Reports & Resources UDOIT Release Notes

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What's New in UDOIT

Keep up to date with the latest changes in UDOIT by reviewing our release notes; as a reminder, this document may change as the release approaches.

2025-11-04

Overview

In this release, we addressed two issues to improve reliability and accuracy in the product. These fixes enhance accessibility flagging behavior and ensure account names with certain special characters are handled securely and without error.

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Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

This past summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

November 18th Webinar | Time Saving Tips!

You’re ready to create accessible Canvas courses but the time commitment can feel daunting. In this session, we’ll focus on ways to turn that overwhelm into efficiency with tips that save you time while creating more inclusive learning experiences. You’ll learn practical, easy-to-implement strategies to improve accessibility without adding hours to your workload. Plus, we’ll show you how Cidi Labs tools act as accessibility assistants, streamlining key tasks so you can spend less time on the manual work. Don’t miss these time-saving tips to accelerate your accessibility workflow!

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ULEARN Accessibility Guide

At Cidi Labs, we think accessibility need not be an afterthought. Instead, we believe in empowering you to focus on accessibility at every step of the course lifecycle—from design to continuous improvement—by providing game-changing tools that support every part of the process.

The ULEARN Accessibility Guide is a companion to our Accessibility Assistant, UDOIT Advantage. It highlights each issue UDOIT can detect, explains how these issues affect students, and provides guidance on how to fix them. By focusing on accessibility and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, the guide supports the creation of more inclusive and effective learning environments.

View the ULEARN Accessibility Guide

Bug Fixes

We've adjusted the "Potential use of color alone to communicate information" check to ignore punctuation outside of emphasized text. This prevents false flags when only punctuation falls outside a <bold> or <strong>tag.
We've resolved an issue where account names containing single quotes could cause errors when filtering and sorting the Account Name in the UDA Courses Table. We've updated our system to better handle these cases and enhance security.

2025-10-27

Overview

This release focuses on improving the reliability and clarity of UDOIT’s Admin tools and Student Access features. Admins will now see helpful guidance for configuring Student Access, and several key bugs have been resolved to ensure more accurate data, smoother report loading, and consistent scan results across the platform.

New Resource

ULEARN Accessibility Guide

At Cidi Labs, we think accessibility need not be an afterthought. Instead, we believe in empowering you to focus on accessibility at every step of the course lifecycle—from design to continuous improvement—by providing game-changing tools that support every part of the process.

The ULEARN Accessibility Guide is a companion to our Accessibility Assistant, UDOIT Advantage. It highlights each issue UDOIT can detect, explains how these issues affect students, and provides guidance on how to fix them. By focusing on accessibility and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, the guide supports the creation of more inclusive and effective learning environments.

View the ULEARN Accessibility Guide

General Improvements

Admin users will see a note in the Student Access tab of the UDOIT Admin Settings page explaining that Student Access features rely on the Cidiscape Task Runner and a link to request support if a Cidiscape install is needed for your institution.

Bug Fixes

Student Access requests for alternate formats will cancel if they time out, and students will be able to request them again.
The Issues Report no longer has timeout errors and will load successfully.
Scorecard Summaries at both the Admin and course levels will display accurate point values earned and possible rather than displaying zeroes.
The number of courses scanned on the UDOIT Admin Scorecard and the number of scanned courses on the UDOIT Admin Courses Table are consistently in alignment.

2025-10-21

Overview

This release introduces a new accessibility check that detects images without alternative text within PowerPoint (.pptx) files, improving course file reviews. It also includes a few bug fixes to enhance file replacement behavior and video display in the UFIXIT preview window.

New Resources

Updated User Guide Resources

As the tools and functionality of UDOIT continue to grow and expand, so does the user Guide. This is the newest update:

What Does UDOIT Look For - UDOIT scans both your Canvas Content and the Files you've uploaded, looking for accessibility issues that could cause trouble for your students. As of August 2025, some of the titles and descriptions of UDOIT issues have been updated. To learn more, access the Comparison of the Former and updated Verbiage for UDOIT Issues dialog box.

New Feature

UDOIT now detects images without alternative text in .pptx file types. If flagged, these errors will display in the Review Course Files table at the course-level as the following:
- Error Title: Document contains images without alternative text
- Error Description: This PPTX file has at least one image without alternative text.

Bug Fixes

Replacing flagged .docx files with fixed .docx files will now display the new file without the corrected errors.
The iframe of videos with custom position and size styling will display correctly in the UFIXIT Modal preview window rather than taking over the entire screen.
When you replace a file with another file that already exists elsewhere in the course, it will update the newly added file name to include a hyphen and the number one.
- i.e. Replace "File A" with "File B," making sure that "File B" exists in the course. The file replacement action completes, and the new "File B" is given a name with an appendix, such as "File B - 1".

2025-10-15

Overview

This release makes UDOIT even smoother to use! The Admin tool now has a refreshed interface to give clearer content summaries and a new Student Access settings tab to set default preference. We’ve also improved scorecard performance and image handling for a faster, more reliable experience.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

This past summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

October 21st Webinar | Mythbusting: Accessible Courses Need Not Be Boring!

Think you need to limit or avoid interactivity, multimedia, and other engaging design elements in order to make your courses accessible? Then join us, along with Online Learning Consortium (OLC), as we tackle that myth head-on and flip the script on accessibility, showcasing how inclusive design can enhance course design, not limit it.

Register Now

Updated User Guide Resources

As the tools and functionality of UDOIT continue to grow and expand, so does the user Guide. This is the newest update:

What Does UDOIT Look For - UDOIT scans both your Canvas Content and the Files you've uploaded, looking for accessibility issues that could cause trouble for your students. As of August 2025, some of the titles and descriptions of UDOIT issues have been updated. To learn more, access the Comparison of the Former and updated Verbiage for UDOIT Issues dialog box.

Reports: UDOIT User Guide - Two additional panels have been added to the report types: Student File Generations and Student File Downloads.

The Student File Generations report shows the number of files that have been generated by students. This data is organized by file format, course, and date range.
The Student File Downloads report shows the number of files that have been downloaded by students. This data is organized by file format, course, and date range.

UDOIT Admin Reports: UDOIT User Guide - Two additional panels have been added to the report types: Student File Generations and Student File Downloads.

The Student File Generations report shows the number of files that have been generated by students. This data is organized by file format, course, and date range.
The Student File Downloads report shows the number of files that have been downloaded by students. This data is organized by file format, course, and date range.

New Features

In the UDOIT Admin Settings, there is a dedicated tab for Student Access Settings. From this tab, administrators can set the default options for all courses in your institution. Instructors still have the ability to override these default settings at the course level.

The UDOIT home page user interface has been updated to include a Total Content field in the Content Summary at the bottom of the page. Additionally, this new field has also been added to the gray bar at the top of the UFIXIT page.
We've improved error messaging for files that fail to convert at the course-level so that it is clearer to you what occurred. You will see: "Error converting 'filename.pdf'. If the problem persists, please contact Cidi Labs support."

Bug Fixes

Initial improvements have been made to the UDOIT Admin Scorecard. The root account scorecard should now load successfully without timing out.
- Loading may still take a few minutes due to the amount of data being processed, but overall performance and stability have been enhanced.
- If the scorecard doesn’t load after waiting 10 minutes, clearing your browser cache and reloading the page should resolve the issue.
A patch was released on 10/07/2025 which fine-tuned our “Goldilocks” balance —boosting throughput while reducing scan errors. The result: faster processing without pushing Canvas’s rate limits.
There were two bug fixes associated with images marked as decorative:
- If an image is marked as decorative, then UDOIT will no longer flag it as missing alternative text.
- When images are marked as decorative, they are no longer deleted from the Canvas content. These images will remain in their respective Canvas content as expected.

2025-09-24

Overview

In this release, we are proud to announce phase one of a new feature: Student Access Reporting! You will have a greater understanding of how students are using alternative formats. Reports now track student downloads by format, course, and date range, distinguish between new requests and re-downloads, and can be exported for institutional use, all while protecting student privacy.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

September 25th Webinar: Finding Your 'Why' to Motivate Action

Instructors' plates are often full just delivering course content and monitoring student progress. Adding accessibility work to an already overflowing plate can leave educators wondering whether the effort is worth it. Join us for an immersive experience designed to demonstrate why accessibility matters for learners. Once equipped with deeper understanding, you'll see how Cidi Labs tools help turn that knowledge into action, making it easy for anyone to remediate issues and impact Canvas course accessibility without specialized expertise.

Register Now

October 21st Webinar: Mythbusting...Accessible Courses Need Not Be Boring!

Think you need to limit or avoid interactivity, multimedia, and other engaging design elements in order to make your courses accessible? Then join us, along with Online Learning Consortium (OLC), as we tackle that myth head-on and flip the script on accessibility, showcasing how inclusive design can enhance course design, not limit it.

Register Now

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed a new knowledge base article (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - Why are some courses in my account not visible on the Courses tab in UDOIT Admin?

KBA - What are the minimum course permissions for a user to use UDOIT?

Updated User Guide Resources

As the tools and functionality of UDOIT continue to grow and expand, so does the user Guide. This is the newest update:

What Does UDOIT Look For - UDOIT scans both your Canvas Content and the Files you've uploaded, looking for accessibility issues that could cause trouble for your students. As of August 2025, some of the titles and descriptions of UDOIT issues have been updated. To learn more, access the Comparison of the Former and updated Verbiage for UDOIT Issues dialog box.

New Feature

We're excited to introduce Student Access Reporting, the first step in a multi-phase project to give institutions insight into how students are engaging with alternative formats. The core functionality of this feature is live, while advanced features will follow in later releases.

This release adds the following reporting capabilities:

Download tracking: Student downloads of alternate files are logged with its format type (e.g., audio, EPUB, tagged PDF) and associated course content. We've identified some inconsistencies in the reporting and are actively working on a fix.
Totals by format and course: Summaries show how many files were downloaded, organized by format, course, and date range.
Re-download visibility: Reports distinguish between newly generated files and re-downloads of existing ones.

Institutional Benefits:

Access levels: Reports are available at both the Account and Course levels, showing all files that have been downloaded or requested.
Export options: Data can be exported as a CSV for institutional reporting.
Privacy protected: Reports exclude all student-identifiable information.

Stay tuned, this is just the beginning! Future phases will expand the insights and functionality available.

As you explore this new feature, submit your feedback to our wonderful Support team!

2025-09-17

Overview

This release introduces several new features that improve administrator control and user clarity, including enhanced error messages, expanded remediation options, pagination and column management in the Courses table, and institution-generated appTokens. Bug fixes focus on improving data accuracy, consistency between tools, and resolving issues with file handling, course visibility, and scorecard reliability. Together, these updates streamline workflows and create a smoother, more reliable UDOIT experience.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

September 25th Webinar: Finding Your 'Why' to Motivate Action

Instructors' plates are often full just delivering course content and monitoring student progress. Adding accessibility work to an already overflowing plate can leave educators wondering whether the effort is worth it. Join us for an immersive experience designed to demonstrate why accessibility matters for learners. Once equipped with deeper understanding, you'll see how Cidi Labs tools help turn that knowledge into action, making it easy for anyone to remediate issues and impact Canvas course accessibility without specialized expertise.

