevant content information when the content state is assigned to you so that you can proceed with content authoring.
MONE-27768
Provided improvements that allow you to add a user to comments by typing @ immediately followed by the user's name or designation. Users mentioned in comments receive a notification email containing relevant information about the respective comment. Users who receive comments on their content items receive a similar notification email.
MONE-27372
Provided improvements where comments benefit from optimal display adjustments for all screen sizes.
MONE-31234
The number of facet groups displayed on a page is now limited to the lowest page limit defined on the Paging tab of the Search component. By default, the lowest page limit is 20. This applies both to column and row filtering. By default, the first 20 rows and 20 columns are displayed. This limitation is not affected by the grouping_facet_limit setting in the RestrictionsConfiguration setting.
Information has been copied from the Sitecore Documentation.
Before upgrading to this new version, it's always wise to check the Breaking changes that come with this version. Always make sure to test your implementation thoroughly to safely release the new version to your clients.
Until next time!