Register Now

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - Why can't I manually mark a video as resolved in UDOIT if it is linked from the course Modules?

Updated User Guide Resources

As the tools and functionality of UDOIT continue to grow and expand, so does the user Guide. This is the newest update:

What Does UDOIT Look For - UDOIT scans both your Canvas Content and the Files you've uploaded, looking for accessibility issues that could cause trouble for your students. As of August 2025, some of the titles and descriptions of UDOIT issues have been updated. To learn more, access the Comparison of the Former and updated Verbiage for UDOIT Issues dialog box.

Updated Features

When an Alternative Format generation request for Excel (.xlsx) and PowerPoint (.pptx) file types fail to process, a clearer message displays explaining why the request failed.
UDOIT Administrators can provide their own secure, institution-generated Kaltura Application Token.
All institutions now have access to the "Apply to all identical" issues remediation option in UFIXIT, which has moved out of beta and is now generally available to all users.
A "Manage Columns Tray" button has been added above the UDOIT Admin Courses Table. This will allow administrators to select or de-select which columns of data they want displayed in the Courses Table.
In the the UDOIT Review Course Files tab above the search bar and table, the gray bar now displays file specific data.

Bug Fixes

Institutions that also license TidyUP to manage course clean up will see better alignment between UDOIT and TidyUP data.
The Issue Count report in UDOIT Admin will accurately display data for the selected duration, instead of showing partial data.
Issues labeled as "Fixed" and "Resolved" will no longer flag as active issues in the Course Scorecard.
Replacing files in the Review Course Files tab of UDOIT will no longer duplicate the file and will successfully save the replaced file.
Inactive courses are removed from the UDOIT Admin Courses Table until that course is re-scanned in UDOIT, at which point it is considered an active course again and is re-added to the UDOIT Admin Courses Table.
When you replace a file by uploading a new one, the correct file will now download right away, and the newly uploaded file will appear in the Review Course Files table.
The UDOIT Admin Scorecard loads more consistently, instead of displaying a blank screen for an extended period.

2025-08-26

Overview

We’ve made UDOIT easier and more reliable! We’ve improved key features, answered more questions with Knowledge Base Articles, and fixed bugs affecting menus, captions, color contrast, quizzes, and reporting.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

September Webinar: Finding Your 'Why' to Motivate Action

Instructors' plates are often full just delivering course content and monitoring student progress. Adding accessibility work to an already overflowing plate can leave educators wondering whether the effort is worth it. Join us for an immersive experience designed to demonstrate why accessibility matters for learners. Once equipped with deeper understanding, you'll see how Cidi Labs tools help turn that knowledge into action, making it easy for anyone to remediate issues and impact Canvas course accessibility without specialized expertise.

Register Now

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - Why are the changes to a YouTube video's captions not showing up in my UDOIT report?

KBA - Why do UDOIT Admin settings change in the wrong Canvas instance when I have the tool open in multiple instances?

KBA - Will students be able to request alternative formats if UDOIT is hidden from the course navigation?

Updated Features

When settings for Score Unused Content and / or Score Unpublished Content are adjusted, scorecards will be recalculated for the affected sub-account(s).

Bug Fixes

The Student Access popover now automatically closes when opening the Course Settings tray to prevent overlap.
UDOIT correctly flags videos when closed captions do not match the course language.
Improved color rule logic reduces false positives for color issues on converted pages.
UDOIT now accounts for H3 headings in Classic Quiz instructions, preventing false H3 “skipped heading” flags.
The Admin Tool filter now correctly handles rare cases where a child sub-account has a higher account ID than its parent.
Course UDOIT PDF Reports accurately reflect resolved file issues.
The Review Files modal no longer crashes when selecting the “Review” button on certain files.
Course counts on the Admin Tool Home page now match the Courses Table.
The Student Access dropdown button is now compatible with tables in Canvas content.

2025-08-18 (Patch Release)

UDOIT Admin Bug Fix

We’ve released an update to ensure the Courses Table in the UDOIT Admin Tool accurately reflects the number of scanned courses in each sub-account. With this fix, any duplicated data has been removed, and all active, scanned courses will now display correctly.

Users may notice some changes in the course counts shown on the Admin Home page or Courses Table as the data is now more accurate.

2025-08-12

Overview

This release brings clearer, more informative accessibility guidance, and smarter detection of large files and color contrast issues. Students now have easier access to alternate file formats directly within Canvas, while screen reader users benefit from more accurate navigation and announcements. We’ve also enhanced stability, reduced false positives in UFIXIT, and improved the quality of MP3 alternate formats for PowerPoint files—making your course review experience smoother and more reliable.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

September Webinar: Finding Your 'Why' to Motivate Action

Instructors' plates are often full just delivering course content and monitoring student progress. Adding accessibility work to an already overflowing plate can leave educators wondering whether the effort is worth it. Join us for an immersive experience designed to demonstrate why accessibility matters for learners. Once equipped with deeper understanding, you'll see how Cidi Labs tools help turn that knowledge into action, making it easy for anyone to remediate issues and impact Canvas course accessibility without specialized expertise.

Register Now

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - How does toggling the "Score Unused Content" and "Score Unpublished Content" settings at the Admin level affect overall course scores in UDOIT?

KBA - Why is the UDOIT Admin Total Score different than the Cidiscape Unweighted Score Report?

KBA - What permissions are required to access UDOIT Admin?

New Features

Most error and suggestion titles and descriptions in UFIXIT and the Review Course Files table have been updated with clearer, more informative language. This update aims to provide a deeper understanding of accessibility and build confidence as you resolve issues.
- The WCAG Criteria Mapped to UDOIT Issues page in the UDOIT User Guide has been refreshed. Use this as a quick reference to see how WCAG criteria align with the new UDOIT issue nomenclature.
UDOIT now flags files over 100MB in the Review Course Files table. These files will be skipped during scanning, and you'll be notified when this occurs.
- Additional file issues may appear in the file summary and issue type counts. This is considered a low impact issue, so most course scores will change very little.
The Student Access dropdown is now more widely available within Canvas courses!
- Users will see the dropdown when viewing all course Pages or all course Files for faster, easier access. We also added the dropdown to files that are added within Assignment content items, and…🥁drumroll please🥁…to files added as Module items.

Accessibility Fixes

VoiceOver users now properly retain focus on the Student Access dropdown button when requesting an alternate format.
Screen readers now correctly announce the contents of the Scorecard category weight information popover.
Close buttons now have accurate captions for screen readers, making it clear when users are on a close button.
The Scorecard table now has the correct caption for screen readers, providing clear context about the type of information it contains.

Bug Fixes

Requesting an MP3 alternate format for .ppt files now provides a smoother, higher-quality audio experience.
Grey text within Canvas content types no longer triggers the Potential use of color alone to communicate information issue.
The logic for detecting Insufficient text color contrast with the background has been refined, reducing false positive reports.
Fewer false positives are flagged in R markdown files, helping maintain intended code functionality.
The Student Access dropdown button now appears more consistently for students across all files in a course.
Closing the UFIXIT modal will no longer crash the application or require the user to refresh the page.

Bug Appreciation: The Hummingbird Moth

Imagine a tiny creature that flits about like a hummingbird—hovering in place, sipping nectar with a long, coiled tongue, its wings beating so quickly they blur into near invisibility. That’s the hummingbird moth, a plump, day‑flying member of the sphinx (Sphingidae) family, whose transparent (or "clearwing") wings and soft buzzing flight can trick even seasoned nature lovers into thinking they’ve seen a miniature bird. These deceptive designs, complete with birdlike appearance and rapid wingbeats, make for one of nature's most charming optical illusions.

Let’s nerd out for a moment: depending on species, these moths stretch between about 2 and 2.5 inches long, with wingspans that can top out around 6 inches—pretty impressive for something that resembles a feather‑covered acrobat. In North America, your most likely suspects are the Hummingbird Clearwing (Hemaris thysbe) and the Snowberry Clearwing (Hemaris diffinis)—each sporting unique color patterns, such as olive backs or yellow‑black combos with distinctive stripes near their eyes. And get this: their tongue‑like proboscis is about twice the length of their body—perfect for reaching deep nectar treasures that other pollinators simply can’t get to.

Despite being moths—typically associated with night—they’re daytime dynamos, buzzing around in meadows, gardens, and forest edges when other pollinators take a break. Their long tongues make them key players in pollinating flowers that bloom at twilight or dusk, like evening primrose and jasmine, helping sustain plant biodiversity—especially for species that bloom outside bees’ busiest hours. So next time you hear that soft buzzing and spot “a bird” zipping near your flowers—pause. You’ve likely been graced by a hummingbird moth, nature’s charming pollinator in disguise!

2025-08-07

Scorecard & Summary Count Update

As part of ongoing efforts to improve consistency and accuracy, we’ve updated the logic behind how issue counts are totaled.
After running a full rescan, you might see a few small changes in the Scorecard and Content Summary, especially if you’re a UDOIT Admin. This update ensures that issue totals are aligned and accurately reflect the current state of scanned content.

Overview

This release brings greater accuracy and transparency to UDOIT with improved issue count logic and enhanced visibility into Scorecard recalculations. Admins now have more control with options to configure their own YouTube API tokens and customize the "Easiest to Fix" filter.

But the real star 🌟 of this release? An impressive number of bug fixes and performance improvements: from faster file scanning and better messaging to smoother rescans and enhanced Firefox support. Huge kudos to our dev team fro tackling so many long-standing issues and continuing to level up the UDOIT experience!

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

August Webinar: Managing Accessibility Initiatives and Continuous Improvement

If leading an accessibility initiative feels overwhelming, you're not alone — coordinating the many parts and players from end to end is no small feat. Are you looking for a way to support and manage it all so that the work is streamlined and can happen at scale? Then don't miss this session where we'll showcase a practical accessibility workflow from grasping the state of accessibility at your institution all the way to supporting best practices while editing a Canvas page.

Register Now

September Webinar: Finding Your 'Why' to Motivate Action

Instructors' plates are often full just delivering course content and monitoring student progress. Adding accessibility work to an already overflowing plate can leave educators wondering whether the effort is worth it. Join us for an immersive experience designed to demonstrate why accessibility matters for learners. Once equipped with deeper understanding, you'll see how Cidi Labs tools help turn that knowledge into action, making it easy for anyone to remediate issues and impact Canvas course accessibility without specialized expertise.

Register Now

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - Why is my alternate student file not showing up in my student dropdown in UDOIT?

KBA - What is the difference between a normal scan and a "Full Rescan" in UDOIT?

New Features

Institutions can now configure their own YouTube API token instead of relying on the default token provided within UDOIT. This change is intended to reduce the likelihood of issues related to token limits. If you're a UDOIT Admin user who may be interested in doing this, read the Generate Your Own YouTube API Key in the UDOIT Admin User Guide.
Admin users now have the ability to customize which issues populate in the "Easiest to fix" filter. If you're a UDOIT Admin user who may be interested in this functionality, please contact Cidi Labs Support!
The Course Activity table now logs when Scorecards are recalculated due to updates made to an institution's Scorecard configuration.
The Avoid Using Styles for Document Structure error will detect text equal to or larger than 18 pt that is being used in place of a proper heading level. This may result in an increase in these issues in your courses.

An information box will appear on the homepage of both UDOIT and UDOIT Admin with a clear message to inform users of the potential increase in Styled Heading issues, thus a possible decrease in scores.

Information Box Message

Bug Fixes

After initiating UDOIT Admin at the root account, there will be clearer messaging to inform users that the page is loading all of the sub-account information.
The Courses tab in UDOIT Admin no longer displays a "Duration" filter to better reflect how course data is currently reported. All course information now aligns with the most recent report data.
Users will notice improved file scanning performance in the Review Course Files tab, including faster generation of alternate formats.
When new files are uploaded into a Canvas course and a scan is run in UDOIT, the file will immediately display in the Review Course Files table, show as scanning, and remain in the table once the scan completes.
- Replacing a file with an uploaded file will temporarily display “Processing Error” as the File Issue. This error will clear upon completing a full rescan. This is a bug we are actively addressing.
Canvas Page alternate format requests now fail if the corresponding HTML File request fails, allowing the user to retry the request for the Canvas Page.
A new informational message will appear within the Course settings tray that clearly states: "Recently added files can take up to an hour to display the student access dropdown for students."
The last scanned dates in UDOIT consistently display the correct date of the most recent scan.
For our users who prefer to use the Firefox browser, you'll notice that initiating a Full Rescan will display the progress indicator as normal, and the completion message will only appear once the scan completes.
In UFIXIT, non descriptive links containing a <span> tag are updating accurately when the link text inside the <span> is removed. Affected links now properly reflect text changes after a rescan.

Bug Appreciation: The Crimson Marsh Glider

The Crimson Marsh Glider is a real showstopper in the insect world. This dragonfly, found throughout South and Southeast Asia, is best known for its eye-catching colors. This is especially true of the males, who rock a bright magenta-pink body (who says pink is just for girls?!) with see-through wings that have reddish veins and glowing amber patches near the base. Even their eyes are tinged red! Females, while more low-key in looks, still have a charming golden-brown vibe with dark markings and a subtle amber tint to their wings. It's like nature dressed them in sunset colors just to make sure we'd notice.

These dragonflies love hanging out near quiet, weedy ponds, marshes, and slow-moving streams. You'll often spot them chilling on a twig or darting around like tiny aerial acrobats, catching mosquitoes and other small flying bugs mid-air. They start life underwater and only sprout wings once they're ready to take on the skies. The good news? They're not endangered. Scientists consider them a "Least Concern" species, meaning their numbers are doing just fine. Nature lovers and photographers have been sharing sightings of the glowing gliders online, and their popularity is definitely soaring. With their vivid colors and mosquito-snacking skills, the Crimson Marsh Glider is both beautiful and helpful. A bug worth cheering for!

2025-07-15

Overview

This release brings user interface improvements and key bug fixes across UDOIT. The Admin Dashboard now includes a total course count for better visibility. Updated course scan banners on the Home page offer clearer messaging about newly detected content or files. Additional fixes improve file handling, ensure accurate HTML alternate format generation, and enhance stability and real-time updates in both the Review Course Files and UFIXIT modals.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

August Webinar: Managing Accessibility Initiatives and Continuous Improvement

If leading an accessibility initiative feels overwhelming, you're not alone — coordinating the many parts and players from end to end is no small feat. Are you looking for a way to support and manage it all so that the work is streamlined and can happen at scale? Then don't miss this session where we'll showcase a practical accessibility workflow from grasping the state of accessibility at your institution all the way to supporting best practices while editing a Canvas page.

We're halfway through our series, but there's still time to catch the momentum! Don't miss your chance to join in, learn something new, and connect before the series wraps up. Register now and dive in deeper with accessibility!

Register Now

New User Guide Resources

As the tools and functionality of UDOIT continue to grow and expand, so does the User Guide. This is the newest addition:

When is it appropriate to use Manual Resolution? - As you resolve issues with UDOIT, you may encounter instances when an issue cannot be fixed within the UDOIT tool itself. When this happens, you have the option to use the "Manual Resolution" feature. However, it is important to know when it is appropriate to do so, and we've created a guide to help you!

User Interface Enhancements

UDOIT Admin Tool

We've added the total number of courses being tracked by UDOIT to the UDOIT Admin Dashboard.
You will now see Total Courses underneath the Scorecard. (See an example)

UDOIT Home

The course scan completed banners have been updated to clarify whether new content or new files have been detected. The banners are now as follows:

Course scan complete. New files and content have been found.
Course scan complete. New content has been found.
Course scan complete. New files have been found.
Course scan complete. No new files or content found.

Bug Fixes

When you replace an older .doc file with a .docx file, the filename and extension will now correctly update to reflect the newer version.
The Student Access dropdown will now appear even in courses that belong to accounts using the Anthology Ally integration in the Canvas JS theme.
When users request an HTML alternate format for a PDF in Review Course Files, the file will now be generated with the correct name.
The HTML view in UFIXIT will now update in real time as changes are applied in the modal.
We’ve fixed a bug that caused the Review Course Files modal to crash and display a blank page. Selecting a file will now open the modal as expected.

Creature Feature: Peacock Spider

If you thought arachnids were all lurking shadows and eight-legged creepiness, allow us to introduce you to the Peacock Spider (of the Maratus genus), nature’s smallest dance floor sensation.

Male peacock spiders are basically walking confetti cannons. Sporting vibrant blues, fiery oranges, and iridescent greens, these miniature spiders fan out their colorful abdominal flaps like tiny feathered cloaks, earning them their “peacock” name. Some species even have incredible nicknames like Sparklemuffin—and yes, she is exactly as fabulous as she sounds.

The colors are only half the show. Males perform elaborate courtship dances, rhythmically waving their third pair of legs (which double as pompoms), shaking their abdomens, and vibrating to produce a kind of spider song. If the female is impressed, mating follows. If not… well, let’s just say the dance party can end very badly for the male.

Peacock spiders are part of the jumping spider family, known for their excellent vision and lively personalities. Scientists have documented over 90 species, mostly in Australia, with new ones being discovered regularly, because apparently, nature can’t resist making more tiny rave spiders.

From the wilds of Western Australia to viral videos online, peacock spiders have become social media darlings. Their mix of adorable size, wild colors, and dance routines make them one of the few spiders to genuinely charm the internet—and that’s no easy feat.

2025-07-03

Overview

You've shared valuable feedback on how we could improve usability within the UDOIT interface—and we listened. In this release, we're excited to roll out the next set of usability enhancements our developers have been hard at work on. This release also improves the UFIXIT preview modal to clearly indicate whether caption issues persist or have been fixed after rescanning, resolves a bug in the Student Access tool so downloaded alternative files now open properly in a new window, and improves accessibility of keyboard navigation through the UFIXIT preview modal.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this summer, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

August Webinar: Managing Accessibility Initiatives and Continuous Improvement

If leading an accessibility initiative feels overwhelming, you're not alone — coordinating the many parts and players from end to end is no small feat. Are you looking for a way to support and manage it all so that the work is streamlined and can happen at scale? Then don't miss this session where we'll showcase a practical accessibility workflow from grasping the state of accessibility at your institution all the way to supporting best practices while editing a Canvas page.

We're halfway through our series, but there's still time to catch the momentum! Don't miss your chance to join in, learn something new, and connect before the series wraps up. Register now and dive in deeper with accessibility!

Register Now

User Interface Enhancements

Scorecard Update

We've moved the Scorecard category weight from being its own column to populating in an info popover that appears next to the category name.

Language Update

All instances where "alt text" is referenced in the user interface has been replaced with "alternative text". In applicable UFIXIT forms, the "New Alt Text" field label has been updated to say "Edit Alternative Text".

UFIXIT Preview Modal Update

A red exclamation mark icon appears in the top left corner of the UFIXIT preview modal for errors and a blue "i" icon appears in the same location for suggestions.

Bug Fixes

When you click the "Scan Video for Caption Updates" button in the UFIXIT preview modal and the issue still exists, a blue pop-up will appear with the message: "Rescan complete. The issue still exists." The scan button will then re-appear so you can try again. If the issue is fixed, a green pop-up will appear with the message: "Rescan complete. The issue no longer exists. Marking as Fixed." The scan button will be replaced by a green check mark and the word "Fixed."
A bug in the Student Access tool that prevented downloaded alternative files from opening properly in a new window has been fixed, and the files will open as expected.
An accessibility bug has been fixed so that when keyboard navigation is used the focus navigates through the UFIXIT preview modal in the correct order without skipping over fields within the modal.

Bug Appreciation: The Goldbug

The Golden Tortoise Beetle (Charidotella sexpunctata), affectionately known as the "goldbug", has been captivating viewers worldwide. Recent viral videos show these 5 - 7 mm metallic wonders crawling across hand palms and surfaces, drawing attention to their stunning golden sheen. Native to the Americas, they feed on morning glories, sweet potatoes, and bindweeds, and are harmless to humans and gardens. They're just delightful showpieces of nature. If you're in North America, you're in luck! The best time to see them is in July (how can it already be July?), when these tiny gems 💎 are most active and easy to spot.

What makes this beetle truly mesmerizing is its liquid-driven color shift: when calm, its shell grooves fill with fluid acting like a mirror🪞to create a brilliant gold exterior. But when disturbed, the fluid drains, revealing a rich red or reddish-brown beneath, fully unfolding in about two minutes. It's literally its own mood ring! Beyond the beauty, these beetles exhibit intriguing survival strategies. Researchers suggest their mirror-like gold might mimic raindrops💧, helping them evade predators, which their flash of red could imitate toxic species. What a clever form of Batesian mimicry !

Studies in Panama have also found variations of color even within the species, from gold to brick-red or black-and-red patterns, with color being an inherited trait tied to advantages like predator avoidance or mate selection. Catching sight of one of these shimmering insects in July is a reminder that nature often hides its most magical displays in plain sight.

2025-06-17

Overview

You've shared valuable feedback on how we could improve usability within the UDOIT interface—and we listened. In this release, we're excited to roll out the next set of usability enhancements our developers have been hard at work on. And of course, we've squashed a few bugs along the way too.

New Resources

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this month, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

July Webinar: Accessible Courses Are Good For Everyone

Ever feel like designing accessible courses is just another box to check? Then join us for an eye-opening session that explores how accessible course design isn't just about compliance – it's about creating better learning experiences for everyone.

Register Now

User Interface Enhancements

Welcome Screen Updates

We've made the Welcome Screen more inviting by adding:

an eye-catching, full-width blue background
easy access to the UDOIT video training playlist, the UDOIT User Guide, and the UDOIT introduction video
a direct link to the "What Does UDOIT Look For?" section of the UDOIT User Guide
a clearer space for custom institution messaging

About Modal Refresh

The About modal now matches the updated Welcome Screen design and includes a new section for Third Party Policies.

UFIXIT Review Modal Improvements

UFIXIT has a cleaner, more intuitive design with less text and better navigation.
We've also clarified the manual resolution option to help users understand the implications of checking the box:
- "By checking this box, you confirm that you have reviewed this content and determined it to be accessible. This content will be excluded from future scans and will not affect the course's accessibility score. If you make manual accessibility fixes, please click 'Scan Now' to update the scan."
- This option now lives in an expandable section to keep things streamlined.

Homepage Message Updates

A new message above the Scorecard sets the tool's tone:

"Let's Improve Accessibility! UDOIT tracks the accessibility of your course and helps you improve it over time. Use the Scorecard to understand what types of issues are occurring and how you can make the biggest impact to improve accessibility."

Bug Fixes

A single score category once again appears on the Scorecard for each impact level.
We've implemented an update to prevent failed files from continuously scanning so that the queue for scanned files does not slow down or stop.
A bug impeding the UFIXIT preview modal from accurately displaying manually resolved issues has been fixed. Now the preview modal will accurately display how the resolutions will look in Canvas.

Bug Appreciation: Swallowtail Butterfly

Say hello to the Swallowtail butterfly, a true icon of grace and grit! These beauties aren't just fluttering eye-candy — they're survivors. Take the Schaus' Swallowtail, for example: once thought to be gone for good, it's flapping back from the brink thanks to decades of conservation work and some surprising help from hurricanes! Yep, storms may seem like chaos to us, but they actually help clear out the landscape, giving these butterflies space to thrive.

But it's not all smooth skies — Europe's rare Swallowtail species just faced its worst summer on record. Warmer winters and habitat loss are throwing off their groove, making conservation more urgent than ever. These butterflies are picky about their plants, and when the landscape changes, their numbers can dip dramatically.

So next time you see a Swallowtail gliding by with those iconic tails trailing like a cape, remember: you're looking at a tiny powerhouse with a story of resilience. Celebrate them, protect their habitats, and spread the butterfly love — because every wingbeat counts!

2025-06-03

Overview

You've shared valuable feedback on how we could improve usability within the UDOIT interface—and we listened. In this release, we're excited to introduce the first phase of a usability enhancement project our Developers have been hard at work on. And of course, we've squashed a few bugs along the way too.

New Resources

Many Hands, Lighter Work: Scaling Accessibility in Canvas LMS | Watch on Demand

In case you missed it, we co-hosted a webinar with Instructure on May 15, 2025—Global Accessibility Awareness Day. Three members of the Cidi Labs customer community showcased their accessibility efforts and the real impact our tools have made on their course design.

Now that we've piqued your interest, don't waste any more time and watch it on demand today!

Watch on Demand

Accessibility Matters Series | Subscribe Now

Earlier this month, we kicked off our NEW monthly blog and webinar series: Accessibility Matters! Our focus is on sharing research and practical strategies for designing and delivering quality, accessible courses in Canvas.

June Webinar: Accessible Courses by Design

If you long for more efficient ways to create and scale accessible content right from the start, then join us as we showcase how Cidi Labs tools can help you develop Canvas courses that are accessible by design.

Register Now

User Interface Enhancements

In UFIXIT, the Filter button has been made more prominent by moving it from the right side to the left side of the search bar, and the selected filters will populate as pills below both the search bar and the filters button.
In UFIXIT, when the search field has text in it, the X icon appears on the right side of the search field. Clicking on this icon will clear the contents of the search field.
The font size of the text within the gray status bar at the top of UFIXIT has been increased in size in order to match the rest of the content within UFIXIT.
Users will now have the ability to re-enable the Welcome Screen if, in the past, they disabled it. You will find this option in the About UDOIT modal as a checkbox in the modal footer.

Bug Fixes

Several customers reported an Entity Manager Closed error appearing upon opening UDOIT. This issue has been fixed, and the error messages have been improved to provide more useful information so we can troubleshoot future errors more easily.
The "Impact Level" UFIXIT filter dropdown now shows the appropriate options.

Bug Appreciation: Bumblebee Millipede

This millipede gets its charming name from the vibrant yellow bands that cascade down its body, giving it a striped appearance reminiscent of its namesake. A member of the family Rhinocricidae, this species stands out not only for its color but also for its striking red legs and antennae. As of last year, there are 528 recognized species and 23 subspecies within the Rhinocricidae family.

Like most millipedes, the bumblebee millipede is bilaterally symmetrical and has a segmented body. It sports a single pair of red antennae and dozens of pairs of red legs -- details that make its bold coloration even more eye-catching. While there are reports of them reaching up to 4 inches (10 centimeters) in length, most individuals grow to about 3 inches (7.5 centimeters).

Native to the Greater Antilles, the Less Antilles, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and Brazil, the bumblebee millipede has been introduced to Florida. The humid climates of both its native and adopted habitats are ideal for its detritivore lifestyle. These millipedes rummage through soil, leaf litter, and decaying wood in search of organic material, playing a key role in nutrient cycling. They consume approximately 5-10% of annual leaf litter production, and in areas where earthworms are scarce, that number can climb to 25%.

In terms of behavior, the bumblebee millipede shares some surprising similarities with sloths: they're slow-moving and notably calm. While they don't secrete any harmful toxins, they may release defensive fluids when stressed--so it's best to handle them gently, if at all. Always wash your hands afterward. If one curls into a tight spiral, it's not trying to be cute--it's protecting itself from perceived danger, and that's your cue to give it space.

2025-05-20

Bug Fix

To improve system performance and reduce server load, we have removed the "Full Rescan" checkbox from the user interface in UDOIT Admin. Institutions that wish to perform a full rescan on a course must now do so directly from within the course itself.

Thank you for your understanding as we continue to optimize the platform experience.

2025-05-13

Overview

This release focused on improving accessibility and accuracy across UDOIT's functionality. Key bug fixes enhance screen reader compatibility, ensure correct labeling of resolved issues, align language with Canvas, and eliminate false error detections.

Bug Fixes

We addressed a number of issues to improve screen reader compatibility and navigation:
- UDOIT Scan initiation and completion messages are now announced.
- A status header in the UFIXIT table has been added. Screen readers can now better identify the section of the table being explored by a user.
- The course score is read more intuitively as "Course Accessibility Score X%" instead of "X% Course Accessibility Score."
We've resolved another accessibility issue where marking an image as decorative or leaving the alt text empty caused the wrong element-- the surrounding link instead of the image itself-- to be flagged. Now, decorative images inside links are correctly identified, and the new UFIXIT form properly fixes the issue by adding descriptive text when needed.
UDOIT now specifies the language selected in UDOIT Admin in its root HTML element, this helps assistive technologies correctly identify the language of the application.
Image Elements Should Have an 'alt' Attribute errors are now correctly retained without being marked decorative when resolved in the UFIXIT modal.
Images Should Not Have a Placeholder as Alternative Text errors are no longer incorrectly marked as decorative when resolved in the UFIXIT modal.
UDOIT no longer reports false positives for color contrast issues that were occurring when spaces and line breaks were in the parent element.
Tables with color styling no longer flag the Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis error. Text with color within a table will still flag this error, and tables with color styling are still scanned for color contrast issues.
When you type in the search field of the Users tab of UDOIT Admin results now populate in the table below.
Courses with errors, suggestions, and file issues will populate the table with any selection of rows per page, not just 25 or 50.

Bug Appreciation: Devil's Flower Mantis

The Devil's Flower Mantis (Idolomantis diabolica) is a breathtaking marvel of evolution, blending menace and beauty in a way few insects can rival. With its extravagant, petal-like limbs and vibrant coloration, this mantis is a master of mimicry, resembling exotic flowers to both lure prey and evade predators. Found primarily in East Africa, it can grow up to 13 centimeters long-- making it one of the largest mantis species in the world. Interestingly, females are not only larger but more vividly colored than males, using their ornate appearance to better camouflage among flowers. When threatened, the Devil's Flower Mantis fans out its spiny forelegs and wings in a sudden "startle display" that look like a blossom bursting open-- a defense that startles predators and captivates human observers alike.

Beyond its aesthetic appeal, the Devil's Flower Mantis is a highly skilled predator. It employs patience and precision, lying in wait for unsuspecting pollinators to wander too close before striking with lightning-fast reflexes. This mantis doesn't just look like a flower-- it moves like one, subtly swaying back and forth to mimic petals shifting in the breeze, enhancing its floral disguise. Even in its juvenile stage, this species is full of surprises: nymphs can change color depending on humidity levels, shifting tones to better match their surroundings. As delicate as it is deadly, the Idolomantis diabolica reminds us of the intricate and often overlooked beauty of the insect world-- a living testament to nature's ingenuity and a true gem among arthropods.

2025-04-22

Overview

This release we are introducing new features within the UDOIT Admin Courses table related to bulk scanning. The new Bulk Scan feature in the UDOIT Admin Courses table allows users to initiate scans across multiple courses at once.

This also release includes several bug fixes, including improved handling of default text color errors in UFIXIT, corrected user name display in exported CSVs, added closed captions and a downloadable transcript for the UDOIT Introduction video, and resolved an issue with accessing the HTML view in UFIXIT.

Customer Gathering Resources

During the Solutions Showcase at our Customer Gathering, several amazing customers shared how they're prioritizing and supporting accessibility efforts. In the chat, a few of you asked for an Accessibility Workflow guide. Well, ask and you shall receive! We've created Google Docs guides designed to help educators easily remediate issues and design accessible course content. You can duplicate and customize them as needed.

Check out this guide for all DesignPLUS, TidyUP, and UDOIT users including educators and instructional designers.

Updated Videos

As features and updates roll out, we provide new and unique training videos for our Cidi Labs users.
This release gives you access to the following updated video:

UDOIT Admin: Reports & Settings - Our Canvas / UDOIT Admin users can view detailed reports of UDOIT data at the Canvas root or sub-account levels. This video has been updated to include the new scoring feature.

New Features

The Admin Courses table has a new Bulk Scan button. When a bulk scan is initiated, there will be a pop-up dialogue box for users to confirm whether they'd like to continue scanning all courses in the filter and whether they would like to run a full or partial scan. Additionally, there is a progress indicator that tells users how many courses remain in the bulk scan queue.
Another button has been added to the UDOIT Admin Courses table: Refresh courses button. This button allows users to refresh course data on demand without having to reload the page.

Bug Fixes

When an error is flagged in UFIXIT on text that uses default text color, the "remove color" selection will no longer be an option.
The "Name" column of an exported User CSV within UDOIT Admin lists names of individuals in that field as opposed to the term 'user'.
The UDOIT Introduction Video includes closed captions, and a transcript can be downloaded.
An issue with accessing the HTML view in UFIXIT has been fixed.

2025-04-08

UDOIT Release

This release was focused on squashing some high priority and pesky bugs. Users will now experience smoother scans, with no false positives related to color contrast, duplicated errors, or failing alt format generation due to format issues.

Bug Fixes

A fix has been applied to a bug that occurred when scanning courses with large file sizes. Previously, users received the "EntityManager is closed" warning message after scanning a course. Now, scans complete successfully, and larger files are properly scanned.
Some clients reported false positives for color contrast errors flagged by UDOIT. This issue has been resolved, and clients will no longer see false positives related to color contrast in the UFIXIT modal.
Some users were experiencing cloned issues appearing in the UFIXIT modal after marking an issue as resolved. This bug has been fixed, and users will no longer see duplicate errors after resolution.
Older file formats for docx, pptx, and xlsx were previously failing when alternate files were requested. This bug has been fixed, and older file formats uploaded to courses will now generate alternate files.

Bug Appreciation: Water Bugs

The largest members of the Heteroptera family, water bugs—also known as —can grow to over 5 inches long. Though native to regions surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, it wasn’t until 2021 that these giant, alien-like 👽 creatures made their first appearance on the shores of Cyprus. The sighting was shared on a Facebook group called , sparking a wave of engagement from fellow nature enthusiasts. Many members replied with their own photos of water bugs found on the same beach along the island’s eastern coast, bringing the total number of sightings to seven, including contributions from local naturalists. Interestingly, all of the water bugs found were either already dead or died shortly after being discovered. Researchers believe they likely flew over from nearby mainland areas, exhausted after their long journey. 🥱 Despite the sightings, no more water bugs have been found in surrounding waterways, leading scientists to speculate that the creatures were unable to establish a lasting presence on the island. While they may have arrived quickly, it’s still uncertain whether Cyprus could see a more permanent population of water bugs in the future. Often described as “vicious hunters,” these bugs are notorious for their painful bites, which can cause significant discomfort if handled carelessly. If they do manage to settle on Cyprus, experts warn that they could become a major problem for the island’s shoreline ecosystems. For now, residents and visitors alike are advised to stay alert and avoid getting too close to the water—especially when it comes to keeping their toes out of reach from these formidable invaders 👾.

2025-03-25

UDOIT Release

This release includes various improvements and bug fixes. Key updates include resolving issues in the UFIXIT modal, ensuring more consistent error detection and preventing duplicate issues from being created during scans. These changes improve overall stability and user experience

New Resources

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed a new knowledge base article (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - How to enable tab navigation in Safari for Student Access files from UDOIT

General Improvements

The scoring update notification, "Account and Subaccount-level scores may have changed due to a recent update to how UDOIT handles 0% values. This does not affect course-level scorecards. Read more about this change in the Release Notes ." has been removed from the UDOIT Admin home page.

Bug Fixes

We resolved an issue with the "Avoid using Styles for Document Structure" to ensure that selecting "Remove Color" removes the color from all heading levels without error.
When users select "Mark image as decorative" when addressing "Alternative Text is More than the Maximum Allowed Characters" errors, the box will remain selected after saving to prevent any confusion.
A fix has been implemented to ensure that "Headings Should Be Used in Content" errors are consistently detected in the UFIXIT modal for all content types within Canvas.
An additional fix has been implemented in the UFIXIT modal to ensure that the "Link Has Nondescript Text" error is consistently detected for all content types within Canvas.
An error in the UFIXIT modal caused the page to crash and show a white screen when processing the "Base Font Should Not Be Used" error. This issue has been fixed by defining the preview element, so the page no longer crashes.
When a page exceeded 3,000 words and an issue was marked as resolved, UDOIT would create a duplicate after rescanning that content type. Although the problem has been fixed, DesignPLUS users may still see this error, and a fix will be made in the next release.
UDOIT no longer creates duplicate issues when users uncheck the "Mark Resolved" box after previously marking an issue as resolved.

Bug Appreciation: Bombardier Beetle

You might think you're nostalgic for the '90s, but there's a hidden gem from that era you probably missed: In 1999, a 33-cent postage stamp featuring the Bombardier Beetle, famous for its "toot juice," was released. These stamps were rare, as only twenty of the 33-cent commemorative stamps were issued in Indianapolis, Indiana, on October 1, 1999. While these stamps are tough to find, the Bombardier Beetle itself is not—it can be found on every continent except Antarctica. As mentioned earlier, its claim to fame is its chemical spray that originates from its abdomen, ejects through its rear end, and can be aimed at its predators. You might be wondering how the beetle doesn’t burn itself from the inside out. The answer lies in its two separate chambers, each holding a different chemical. Both chambers contain natural chemical inhibitors, and before it ejects the toxic mixture from its abdomen, the beetle adds a naturally occurring anti-inhibitor, allowing it to safely release the chemicals through its rear.

Watch this beetle in action.

2025-03-13 (Patch Release)

UDOIT Patch Release:

The General Improvements and Bug Fixes from the 2025-03-11 release are still live. We appreciate the customers who provided prompt feedback and the internal teammates who identified bugs, helping us implement this important patch.

Bug Fixes

Deleted or reset courses were appearing in the Admin Tool's Courses Table. Clicking the Scan button for such courses now shows the error message “The course cannot be found” and displays "Inactive Course" in red in place of the Scan button. Additionally, inactive courses will no longer appear in the Courses Table.
There was an edge case where an "Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis" error in a PDF conversion on a Canvas page content type was not appearing in the Preview Modal and instead it appeared blank. The "Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis" error in PDF conversions of Canvas page content now appears correctly in the Preview Modal.
There has been an update to the way the Admin Scorecard is calculated, so the following message now appears above the Admin Scorecard on the Home tab: "Account and Subaccount-level scores may have changed due to a recent update to how UDOIT handles 0% values. This does not affect course-level scorecards. Read more about this change in the Release Notes."
Since we have changed how we handle scorecard data at the admin level, we revisited the treatment of null scores in the scorecard report. Null scores in the scorecard report now display as 100%, and this change is reflected in both the Admin Scorecard and the Historical Data Report: Scorecard Current.
The warning message when saving scorecard configuration changes has been updated to clarify that recalculating all course scorecards may take time, but rescanning will not occur: "Updating the scorecard weights and issue types will require all course scorecards at your institution to be recalculated, but they will not be rescanned. This can take some time. Are you sure you want to make these changes?".

2025-03-11

UDOIT Release: Smoother, Smarter, and More Accessible!

We’re excited to share the newest updates designed to enhance your experience with UDOIT. We want to give a special thank you to our customers who provided early feedback on the new scoring and reporting functionality, it was integral to the success of this project. In this release, we’ve focused on improving functionality, fixing bugs, and making the platform even easier to use. You’ll notice more intuitive navigation and improved accessibility features. Additionally, we've made several bug fixes to ensure a seamless and consistent experience. Whether you're managing course files, reviewing reports, or improving accessibility, UDOIT is now more reliable and user-friendly than ever. Thank you for your continued support, and we hope these updates help you work more efficiently and effectively!

New Resources

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed a new knowledge base article (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - Do TAs have access to UDOIT?

General Improvements

The Review Files tab in UDOIT has been updated to Review Course Files, and the Files Summary on the dashboard now displays Course Files Summary for added clarity.
The Last Scanned Date now displays next to the Scan Now button in the upper right corner of the navigation bar, rather than requiring you to hover over the button.
In both admin and course levels, the reports chart will no longer display hidden or de-selected fields in the hover tooltip.

Bug Fixes

Scores between 99.0 and 100 will now always round down, ensuring courses with minor issues are flagged for remediation. Conversely, scores between 0.0 and 1.0 will always round up, ensuring courses that meet some criteria are recognized. As a result of this fix, account and sub account level scores may have changed.
Some users had reported experiencing page crashes when viewing alternate formats, this bug has been fixed.
In the past, the hover tooltip displayed all fields in historical data reports regardless of selection, now users will only see the hover tooltip for the fields they have selected.
An accessibility issue has been addressed by adding heading structures and landmarks to the new Scorecard, allowing screen readers to navigate it correctly.
Table sorting has been updated to fix an issue where numerical data was incorrectly sorted as dates.
UDOIT is now better at ignoring different types of whitespace when checking for the error "Images Should Not Have Placeholder as Alternative Text.
Cards created using DesignPLUS that were previously flagged with “Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis” have been updated and will no longer be incorrectly flagged.
There was a temporary issue where UDOIT was not flagging tables missing row/column declarations; these errors are now being flagged again.
Previously, HTML files scanned in UDOIT using formatting (bold, italics, font size, etc.) in a paragraph instead of a header were not flagging an error; now, it will be flagged appropriately as "Avoid Using Styles for Document Structure".
There was a bug where content items without heading levels were not being flagged as "Headings Should Be Used in Content"; this error is now properly flagged regardless of whether it was created with DesignPLUS or the Rich Content Editor.

UDOIT Essential Bug Fixes

Essential customers will now receive consistent results following the update from old reporting to the new scoring system.

Bug Appreciation

Was it a bird? Was it a plane? Was it a....dragonfly?!

Hold onto your hats—this is one fly update! According to Rhode Island’s top dragonfly expert, the state is home to a dazzling 140 species of dragonflies and damselflies. While the Blue Dasher is a frequent flier there, what happened last summer on Rhode Island’s southern beaches was anything but ordinary. See the swarm for yourself!

Blue Dashers are not migratory, so what could have caused this spectacular swarm? Well, turns out it was a combination of a really abundant year for them and a significant change in their habitat conditions. The swarm grew as the Dashers, known for their feisty and territorial nature, sought out more space and—much like sunbathers on a crowded beach—ended up piling onto the sandy shores.

Don’t worry though, these little beauties are harmless (the worst they’ll do is eat all your mosquitoes), and their presence is a reminder of nature’s unpredictable charm. Now, just like the agile and smooth flight of a dragonfly, this update brings the same precision, adaptability, and efficiency to your UDOIT experience. So, just as the Blue Dashers made their mark on Rhode Island's beaches, this release is here to make sure your workflow stays seamless and stress-free, without any swarming distractions.

Catch the breeze, embrace the update, and let UDOIT fly!

2025-02-27

Enhanced Scoring & Reporting Now Available!

UDOIT just received the best update yet! The tool now includes a customizable, interactive accessibility scorecard that measures the state of accessibility within and across your Canvas courses. 😱🥳 Users at the course and account level will have the ability to drill down on an accessibility score to see how each type of issue was scored, as well as to see the impact level of those issues - all with the goal of helping you prioritize your accessibility work to make the biggest improvements. Finally, the scoring will be accompanied by expanded reporting capabilities to display historical trends that can demonstrate progress in your accessibility journey.

Scoring is disabled for courses by default, but the Admin Tool will show an account level scorecard. UDOIT Admins can configure the scorecard, opt to enable the scorecard at the course level, and even decide if they would like the score to include unpublished and / or unused content!

Reports may take 24 hours to generate and populate in the Admin Tool.

New Resources

New Knowledge Base Articles

Our support team has developed several new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - How do I enable the UDOIT Home Scorecard for my institution's courses?

KBA - How does UDOIT scoring work?

New User Guide Resources

As the tools and functionality of UDOIT continue to grow and expand, so does the User Guide. We've made significant updates to include new content to support the scoring and reporting features:

General Improvements

If your institution is not opting in to Scoring just yet, don't worry! We've made updates to ensure the gauges and data on Course UFIXIT Homepages are working properly.

Bug Fixes

Our team has resolved an issue that was causing an error message stating that the content has been changed outside of UDOIT when users selected the "Fix all identical issues" option. You should be able to use this feature without trouble. Additionally, we've fixed an issue in which this option was preselected for some users.

Bug Appreciation

Picture this: You’re strolling through the New Zealand wilderness (already a dream for many of us) when you hear a rustle in the underbrush. A rat? A bird? Nope—it’s a giant wētā, an insect so hefty it could outweigh a small sparrow and so chill you could carry it around as your BFF (maybe just my dream now?). With its beady little eyes and impressively spiky legs, the giant wētā looks like something straight out of a fantasy novel, but despite its fearsome appearance, it’s more of a gentle giant… unless you’re a particularly tasty leaf.

Unfortunately, these oversized crickets have faced some tough times, but conservationists are on a mission to bring the wētā back, with protected sanctuaries and breeding programs giving these chunky bugs a fighting chance. Because honestly, the world’s a better place with a few more giant, slightly clumsy, prehistoric-looking grasshoppers hopping around.

2025-02-11

General Improvements

When a file times out while trying to generate an alternate file format, users will see the link update to say Retry Request to indicate that the initial request has timed out.

New Features

Users can now access the Support team to report a problem or provide feedback. To utilize this feature, open UDOIT Advantage in your course.

Select the kebab menu in the top, right corner of the UDOIT application.
Select Share Feedback.

Bug Fixes

The Admin Tool has received an adjustment so the "Include courses from sub-accounts" in the filter tray functions properly.
This release also resolves issues with Student Access displaying alternate formats to students.
We have fixed the CSV export in the Course Activity area; users can now successfully export the data from this table.

2025-01-28

General Improvements

The UFIXIT Admin Settings tab has received scanning improvements.

Bug Fixes

Keyboard focus continues through menu items and then to the Dashboard items rather than being forced onto the close button in the Ways to Get Started tray.
Adjustments have been made to ensure the accuracy of the "Content Length Should Note Exceed 3000 Words" issue.

2025-01-15 (Patch Release)

We have restored the Percentage of Checks Passed gauges on the UDOIT Dashboard.

The General Improvements and Bug Fixes from the 2025-01-14 are still live. The Dashboard should now have both the gauges and arrows as seen below:

Dashboard with gauges and arrows

2025-01-14

Dashboard Updates Removed

Please note that the Dashboard Updates in this release have been reverted in the 2025-01-15 Patch Release. The General Improvements and Bug Fixes from this release are still live.

Dashboard Updates

You'll notice that your Dashboard has changed! We've removed the Percentage of Checks Passed gauges to make way for our new Scoring feature. The arrows that indicate the increase or decrease or errors, issues, remediation, etc. are still visible to users. We've also included a notice at the top to clue users in that the missing gauges are not a bug.

Don't miss the old gauges too much because the new Scoring feature is going to open up a whole new world for remediating your courses with accuracy and ease!

Updated UDOIT Dashboard with new notice and no gauges — There is a new notice about the removal of the gauges above the **Content** and **Files** widgets. The gauges on the left of the data have been removed, but the arrows showing increases and decreases remain on the right.

General Improvements

The UFIXIT Admin Settings tab has received accessibility improvements. There were also some general improvements to the Admin tool Course Scan feature.

Bug Fixes

We included a high priority fix to ensure that both files with longer names and files with redirect links will still generate alternate formats properly.
We've changed the way the program examines words address inaccurate "Content Length Should Not Exceed 3000 Words" errors some users received. Word counts should be more accurate now.
Users can update the number of rows displayed on the Files table without issue.

The Archives

If you have the time and desire to look through our release notes from the years gone past, we saved them, so you can find them here:

2024

2024-12-03

Our developers have been doing a lot of behind the scenes work preparing for the new scoring features, so even though you only see a couple bug fixes in these notes, there is an unbelievable amount of work being done.

First time hearing that UDOIT is going to have scoring in 2025? Check out the recording from the "A Less-Stress Path to Accessible Canvas Courses" Webinar to get a preview.

Bug Fixes

Admin Reports now properly loads the Issues by Type table.
Exporting a UFIXIT report as a CSV now contains accurate information in the Title column.

2024-11-05

Bug Fixes

We've made some adjustments on our end to ensure that courses reported to Cidi Labs as not completing processing for files complete the task.
UFIXIT now truncates very long content item names with an ellipsis to keep the table from breaking and ensure users are able to access the modal.

Bug Appreciation

National Geographic's Instagram account recently called attention to a very unsuspecting predator; naturally, I had to go find out more. Akin to the dragonfly, the damselfly, suborder zygoptera, has wide-set, bulbous eyes that make it look like a cartoon version of itself. Britannica offers a surprisingly a thorough introductory look at the Damselfly including a note that while most species are content to eat any small insect that comes their way, the pseudostigmatidae family expertly snatches spiders from their webs! The British Dragonfly Society has provided readers with very specific characteristic features of damselflies, and even includes species specific images, videos, and images.

2024-10-08

General Improvements

We've updated the permissions so the UDOIT Admin Settings kebab is blocked when attempting to be accessed from a Canvas Sub-Account or any account that is not the highest account UDOIT is available in. This ensures that users who need to be able to view the UDOIT data without having access to changing settings can be appropriately limited.

Bug Fixes

We've done more work on the Alternative Text Character Limit customization in the UDOIT Admin Settings. Previously, the input field allowed text, but now it only accepts numerical values.
Additionally, the default character limit is still 150, but if a user clears out all values in the input field, the field auto-populates with 10, the lowest character limit. Admins will not be able to save the customization with a blank field.
The Replace file with an uploaded file feature has been updated so that when a file is replaced, the replacement file is scanned in any subsequent scans. Also, the Replace file with an uploaded file button will remain enabled so you can replace the file multiple times.
Previously, the LTI had two vertical scroll bars, one for the UDOIT content and one for the Canvas page. Now these is only one vertical scroll bar for the whole Canvas window, including the UDOIT application.

Bug Appreciation

They may look fuzzy and cuddly, but you should definitely not handle any of the 8,000 different species of Mutillidae, or Velvet Ants, without protective gear. This insect, like the Tarantula Hawk, isn't actually an ant at all; it's a wasp! These highly evolved insects often avoid becoming a meal as they have a number of defenses such as speed, tough exoskeleton, coloring, and of course a stinger that can be up to half the creature's body length! Check out London's Natural History Museum's What on Earth? entry on Velvet Ants to see various species and learn more about their defense mechanisms, especially that stinger.

2024-09-10

This week's release resolves several bugs and gives Admin users the ability to add in customizations to both fit their institution's preference surrounding alt text and improve the contrast checks if your institution uses custom CSS.

New Features

The UDOIT Admin Settings now has UFIXIT Customizations! These customizations give Admin users the ability to set application preferences for their institution.

Default Colors: Set both the default background and text colors to match colors set in your institution's custom CSS.
UFIXIT will use this to determine if text has sufficient color contrast.

Alternative Text Character Limit: This setting affects the 'Alternative Text Is More Than the Maximum Allowed Characters' rule. It defines the maximum number of characters users can add to alt text before being flagged with "alt text too long" in the modal.
The default if left empty is 150 characters.

Bug Fixes

We've adjusted the UDOIT navigation to automatically handle and respond to different screen sizes and browser zoom percentages.
Some color contrast issues were not being flagged because institutions with default colors in the CSS were not specified in the code. Now, we have given Admins the ability to set their institution's default text and background colors if they have custom CSS.
We've adjusted how the application checks for and flags the Missing Table Headers issue; UDOIT checks for multiple xml table header syntax types to find this issue type with greater accuracy.

Bug Appreciation

A colleague sent this my way, and not going to lie, I've been excited to share this Alabama local news source article that was sent to me about chrusoperla carnea ever since. Imagine if the Dust Bunnies from The Big Comfy Couch were lost to the dark side, and that's the Junk Bug. This little predatory larva is also known as an aphid lion, which is definitely more ferocious sounding. All the "junk" it's lugging around is actually little tiny corpses of delectable prey! When it's development is all said and done, it becomes the Green Lacewing.

2024-08-27

This week's release resolves several bugs and .mp3 generation improvement, but one item that we know you have been eagerly awaiting is a resource that displays the WCAG standards that this tool addresses. The wait is over! We have this resource available to you in the User Guide now!

General Improvements

We've updated the way .mp3 files are generated using text rather than SSML. This is really exciting because you will notice that the pronunciation, intonation, and speed of the AI voice is much closer to normal speech patterns!

New Resources

WCAG Guidelines Mapped to UDOIT Issues - While UDOIT is not a full WCAG certification tool, many of the issues it checks for do map to WCAG standards. This new resource page shows all WCAG guidelines paired with UDOIT issues that check for all or some of that guideline.

Bug Fixes

The Files Reviewed data has been moved from the Content tab of the Admin Tool for UDOIT Advantage customers. Admins can see the visual data breakdown of Files Reviewed and Files Remediated in the Files tab under Reports.
Files names that are too long will now be truncated with an ellipsis rather than extended past the Modal or the Title column on the Files table.
Files that are partially password protected will now display the Password Protected error in the Review Files tab of the tool.
When requesting Alternate Formats for a .PPTX file, all generated files will now display the correct file name; HTML generation will still display index.htm as the file name, but this is intended behavior.
Some institutions were having an issue with the JS file properly installing Student Access in their instance; we have addressed this problem, and Student Access should now work as expected upon install.

Bug Appreciation

Ah...the old bait and switch! Pollinators in Malaysia move from flower to flower just doing their thing, then snatch! The unsuspecting bee or butterfly is clutched in the buggy little arms of the Orchid Mantis, Hymenopus coronatus. What is fascinating is that these mantids use mimicry and food deception to capture their prey, and one of the first times scientists were actually able to study and observe this particular predation strategy was as recent as 2013. You can learn more about the study published in The American Naturalist thanks to The University of Chicago Press Journals.

2024-06-18

Our work for UDOIT this release cycle focused on bug fixes so that your experience continues to get better and better.

Bug Fixes

We've added a check for the UDOIT Theme Javascript, so when you open UDOIT it will check to make sure that your institution has Student Access enabled. If Student Access has been turned on, the system will add it to the course. Previously, it would only run the check on certain content items, but know it will check as soon as you open the application.
In the Admin panel, course lists and report lists can now be generated for data going back 3 years! This is up from the previous limit of 6 months, but keep in mind that larger lists take longer to generate, so please be patient.
The UDOIT Javascript Template had a bug in it that could cause certain items to display as undefined for some institutions, so we took care of that, too!
Anytime a file is on a page, whether it is linked to the file itself or set as a link to download, students will still see the Student Access dropdown arrow (if enabled at the institution and course levels), and see permissible options and available formats.
If the same file is linked in multiple places, you will see the dropdown to the right of each and every link!
The Missing Titles error was not consistently being identified on .docx files; now, we pull that document property from the Core XML rather than Style XML to provide consistency and accuracy.

2024-06-04

Overview

We have some bug fixes going out that center on preventing the app from crashing, proper functioning of the Review Files tab, and improving Student Access.

Bug Fixes

Our testing revealed that attempting to navigate away from the Course Activity page to other areas in the app resulted in UDOIT crashing, so our developers resolved this as soon as it was discovered.
When Canvas failed to open files or returned them with a 404 error, the app would display that the invalid file was still loading; now, you should see the correct Processing Error message in the error column of the Review Files table.
When a file is on a page, whether it is linked to the file itself or set as a link to download, students will still see the Student Access dropdown arrow (if enabled at the institution and course levels), and see permissible options and available formats.
Currently, if the same file is linked in multiple places, you will see the dropdown to the right of at least one of the file links on the page; we are continuing work on this feature to smooth it out.

2024-05-28

This release we have focused on addressing bugs to ensure that UDOIT runs smoother for you as you work on course accessibility. Some of the bugs we addressed will help us better identify and log errors so we can handle problems as they arise; these fixes don't have any adjustments to what you see.

We've also upgraded our file issue scanner, so now you won't have time to twiddle your thumbs whilst waiting for your course files to scan; you're not imagining it...it is scanning faster. 🏃🏽‍♀️‍➡️

Bug Fixes

We resolved an issue that was causing published Pages to be considered Unused Content by the UFIXIT page filters.
When users upgraded pages from DesignPLUS Legacy to the new Sidebar, some icons were being flagged for "Insufficient Color Contrast" in UDOIT but not in the Sidebar's Contrast Checker; UDOIT and the Sidebar's Contrast Checker now match.

2024-05-01

Overview

In this week's release, we've improved the system that scans and identifies issues, so you should see more consistency and speed in .pdf file scanning and fixed several bugs.

So many of our institutions love our Train the User training model (we love it, too), so we have made the request for UDOIT Training available on the Welcome Message under Other Resources.

Bug Fixes

We understand that issues are not always either/or, sometimes issues are both/and.
Before, text with both Insufficient Color Contrast and Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis issues only displayed one type of issue listed in the modal; now, upon scanning, users will see both issues if they apply to the same text.
Deleted content was not being handled well when users initiated UDOIT scans from Cidiscape; we've made adjustments so there is more stability in the tool regardless of whether users initiate a scan from the tool or from Cidiscape.
Ever try to cancel an alternate format and the modal still says processing? We've fixed the issue, so now when you cancel an alternate format request, you can feel confident that the request has indeed canceled. You'll still see the confirmation banner, and the "Processing" message will return to "Request" upon further review.

If you see something that needs attention, please report it to our Support Team Links to an external site. so we can address it.

2024-04-16

Overview

There were no changes in the code for UDOIT this release cycle, but we've done a major glow up on our User Guide! Page themes and features are upgraded and made over, but remember we are just as beautiful on the inside, too.

If you see something that needs attention, please report it to our Support Team Links to an external site. so we can address it.

New Resources

New User Guide Pages

UDOIT Admin Settings - Review all options available in the Admin Settings area, including the Student Access for UDOIT installation guide.
UDOIT Admin Overview - Get a better understanding of what constitutes a UDOIT Admin and quickly access Admin Guide resources.
Kaltura Integration - Learn more about adding the Kaltura Integration to UDOIT if your institution is a licensed Kaltura partner.

The Glow Up

The UDOIT User Guide got a makeover! Many pages now include our training videos, and we've made some additional changes to improve your experience:

UDOIT User Guide Home Page - A new Module List helps you easily look through the User and Admin Guides, and the updated Link Grid gives you quick access to the items you use most frequently.
What Does UDOIT Look For? - This is the most up-to-date information on Errors and Suggestions that reflects recent changes in UDOIT.
Reports - View screenshots and explanations for each Course-Level report type.
Admin Reports - We've refreshed our screenshots, chunked UDOIT Admin Report Types into tabs, and added a link to the Cidiscape User Guide for better access to information.

2024-04-02

General

We've built in a new functionality so that if UDOIT comes across a file in your course that doesn't exist, is corrupt, or receives an error from Canvas for any reason, it will show a processing error, and generating alternating formats is disabled. We thought it would be nice for you to know files aren't available so you aren't waiting around frustrated for something that's never going to happen.

New Resources

Our support team is constantly developing new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - Why are terms and sub-accounts missing from the UDOIT Admin LTI?

Bug Fixes

We've addressed an issue in which UDOIT flagged a color contrast error, but Canvas' Accessibility Checker had no contrast issues flagged. These tools should be on the same page for this issue now.
We've made an honest button out of "Next Issue;" when fixing some types of errors, selecting "Next Issue" would send users back to the start of the list rather than actually going to the next issue, but now users actually go to the next issue.
Certain special characters (such as "<") were breaking the UFIXIT form, but that has been resolved so users will no longer see an error for special characters.
If you add a video link into a module using the External URL file that has a Closed Captioning Issue, we've changed the messaging so users are aware that UFIXIT is unable to be marked as resolved within the modal.
We've made some adjustments so if you add a .docx file to your course that does not have headings, UDOIT will label it with a "Missing Headings" Error in the Review Files tab.
UDOIT now scans .svg files to ensure this file type have alt text or are marked as decorative.

2024-03-19

General

You may notice we've freshened up our UDOIT logo both on the loading page and in the tool. Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you, it's actually different. If you didn't notice, that's more than fine by us, but here is a reminder to check and see if someone close to you cut their hair or bought new clothes—you don't want to miss out on complimenting them.

What you won't actually notice is that we have updated some items behind the scenes to bring UDOIT up to date. For the tech gurus, we have updated the framework of our library from React 16 to React 18.

New Resources

Our support team is constantly developing new knowledge base articles (KBA) to make sure all of our amazing customers have access to the newest information and answers to common questions.

KBA - How do I resolve the error, "Oops! An Error Occurred" in UDOIT?

Bug Fixes

We've resolved a bug in the UFIXIT modal that occurred when fixing items flagged with "Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis" in which selecting Make this text bold, would bold the text, but remove the color as well; the modal will correctly apply the fixes you select without applying other fixes.
Files that are incorrect or invalid will display a "Processing Error" in the File Issues column rather than remaining blank; this could be due to Canvas returning a 404 error on the file or from a corrupt file being uploaded into the course.
- We recommend running a full scan to determine if any of your files that were empty in the File Issues column are related to a processing error.

2024-03-05

General

In your Canvas instance, you can now test your Kaltura Connection:

Open UDOIT Admin Settings
Input your institution's Kaltura partner information
Select Test Kaltura Connection

[Note]: Be sure to fill in all three fields.
Leaving one or more field blank will result in a false success message; we are currently addressing this edge case.

Bug Fixes

We've fixed some caching issues on the server, so users should no longer receive an error message while trying to access UDOIT from courses.
If you continue to receive this error, please put in a support ticket, and we will take a look as soon as possible.

Student Access Now Available

Student Access Is Available for Install

The long awaited Student Access is now available for institutions to install in their Canvas instances.

This is an optional feature for UDOIT Advantage that requires some setup; see the install instructions here .

What is Student Access?

Student Access is an optional feature for institutions licensing UDOIT Advantage that allows students to quickly access (and optionally generate) alternate file formats from wherever they are in Canvas.

This feature can be enabled or disabled by admins at the Canvas root level as well as at the course level by instructors and designers.

For more information, visit the Student Access for UDOIT Advantage page in the User Guide.

2024-02-20

File Remediation

Improved scanning capability for Word documents. The scan now checks for:
- Missing Title
- Missing Alt Text
- Missing Headings
- Missing Table Headers

2024-02-07

General

We've added metrics at a glance on the Dashboard
1. Green Ring: Percent of UDOIT checks that didn't identify an issue
2. Red Arrow: Indicates an trend in increasing issues, errors, or suggestions in the course
3. Green Arrow: Indicates a trend in issues, errors, and suggestions fixed or resolved in the course
Introducing Course Activity Tracking
- Access the Course Activity feature by selecting the kebab menu > Course Activity
- Course Activity provides a log of all actions taken within a course as well as any errors encountered
Access Course Activity Feature

Bug Fixes

All the data you see on your UDOIT Home page accurately reflects the course you are currently in (phew!).
We've addressed an issue in which users were unable to set up the Kaltura integration in the UDOIT Admin Settings

File Remediation

We've made improvements to the file scanning in UDOIT to give you a better experience.

2024-01-04

Content Scanning

Improved performance on content scans.

File Remediation

Improved performance on file scans.

2023

2023-12-07

Content Scanning

Color contrast checks now take into account the font size/heading level used for the text. This ensures a more comprehensive evaluation of accessibility standards.

Reporting

In both course and admin-level reporting, the "Total" column has been replaced with a more insightful representation—a percentage of issues fixed or resolved. This enhancement provides a clearer and more meaningful overview of the resolution progress.

Bug Fixes

Resolved an issue that prevented the scanning of certain courses.
Fixed an issue causing intermittent loading failures in UDOIT Admin reports.

2023-11-02

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue causing false flags of "Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis" rule

2023-10-18

Bug Fixes

Added logic for Adjacent Links rule to ignore links without href attribute
Fixed issue causing incorrect preview HTML on certain issues
Fixed issue causing "Replace with PDF" option in the files modal to break
- Note: Temporarily disabled the ability to scan the optimized PDF as it was causing issues
Fixed potential issue causing slow UDOIT scans

2023-10-05

UFIXIT Modal

Added "Remove color" option for Avoid Using Color Alone for Emphasis issues.
Added "Expand preview" button to allow users to more clearly see the context of the issue.

UDOIT Admin

Improved ability to handle large data sets without crashing

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug causing scans to fail on courses with certain HTML files.

2023-09-07

General Improvements

Added data copying functionality for initial scan on a copied course

File Remediation

Optimized PDFs used to replace a file will now be scanned properly by the tool
Tooltip next to file issues now opens on click and hover

UDOIT Admin

Added filter to UDOIT admin to switch between 1/3/6 months of reporting data

File Scanning

Copied courses track file issues, alternate files, and reviewed files from previous course

Bug Fixes

Fixed bug causing empty scan results
Fixed bug that was causing issue HTML to not update after a scan
Fixed bug that was causing images to be removed during PDF -> Canvas Page conversion
Fixed bug with content item titles longer than 256 characters (now supports up to 512 characters)

2023-07-20

General Updates

Added a tooltip on the Welcome/About page for rules which are not currently supported

Beta Features (enabled in UDOIT Admin Settings)

Added the ability to apply a fix to all identical issues (AKA issues with the same HTML)

Content Scanning

Improved titles and descriptions for video-related issues

File Remediation

Alternate files for deleted files are now shown on the “Alternate Files” page for easy access
Generated HTML now strips empty tags that were being flagged by UDOIT as issues

Bug Fixes

Fixed bug with Canvas media comments
Fixed false flagging of Design Plus content
Fixed sorting bug on UDOIT Admin
Fixed “Invalid Date” bug on UDOIT Admin
Fixed caching issue that caused need for hard reload/cache clearing to see updates

2023-06-15

General Updates

CSVs now match the sorting and filters of the table from which they are exported
Expander containing link to User Guide is now expanded by default on home page

Bug Fixes

Various reporting page data consistency fixes and improvements for both the course and admin level
Fixed issue where some date formats were not sorted properly
Now using institution date format consistently throughout the app

2023-06-01

General Updates

Alphabetized various lists and dropdowns

Reporting Updates

Greatly improved reporting page’s ability to update data while you are using the tool

Content Scanning

Youtube video scans now account for unlisted or private videos

File Remediation

Introduced new libraries to identify PDF issues

Added new issue that flags password protected PDFs

Added clear UI indicators for when a file is deleted
Removed duplicate file issue types in filters

Easier to sort by file type and issue type

Bug Fixes

Various assorted bug fixes

2023-05-04

General

The Kebab menu now has an "Open in New Tab" button.
Errors/Suggestions/File Issues on the About page are now alphabetized.
Issue types in the "Ways to Get Started" area are now alphabetized.
All labels have been updated for Spanish.
Updates to rules text to be less technical

Content Scanning

Added a new issue called "Adjacent Links Found". This issue flags adjacent links that have the same URL and should be combined into one.
" Closed Captions Cannot Be Checked " rule
- Now a suggestion instead of an error
- Updates list of video services that cannot be checked:
  - dailymotion
  - panopto
  - instructuremedia
  - mediasite
  - sharestream

File Scanning

Improved post-processing of HTML generated from PDF->HTML conversion.
Added a page for easier management of alternate files. It can be accessed by navigating to the "Review Files" tab and clicking the "Alternate Files" button.

Reporting Updates

Added a table on the file reports tab that displays a count of file actions taken.
Added a message in the file reports section when all files are currently being scanned.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where a normal scan was triggering a "Full Rescan".
Fixed an issue where reports weren't updating properly after actions were taken.
Admin: Fixed an issue where searching for a nonexistent user caused a crash.

2023-04-13

General Features

“Full Rescan” button was added to the menu. A full rescan scans all course content and files regardless of whether they’ve been updated recently.
Improved integration with Cidiscape (forthcoming)
Improved queue handling for bulk file processing
Added a new issue, "Adjacent Links Found", which checks to see if two links that are adjacent have the same URL.

Reporting Updates

File tab added to Course Reports to show course file data from UDOIT Advantage
File tab added to Admin Reports to show account file data from UDOIT Advantage
File reports can be exported as CSV
File issues displayed as a chart
File resolutions (files reviewed vs files remediated) shown as a chart
File issues by type shown in a table
File history shown in a table

File Scanning

PDF file scanning is now handled by the Adobe API Services rather than converting files to HTML and analyzing the HTML
DOCX/PPTX file scanning is now handled by custom code rather than converting files to HTML and analyzing the HTML
A new issue, “Missing Structure”, marks PDF files without headings
PPT files are now scanned for slides without text
Requested alternative formats for a file can now be canceled during processing
Requesting an MP3 alternative format no longer requires generating the HTML first

Bug Fixes

Users can now authenticate to the UDOIT Admin tool without errors
Admin reports now sort dates properly

2023-02-17

General

Asynchronous tasks are now handled on a separate server
Files which are marked as “in use” in UDOIT cannot be deleted through UDOIT
Files that fail file scanning cannot be converted to alternative formats
The content error icon, which was the same icon Canvas used for unpublished content, has been changed to an exclamation point in a circle, to avoid confusion
In cases where individual files are still being processed after the UDOIT course scan has completed, a spinner will now appear next to the file on the Review Files page
Video API connection failure will now be tracked as its own issue. This is especially important for YouTube video caption scanning

Bug Fixes

Content modal: index showing the active issue should be more reliable on save
Files will be scanned for file issues even if they have previously been tracked before with UDOIT Cloud
HTML files will be saved with proper character encoding as changes are made in UDOIT
File conversion errors will no longer be shown to the end user, but will still be logged

2023-02-02

UDOIT releases will no longer be tracked by version number, but rather the release date. This is to avoid confusion with the release versions of the open source UDOIT.

Cidi Labs’ UDOIT Cloud now offers two versions, UDOIT Essential and UDOIT Advantage.

UDOIT Essential

UDOIT Cloud is now called UDOIT Essential. This version of UDOIT will more closely follow the open source version of UDOIT supported by UCF.

The following changes have been made that affect both versions of UDOIT

UDOIT no longer scans the course on every page load. It will do an auto scan if it has been more than 24 hours since the last scan.
Settings have been added to the UDOIT Admin LTI tool. These settings are available:

Dates can now be formatted. There are various options to choose from.
The Kaltura API key can be set per institution.
The UDOIT language can be changed from English to Spanish.
The Welcome message can be customized.

The UDOIT logo has been updated.
Various bugs related to the content and files modal have been fixed.
The API token will no longer expire if UDOIT is left open for more than one hour.

UDOIT Advantage

UDOIT Advantage offers premium features developed by Cidi Labs. These new features include everything included in UDOIT Essential, plus:

File scanning for common errors

Scanned file detection
Untagged PDF detection
Outdated DOC file extension

Alternative format conversion

HTML (saved as Canvas Page or HTML file)
Auto-tagged PDF
Text
Epub
MP3 audio

Replace links to a file with an alternative format (Canvas page or auto-tagged PDF)
Delete files that are not being used in course content

2022

3.1.4

Released 11/2/2022

UI: Dashboard redesigned to show more file info
Feature: Issues filterable by usage (whether content is linked to in the modules or other content)
Feature: Files filterable by usage (whether a file is linked to in the modules or other content)
Admin: Improves performance for larger data sets. Limits reporting to the most recent 90 days
Various minor bug fixes

Along with visible changes this release also includes many behind-the-scenes changes that will support file remediation features coming soon. :)

3.1.3

Released 2/3/2022

Admin: CSV download of issues report
Admin: CSV download of users
Admin bug fix: terms being incorrectly filtered. Filtering removed for now.
Bug fix: iframe flicker in Safari
Bug fix: HTML file links broken after changes to the HTML content
New rule: Iframe not handled - External content may be inaccessible.

3.1.2

Released 01/14/2022

UDOIT Admin: Fixes "Rows per page" functionality
UDOIT Admin: Institutions with 100+ enrollment terms were not able to access the course. Reported by UW.
Accessibility: added screenreader labels to icon buttons

2021

3.1.1

Removing broken and redirected link checker for performance reasons. by @AlanFCMV in #715
Bug fix for link to the syllabus in UFIXIT modal. by @atarisafari in #722

3.1.0

Readability and accessibility improvements for home page by @AlanFCMV in #664
Allow scanning of ungraded quizzes by @AlanFCMV in #676
Rescan content after submission by @atarisafari in #677
Fix for rescanning blank courses by @AlanFCMV in #680
Alert audio for scan completion by @AlanFCMV in #672
Improve Heroku install instructions by @bagofarms in #687
Fix video rescan bug and issue controller now checks for report errors by @atarisafari in #690
Fix parameter order deprecation by @AlanFCMV in #688
Added google/youtube policies to front page by @atarisafari in #693
Separate contrast form from emphasis form by @atarisafari in #695
Remove deleted rules from constants.js by @atarisafari in #698
Discussions with assignment submission types won't be counted twice by @cidilabs in #704
Update LTI Key privacy level to anonymous by @AlanFCMV in #705
Fix for bug that sets activeIssue incorrectly after issue save. by @cidilabs in #702
Add broken/redirected link checker by @jasonmatos23-git in #678
Add module item support to UDOIT. Supports externalUrl scanning. by @cidilabs in #703

3.0.1

Update to PhpAlly 1.0.3.

Update to INSTALL.md instructions.

3.0.0

Version 3.0 of UDOIT Cloud is a significant leap forward in the functionality and user experience of the platform, making it easier and more efficient than ever for instructional designers and instructors to ensure their Canvas courses are accessible to all learners. We’ve also expanded the UDOIT admin capabilities, giving Canvas administrators greater visibility into the accessibility efforts across all of the courses in their Canvas account. The major updates included in version 3.0 are as follows:

The scan of a course now happens automatically whenever a user accesses UDOIT, eliminating the need for users to manually start the scan and decide what parts of the course to scan each time.
After the initial scan of all course content, UDOIT keeps track of what content has changed since the last scan and only looks at those items in subsequent scans. This makes the scanning faster and more efficient.
A new home page that provides more helpful ways to get started with reviewing and fixing accessibility issues that are found in the scan. For example, several pre-filtered lists such as “Easiest issues to fix” are provided as an easy starting point.
A more efficient way to navigate through a list of issues and fix them.
Additional summary information that helps users keep track of how many issues are outstanding and how many have been fixed.
The ability to filter the list of accessibility issues by a wide variety of criteria.
The ability to search issues by keyword.
The ability to manually mark an issue as resolved if it has been fixed outside of UDOIT.
A dedicated area for reviewing files (since they are not programmatically scanned by UDOIT) with the ability to indicate and track what has been reviewed and what has not.
The ability to upload a new (more accessible) file to replace an existing one from within UDOIT.
Reports on the history of scanning and issue resolution activity, which can be viewed at the course level as well as the sub-account and account level.
An expanded administrative area that allows admin users to initiate accessibility scans across courses in their accounts or sub-accounts and view aggregate reporting for their entire account or sub-account.

Due to the nature of the changes in version 3.0, the upgrade will require a new installation (of the UDOIT Cloud 3.0 LTI tool). The installation is straightforward and can be performed by a Canvas Admin by following these instructions. If you would like Cidi Labs to perform this install, please submit your request by completing this form .